Our country was built on the credit and good will of others, even at the beginning. Imagine how things would have turned out for George Washington and his troops had the Continental Congress not borrowed money and supplies from their fellow Americans and the French government.
And it is a rare family today that doesn’t have credit. Few of us can plop down the thousands of dollars to buy a car or a house. Our only recourse is to go to the bank or credit union and get a loan to pay for these necessities.
Almost every American household today has a credit card, and those are used many times for things that don’t quite meet the level of “necessity.” We’re all guilty of using our plastic to buy that new HD TV, an upgraded iPod, or even a couple of pounds of hamburger for the weekend barbecue.
Too many of us get carried away and that’s led to a major imbalance in the personal credit market. We owe more than we can pay, meaning sometimes what we bought on credit has been consigned to the Sandtown landfill by the time it’s paid for.
New rules on credit cards went into effect Aug. 22, they’re designed to help us keep our fat out of the fire. For example, you no longer will see a charge for not using your card. You only can be charged only once if, for example, your payment check bounces; it used to be you’d be hit up for returned check and late payment fees.
These changes and other were pushed through Congress with the thought that they’ll help protect us from ourselves. Of course, if we use our credit wisely, many of the changes won’t affect you and me. They’ll also help people who truly have trouble managing their credit, and that is a good thing.
Unfortunately, they’ll also help those who purposely abuse their credit and that’s not so good. The unscrupulous among us will use these new rules to continue to work the system to their advantage. There really isn’t much we can do about them.
But what we can do for ourselves is to manage our credit wisely. Don’t buy what you don’t need and save up for those things you do need.
Now if only those who represent us in Congress could learn that lesson.
Email Jeff Brown at jeff.brown@doverpost.com.
