My First Credit Card! Thoughts?

JoeBlack03 on 06/11/2022 - 12:55

Hello mates,

I finally decided to try credit cards, starting with HSBC Platinum thanks to Credit Card Guide Wiki
I also like their HSBC Everyday Global Account from this post of Best Australian Transaction with a 2% cashback for purchases under $100.

Then should I use my debit card for purchases under $100 and use my credit card for everything else now? Or do CC rewards outweigh the occasional 2% cashback?
I thought the whole point of getting a credit card is to maximise its benefits, then your everyday transaction account doesn't matter that much, right? Also isn't it better NOT to carry a debit card at all for security reasons, now that I will have a CC.

Sorry for the stream of questions, I'm just trying to organise my thoughts around how many and what accounts I need, and see if there is any justification to change my transaction acc from ANZ to HSBC. Any help? How do you organise your money accounts/cards? Does your everyday transaction account matter?

Financial Credit Card

Comments

  • USER DC on 06/11/2022 - 13:02
    +2

    good luck getting approved with HSBC (more often than not they reject). ANZ def very tedious credit card application process.
    I suggest you go and open CC with a bank with whom you are already having a GOOD relationship with first, (like Combank/Westpac/Anz whatever you have already).

    • JoeBlack03 on 06/11/2022 - 14:36
      +1

      thank you for the info, I'll check out big 4 then as well.

    • HeWhoKnows on 07/11/2022 - 12:55
      +1

      Macquarie Bank has a transaction account paying the highest rate of interest (3.45% from 16/11/22) with FREE Platinum Mastercard Debit card to go with it.
      This card offers:
      • Platinum Concierge Services
      • Emergency Travel Assistance Services, and
      • Various Platinum Debit Mastercard Insurances.

  • Nutrino on 06/11/2022 - 13:03
    +2

    Ohhhh look… his first credit card…. im sooo happy for you.

    • SBOB on 06/11/2022 - 13:12
      +8

      they grow up so fast….

  • Neoika on 06/11/2022 - 13:05
    +4

    7 months after this, OP still has not taken action. Possibly a duplicate post.

    • JoeBlack03 on 06/11/2022 - 14:12
      +1

      not a duplicate, I was just enjoying a CDC card for half year while 2% cashback was there on everything :)
      Things turned for worse though, so the time for Credit Card has come!

  • holdenmg on 06/11/2022 - 13:31
    +1

    I saw the movie "Meet Joe Black"
    I'm surprised you need a Credit Card or anything material.

    • JoeBlack03 on 06/11/2022 - 14:17

      Love the movie! Materialistic joys require capital though…

  • Drakesy on 06/11/2022 - 13:36
    +1

    Just go for the ones with the highest bonus offerings, trying to accumulate points any other way is a waste personally.

  • Vulgar on 06/11/2022 - 14:00
    +4

    The optimal strategy is to use the debit card for instore transactions under $100 and the credit card for everything else (online + instore >$100). The credit card will give you mentioned won't give you much value in the long run since the annual fee rises to $129 after the first year.

    If you want to build your credit history, your first credit card should be something with no annual fee such as the St George No Annual Fee card (https://www.finder.com.au/st-george-no-annual-fee-credit-car…) or the AMEX Essential (which also has a 0.625% cashback)(https://www.finder.com.au/american-express-essential-credit-…)

    If you want to go wild and gain the maximum value out of credit cards you can churn. This means your 2nd, 3rd, 4th etc. cards will have very good signup bonuses and low first year annual fees such as the St George Amplify Platinum which requires $3000 of spend in the first 90 days to get $450 of gift cards and charges a $29 annual fee (https://www.finder.com.au/st-george-amplify-platinum-credit-…)

    • JoeBlack03 on 06/11/2022 - 14:13
      +1

      thank you, I'll look into it!

    • Hellcrusher3304 on 06/11/2022 - 17:16
      +2

      Care to explain how having a no fee card can boost credit history?

      • Vulgar on 06/11/2022 - 20:01
        +2

        It's a card you keep and make very rare purchases on which will lengthen the average age of your existing credit cards which boosts your score. This can be done without incurring an annual fee

        Other cards that you apply for with an annual fee will come and go (since a lot of them have a reduced annual fee for the first year and you'll be using them for signup bonuses).

  • Cyphar on 06/11/2022 - 17:17

    The encouragement of obtaining multiple cards here is disgusting. No wonder we have rampant inflation that has no signs of stopping.

    Why do you want a credit card? I got one at 18, cut it up at 20 and haven't have one in 20 years. Why risk running up some out of control debt in this current time?

    • uwuwu on 06/11/2022 - 17:19
      +9

      most clued in ozbargainers know how to control their spend, pay off credit card in full during interest free period and reap the rewards of the sign up bonus…

    • Neoika on 06/11/2022 - 17:24

      Didn't you notice more credit card inquiry topics appear recently? It shows money is getting tight. People want to spend bank' money wherever they can first.

    • MeesusEff on 06/11/2022 - 17:32
      +10

      Why risk running up some out of control debt

      That's not a credit card problem, that's a person who doesn't have spending control problem.

      I only use my CC for everything and then pay it off before it's due, extra Flybuys points, credit card protection, free travel insurance etc.

    • brendanm on 06/11/2022 - 20:23
      +3

      It's not hard to have a credit card and not spend money you don't have. If you use it for things you were going to buy anyway, you get points/cashback, free insurances, price protection etc.

    • theo96 on 07/11/2022 - 15:23
      +1

      Because having a credit card is not about "buying things on credit", but gaming the rewards system to maximise the benefits on the spending you're going to do anyway.

    • Ughhh on 07/11/2022 - 17:23

      Do you go crazy with your debit card? Is there a reason why you can't treat the credit card like its a debit card?

  • zrmx on 07/11/2022 - 14:08

    CC rewards rarely go beyond ~0.4x% for fee free or low fee cards if you are amassing enough to transfer to flight reward programs but redeeming for either Gift Cards or as credit for CC bills, with the assumption that your spend on the card isn't that high. Often the merchant fee can be higher than the rewards.

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