sml@wdl1.UUCP (sml ) (07/26/84)
#N:wdl1:3400003:000:539 wdl1!sml Jul 25 21:42:00 1984 I received an offer from "MORE VISA Card Service" in Buffalo, NY. They offered me a "no annual fee" VISA card. The catch appears to be that it comes with an immediate $500 cash advance. This is, I would assume, subject to their interest charges. Interesting gimmick. I'm tempted to get the card, pay back the $500 immediately (paying ~$10 for 1 month's interest) and then having a free card. Steve Lazarus Ford Aerospace MS X-20 3939 Fabian Way Palo Alto, CA 94303 (415) 852-4203 sml@ford-wdl1 (ARPA) ...fortune!wdl1!sml (Usenet)
mark@cbosgd.UUCP (Mark Horton) (07/29/84)
Sounds like Execu-Charge. They probably have a very high interest rate and encourage you to make small payments, so they make lots of money on interest. The mandatory cash advance is a dead giveaway. Most savings and loans in Columbus offer free checking, some with free Visa. (My former bank, BancOhio, just started charging a per check charge on top of the $5 fixed rate charge I had been paying, so I closed the account out and opened a checking account at State Savings. I have a free Visa with free checking, a chain ATM, and all the services I'd expect from a bank except being well known in the banks-we-wire-money-to books. And the Visa is only 17.75% interest.) You should also expect them to not keep the Visa free. Execu-charge started charging $20/year after a couple years. I don't know if State Savings will start charging someday or not.
marco@fortune.UUCP (08/11/84)
#R:wdl1:3400003:fortune:39400012:000:760
fortune!marco Aug 10 17:24:00 1984
Execu-Charge has a definite advantage if you charge a lot on a regular basis.
That is you get a 1% rebate on anything you charge,
regardless if you pay Execu-Charge now or later.
If you charge $1000 a month you get $10 credit. If you pay
at once you pay no interest, net gain $10 per month. The break even point
is probably charging less than $100/mo. You get $1 back and pay $.20 for a stamp
and $0.15 for a check to pay the bill so as not to pay the 22% interest they
now charge.
If you travel on business a lot charge everything on your card,
file your expense reports promptly (Ha!) and collect your due.
Then pay the bill (which usually takes about as long to come through as
your expense reports be paid) before it accrues interest.
Marco