What's wrong with using interest-free credit?

[Al B. Sure!]

In one of the tech threads, the brothers are acting all incredulous because I purchased a laptop, realized that my new credit card was offering 0% APR for 12 months on transfer balances and moved my balance from the laptop purchase to the new card to take advantage of the promotional offer.

Why the comments like "And you were a FINANCE major?" and "Palm. Meet face."???



I am genuinely lost. Why the hell would I not take advantage of this offer? It didn't affect my purchase decision since I bought the laptop before the offer and it sounds like just a cool bonus for me that I can pay it off gradually. What's the problem?

Hell, the money I would've used to pay it off right away is sitting in either a bank account or stock so that's like cost-free investing for me.

[Kuciwalker]

tanstaafl

[KrazyHorse]

1) Interest free is a ****ing lie, albie. There are balance transfer charges (generally 3-4%)
2) Lehman Brothers

[Kuciwalker]

Also, you aren't using the leverage to earn any arbitrage profit (do you really have much in the way of savings in accounts that pay real interest? really?), you're using it solely to shift consumption forward in time, without (it seems) a serious expectation that your income will increase over the same period in a way that would offset that shift.

But yeah, mostly tanstaafl. I think it's far more likely that you're being scammed than you've found genuinely interest-free credit available to someone with your level of credit risk.

[Al B. Sure!]

Also, you aren't using the leverage to earn any arbitrage profit (do you really have much in the way of savings in accounts that pay real interest? really?), you're using it solely to shift consumption forward in time, without (it seems) a serious expectation that your income will increase over the same period in a way that would offset that shift.

But yeah, mostly tanstaafl. I think it's far more likely that you're being scammed than you've found genuinely interest-free credit available to someone with your level of credit risk.

All this free lunch business means nothing for me, though. That's up to Chase if they want to foot the bill for my lunch. I fail to see how it's a negative for ME.

And I have reason to expect my income to increase because I will be in the military by the time the promotion ends. Why pay it off when I'm unemployed when I can pay it off later when I have a job?

And my level of credit risk? Really? What makes you think I'm risky?

[Hauldren Collider]

And my level of credit risk? Really? What makes you think I'm risky?

The fact that you are unemployed means you should have a fairly low credit score.

[KrazyHorse]

Given your repeated failures to get through basic training, I find your optimism intriguing..

[Elok]

All this free lunch business means nothing for me, though. That's up to Chase if they want to foot the bill for my lunch. I fail to see how it's a negative for ME.

And I have reason to expect my income to increase because I will be in the military by the time the promotion ends. Why pay it off when I'm unemployed when I can pay it off later when I have a job?

And my level of credit risk? Really? What makes you think I'm risky?

...do you actually know that you're getting into the military? Have the Marines or whoever accepted you, or are you just banking on their not being able to pass you up? If it's the second, that would make you something of a risk in my book.

[Hauldren Collider]

Given your repeated failures to get through basic training, I find your optimism intriguing..

In the meantime we've got a ton of kids from TJ lining up for the service academies. Just rubbin' it in, sorry.

[Kuciwalker]

All this free lunch business means nothing for me, though. That's up to Chase if they want to foot the bill for my lunch. I fail to see how it's a negative for ME.

The "free lunch business" implies that if someone is offering you something that looks like free money, you probably don't understand the offer.

And my level of credit risk? Really? What makes you think I'm risky?

You're UNEMPLOYED.

[KrazyHorse]

In the meantime we've got a ton of kids from TJ lining up for the service academies. Just rubbin' it in, sorry.

Albie wouldn't have done that because 3 years ago he was just weeks away from landing a job in IB

[Al B. Sure!]

The fact that you are unemployed means you should have a fairly low credit score.

I actually checked my FICO lately. I think it was a 737.

[Al B. Sure!]

In the meantime we've got a ton of kids from TJ lining up for the service academies. Just rubbin' it in, sorry.

?

So? Does that have anything to do with me?

And KH, 3 years ago I would have been a senior in college. Why would I go to a service academy? I would've been too old, anyway.

[Asher]

2) Lehman Brothers

[Al B. Sure!]

Yeah I heard their collapse had more to do with the fact that you worked there than anything else.