4 of 84

No

Write now Article Tools

In NO way until a person is settled into a career, should ANYONE have a credit card.
The offers seem so simple and tempting, and when it comes down to it, a person can adversely effect the next 20-30 years of their life if they aren't careful. The fact that these offers come to teenagers while in college, borders on criminal in my opinion.

I'm not saying that mommy and daddy shouldn't be ready at the helm, with an emergency line that can be accessed by phone while the darlings are away at school in case of:

1.Federal funding being pulled for Pres. to have a war - Daughter's food card doesn't work at school until we come up with said funds.
- oh yeah, that happened to us, and just about everybody we know with kids in colleges in Spring 04 to the tune of $5,000.
2.Daughter's timing chain blows on major Connecticut highway.
3.Daughter rolls car in the Bronx, during rush hour. Gets one stitch. (Miracle)

No young adult should have access to that kind of credit line. Credit is wonderful to secure payment over the phone in an emergency, to pay a bill while waiting for a settlement, to shop online, and to not have the hassle of needing to carry cash. People who are very organized like the convenience of just paying the one bill a month, and take advantage of setting up an auto-matic payment plan between their credit card company, and their creditors. (ie, car loans, mortgage, phone bill, etc)
Some credit cards offer perks, like 1-5% bonuses back on how much you spend. "Discover" card does this, and a friend of mine uses it for all of her purchases. She needed a washing machine, and decided to check and see if she had any credit from her Discover Card purchases. Not only could she get the washer, she bought the matching dryer, and had tons more credit! She has since earned a dishwasher, a refrigerator, and several trips to Virginia and back!

I had a Discover card when I was younger. They would send me coupons in five dollar increments. I'd save a few, and go shopping. Or let them expire. They did away with that system, and my friend didn't realize what she had accumulated in the 20 years she had it! It does have it's drawbacks though. Discover isn't taken everywhere, and if you don't pay it off monthly, it carries a very high interest rate, as well as a higher late penalty than most cards out there. But, it can be done, just as my friend has proven!

I think I realized the evilness of credit cards when I read a report that

• 1
• 2
• next page >>

Add your voice

Know something about Should teens have credit cards??
We want to hear your view. Write now!