I realized this the other day when we went to get our new homeowner’s insurance (we found one that would insure our dog, yippee) and they needed a $30 fee paid in cash.
I hardly ever have any cash in my wallet. I have my checkbook, my credit and debit cards, and my E-Pass pays for my tolls on the turnpike.
I took out some money for our recent trip to Georgia, but that’s because I told the kids that we would match whatever they managed to save for their trip. For myself, I paid for everything by credit card (which I specifically paid off before the trip.)
How else are you going to pay for a cup of coffee, a newspaper, cabfare, a few cans of cat food at the deli, take-out Chinese . . . I don’t want to give the credit-card company all my money. I dunno, maybe it’s a “city” thing.
As I’m not great at remembering to put stuff in my checkbook register, and I don’t have a credit card (college student) I have to carry cash or I run the risk of forgetting a purchase and overdrawing my account when I make a debit purchase.
You don’t ever have random small cash-requiring things, ivy?
Not all of us are ensconced in Technoland. Until only a few weeks ago, a popular local family-owned store took only cash and checks. I am a vendor at outdoor summer festivals, and I just don’t do enough events to justify a merchant CC account. And have you ever been to a rummage sale where they took plastic? Ever bought secondhand goods (like a car) from someone with a credit card?
Cash is just as convenient as plastic for some purchases, if not more so, as Eve pointed out. I think paper is still firmly with us, thanks.
Even in Chicago, you need cash for some things. The cafeteria and the restaurant located in the building where I work do not accept credit cards, for instance. And I hate using a card for small purchases, say under $10 or $15 - so if I want some gum, a magazine, or a soda from a newsstand, I’m certainly not going to pull out a card. The grocery store near my home will not process credit or debit card transactions under $10 because their merchant fee is too high. Not all of the taxis in town take cards. The transit company’s fare card dispensers require cash - I could get one of their smart cards and pay via credit, I think, but I use the L so irregularly that it’s not worth it.
I use my debit card for almost everything. Then again, I don’t need cab fare or a cup of coffee or a newspaper from the corner stand. If I don’t have it, I don’t spend it. I do try to keep about $10 in cash in my wallet, but right now I’m down to some loose change.
If I’m going somewhere like a flea market where I know I’ll need cash, I’ll run by an ATM and get some. And when I do long road trips, I make sure I have cash. Otherwise, it’s debit all the way.
They’re technically not allowed to do this, so if you felt the need you could get them in big trouble with their credit card companies.
I too carry cash for purchases under $10 though. Whenever I see someone using a credit card at Wendy’s or something I think “You don’t have enough cash for a hamburger? What a loser!”
Checkbook stays at home for paying bills ONLY. Paying for something by check is bizarre to me.
My SO always carries cash–which was a real shame when his car got stolen and his wallet with $600.00 was in it, too. He got the car back a week later with very little damage, but the wallet was long gone.
I rely on my debit card for most things and rarely have any small purchases throughout the week. Anything I’d need cash for is usually planned ahead (like an evening out with the girls) and I hit the ATM accordingly.
I do continue to carry some cash with me, just in case, but I rarely use it. Debit card is just too convenient now, especially since you can usually swipe the card and enter your PIN before the transaction is even completed by the cashier. Like some of the previous posters, I don’t understand people that still carry a checkbook. It makes no sense to me. I went Christmas shopping last weekend and two people in front of me pulled out checkbooks to pay. I almost lost it.
I also carry some cash, but never carry a checkbook. I only ever use a checkbook to pay rent, and then only because my land lady doesn’t want me to set up an automatic payment from my bank account to hers.
I try to keep about $20 cash in my wallet. I use the debit card for just about everything personal, and a company credit card for business purchases, so the 20 usually lasts me a month or so. When it gets down to about $10, I pick up another 20 in cash back during one of the debit purchases. I haven’t seen the inside of a bank in years, and checks are strictly for paying bills that cannot be done via online banking.
I carry cash, checkbook and credit card. No ATM card or debit card. I’m with Eve…your daily stuff simply can’t be accomplished without cash. I like to have at least $20 on me ($7 if I’m just at work).
I don’t like having less than $100 in my pocket. I think it stems from all those years in the military when I didn’t have that much in my entire bank account. There’s something solid about cash, even though I use my debit and credit cards for almost everything.
In the early to mid-'90s I got to a point where a $10 bill might stay in my wallet for weeks. Then the serious effort to get rid of credit debt began and I started paying cash whenever possible.
Now I use my AMEX to buy gas and airplane tickets and to pay for hotel rooms. Everything else is cash. While I keep a Visa active, I haven’t used a credit card since 1996.
