In my last entry I revealed I’m utilizing SNAP for the second time in my life and why I’m not embarrassed by the extra food assistance during these months of being quarantined at home with my kids. My job is still furloughed, so my unemployment was extended but, with the $600 additional contribution of federal benefits ending on the 25th of July, I only receive $90 in unemployment from the state each week. Thank goodness for savings! Based on the $100 per week requirement, I won’t be eligible for the additional $300 per week in Lost Wage Assistance recently passed by the President.
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I haven’t been keeping track of this money diary and the way that I expected to. In the spirit of Refinery29’s Money Diary, I thought I would go week by week with the things I’ve spent money on but, after doing that for the first week, I noticed different weekly trends. The first week it was dealing with the end of my unemployment, the second week it was dealing with applying for emergency unemployment, and the third week it was dealing with the end of the additional $600 provided by the federal government. In recent weeks, I switched over my main, regular, credit card to a rewards card and it’s now what I use for all of my purchases, with the exception of most groceries for reasons mentioned above.
Why I’m Using a Credit Card for Everything
It’s actually really crazy that I wasn’t already doing this as much as I love cashback situations, but I was not, so in July I converted my Platinum Capital One card over to a Quicksilver card, which will allow me to receive unlimited 1.5% cashback on all of my purchases (I should add that although it says there’s an annual fee, I don’t have one and my APR is less than what’s listed, so it’s definitely a case by case situation). I would be lying to say I don’t have some lingering mental trauma from being repeatedly told about the horrors of credit cards growing up and that’s a large portion as to why I hadn’t decided to use credit for everything previously.
Why I Wasn’t Already Doing It
If I’m being completely honest, it wasn’t until this year really that I started using a card in the way that you should in terms of utilizing it and paying it off at the end of the month. Even the exclamation that I just gave is not accurate as I’m not exactly “paying it off” at the end of the month, more so before my due date. Doing so ensures I’m not paying interest on things I’ve already purchased, so my deals can stay deals, but it also keeps my usage low.
Paying My Credit Card Off
In between my due date and my statement ending date, usually the day after my due date to be exact, I purchase something and pay that down to 3 – 5% of my credit limit. It’s my belief this is the best way to utilize my credit card so that I’m not only getting max cashback rewards, I’m also showing the credit bureaus and the credit card company that I’m not only utilizing my card, I’m utilizing it responsibly. While doing this, I have seen a gradual increase in my credit score, and just in the few weeks my card has been upgraded to a rewards card, I’ve already made $7.37 in cashback rewards. Yet another way I’ve found to make money during the pandemic by doing something I was already doing.
I’m curious to know how everyone else was told to utilize credit cards when they were growing up. Were you told they were bad and not to get them? When you finally got one, did you use it responsibly? Would you use a credit card for everything?
SPENT THIS WEEK
- Black Girl Sunscreen: $13.48 on a Good Morning America deal
- Rent 1/2: $1000
- Disney+: $7.49
- Hulu: $64.18
- Discount Tire: $310.34 for 2 back tires
- Gas: $18.00 for a full tank
- Wal-Mart Grocery Delivery: $118.81
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