Hobby or Necessity?

[Anonymous]

I've been a lurker here for awhile now. I do peruse the 'credit card' sections of the forum and have gained some great insightful information that has afforded me a few things here and there. I do find myself asking this question often though: are the majority of the people who post here applying for cards etc because it's a fun hobby and there's nothing better to do at the moment or is there a need that comes up when the application process commences?

I'm not into suggesting what anyone should or should not do because are (I think) all mature adults that come to this forum. I wish I knew how to create a poll for my post but this will suffice.

[Anonymous]

Please, overlook my typos, poor grammar and misspelled words in any post that I ever do submit or topic that I create. I assure you all that it is not my intent to deviate from the topic at hand by any and all mistakes that my brain thinks and my thumbs decide to type lol.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I've been a lurker here for awhile now. I do peruse the 'credit card' sections of the forum and have gained some great insightful information that has afforded me a few things here and there. I do find myself asking this question often though: are the majority of the people who post here applying for cards etc because it's a fun hobby and there's nothing better to do at the moment or is there a need that comes up when the application process commences?

I'm not into suggesting what anyone should or should not do because are (I think) all mature adults that come to this forum. I wish I knew how to create a poll for my post but this will suffice.

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Perhaps, you have miscontrued what the forum is actually about.  The people here are not mostly applying for cards but rather helping out people who need help with their credit.

So don't mistake time spent on here as "chasing cards or having nothing better to do".  And no, you can't create a poll for your post unfortunately.  The Lithium sotware does not permit it.

[sarge12]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I've been a lurker here for awhile now. I do peruse the 'credit card' sections of the forum and have gained some great insightful information that has afforded me a few things here and there. I do find myself asking this question often though: are the majority of the people who post here applying for cards etc because it's a fun hobby and there's nothing better to do at the moment or is there a need that comes up when the application process commences?

I'm not into suggesting what anyone should or should not do because are (I think) all mature adults that come to this forum. I wish I knew how to create a poll for my post but this will suffice.

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There are as varied reasons for applications and also for chasing credit score improvement. Some are chasing rewards...churners. Some are trying to obtain the perfect credit mix to achieve high scores, and increased credit can make low utilization easier to maintain. Some may be needing more credit cards because they have utilized the majority of their current credit limits, although those are the ones headed for trouble IMO. Some here are strict transactors, others are admittedly revolvers. Some here, including myself, do consider all of this a kind of hobby. I could live fine with no credit, and never pay a dime in credit card interest. I do chase rewards, I do chase high credit scores, and I do try to maximize the benefits of the cards. I do not ever put anything on a credit card that I do not have the rescources to pay for, and I never buy anything on credit cards I would not purchase otherwise. I am a strict transactor. If you ask 10 people here why they apply for credit cards, you may get 10 different answers, and a few of them may seem irrational to you. The reasons definately can not be limited to hobby or need, and some might be a combination of those 2, along with several other reasons. The forum exists to help people educate themselves, to achieve their own goals, whatever that may be.

[SouthJamaica]

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@Anonymous wrote:
I've been a lurker here for awhile now. I do peruse the 'credit card' sections of the forum and have gained some great insightful information that has afforded me a few things here and there. I do find myself asking this question often though: are the majority of the people who post here applying for cards etc because it's a fun hobby and there's nothing better to do at the moment or is there a need that comes up when the application process commences?

I'm not into suggesting what anyone should or should not do because are (I think) all mature adults that come to this forum. I wish I knew how to create a poll for my post but this will suffice.

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1. I have no idea what the motivations are of people other than myself.

2. For myself I visited the site looking for information on building borrowing power, I found lots of information on that subject, I got extremely interested in it and it's become something of a hobby, albeit a very practical hobby in my opinion.

[pipeguy]

I don't know about the hobby aspect, already have too many of those (being married to the same person for almost 40 years, golf, woodworking and trying to stay sane at my current job).

I will say that I'm a sucker for cash back sign up bonus's and 0% promotional sign up periods. I very rarely pay any interest on purchases (never say never) but I do carry balances on 0% offers and BlisPay always paying in full before they expire. I also make anywhere from $300 to $1000 a year in pure cash sign up bonus's. To maintain sign up bonus's and 0% promotional offers I tend to open a few new accounts every year - I also close older no longer used accounts, but not to the extend that it would be called churning. I don't chase cash back rewards, but I probably bank $400-$500 a year in rewards (I don't really track it). 

Here is a perfect example, yesterday I sent the IRS a $1000 payment with my 2016 extension, put it on BlisPay with a $20 "fee" for a total of $1020 = 2% cash back = $999.60 actual cost and I get to float it for 6 months at 0% interest. While this example is a zero sum gain (40 cents gained), I "borrow" money for free for 6 months. Note that I', actually getting almost all of that back from a state refund, but I can't file state until I file federal  - I'll deal with it in a few months. 

These forums introduced me to BlisPay, DCU credit Union, and several other very useful cards. I don't go for annual fee cards, don't need them and I can't see the point given my limited travel at this point in time. I'm way past being "impressed" with any card and have no interest in showing off my credit cards - although I will say getting the Barclays RING with a high starting limit was good for the ego. 

These forums are about much more than just credit cards. I think most people show up on MyFico for the rebuilding and dealing with collections advice, I think they stay to share in the recovery and them some stay to pass on advice to those that are following their journey. I also see more than a few show up looking for validation for over spending on their "want" for a way too expensive car and most don't take the advice not to do it (most don't have what you would call sterling credit) - they don't tend to stick around. 

If you have ever gone through collections, or court or bankruptcy the shared advice on MyFico is very helpful, not a hobby at all, but a lifeline. Once you really learn the lesson and achieve higher scores, then its a community of support, sharing and benefits from geting the best cards, the best sign up bonues, and a little ego massaging banging out high credit limits on a more "social level". 

I don't post a whole lot compared to the number of years I've been a member, but I read almost all of the posts - okay maybe that's a hobby. In my profession you do a LOT of research to gain insight into all aspects of an issue - my job has nothing to do directly with the credit business, but I also have life experience having to do with buying and selling real estate property, cars, boats, and several ups and down cycles of a long credit history which I sometimes share advice on. ... end of rambling....