Cloud's car stuff

[tw]

Originally Posted by Cloud

furthermore, you cannot expect to get credit cards if you pay cash for everything. It's a screwed up system, but that's the way it is.

The $300 brake job is not an emergency. That is a normal expense in life. We just don't know which normal surprise will happen. But we know a $300 surprise will often pop up - normally. Because I never have car loans, I now have cash for those other routine obligations.

Looks like I will be spending $hundreds soon to fly to a funeral. Also not an emergency. Just another daily obligation. Some days, life costs $10 a day. Other days, it costs $hundreds. And none of those expenses are an emergency.

Meanwhile, I also must be saving $25K for the next car while meeting all those other obligations.

A credit card is an excellent emergency fund. A second function: it also replaces checks and money clips. But only if paid off in 30 days. It not paid in 30 days, the expense must be a real emergency. A $300 brake failure is a routine obligation in life. We don't know which surprise will happen but we know these surprised will occur routinely - another normal obligation.