Don’t get me wrong. I love coffee & I understand that buying a $4+ coffee is more about the experience than the taste. If I am up for an early appt somewhere, I will either make it myself or stop at the local shop for a $1.50 cup. However, if I take my wife out for an afternoon date, than we will go & drop $8-10 on a couple of gourment coffees because we are enjoying the experience together. I am also willing to pay extra for coffee if the place gives me free WIFI. I look at it as paying extra for the product in exchange for taking up a chair (valuable real estate in some city coffee shops) for a couple of hours. A fair exchange in my opinion.
HOWEVER, if you use a credit card to buy this coffee, 2 things will happen.
1) you are likely to buy more than you need. A large vs a medium, an extra shot of expresso, etc.
2) you could possibly pay over $20. for that coffee if it takes you more than a year to pay off the balance.
How?
If the coffee is $4.65 & you have a bad rate of 13.99%, then the compound interest on that coffee = @ $25.49 after 13 months. Even if you have a decent rate of 7.99%, that is still over $12. Was it that good?
Only you can decide. But ask your friends what they would think of you, if you told them you just paid $12. for a cup fo coffee. They will either think you just got screwed (& either have pity on you or will try to sell you a star with your name on it) OR think you just hit the lottery & will be looking for a handout.
SO, if you are going to pay off your credit card balance at the end of the month or you have a 0% rate on PURCHASES, then go ahead, charge that coffee to the credit card!
I would also submit that charging it as a business expense is justifiable as well. As much as I loathe the tax system & how our government steals from us, it still gives us no excuse to cheat them either, so only do this if it is legitimate. If I am truly on the internet, making money while in this coffee shop, then I can save the receipt & write it off. (I even write down what I was working on)
So, if you can afford a $25 coffee, then knock yourself out & charge it to the credit card. If you cannot, then rethink using the credit card.
If you have a high rate on your current credit card, consider trying to transfer the balance to a credit card with a low intro or for-life rate.
below is a consumer & a business credit card with great intro balance transfer rates.
Business
Get the Discover® Business Miles Card today!
Consumer
Choose Your Discover® More Card Now
or click here for more choices:
http://www.all-credit-cards-online.com/balance_transfer_credit_cards
until next time
cb
www.all-credit-cards-online.com
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