Going Into Debt For Dolls - are the potential long-term consequences worth it?

Excellent point!!
In my experience with credit cards they provide you with a degree of security and accessibility in as much as you can purchase something knowing that your bank will assist in the recovery of money if its fraudulent etc. and its easier than sending money into cyberspace with western union etc...

The down side is if you do not know how to use a credit card properly it can sink you for life. By being smart and non-emotional about doll purchases on your credit card you can make it work for you, I personally no-longer have an issue with buying a doll on my Matercard or Visa, as I do so knowing that I'm able to pay the lot before the interest is due. Or when I want to I use my Visa debit, perks of a cc and our using existing money.

On the flip side I wasnt always like that, when I was very young and was given the "plastic fantastic" without any real guidance and I first entered the hobby I bought close to $3500 dollars worth of dolls clothes and accessories on two credit cards, I was forced to sell the bulk of them off plus the majority of my priceless first edition comics to pay off the debt when the creditors came barking and the interest was up to 45% of the original total.... What was the saddest thing was if I had the proper guidance on how to use it I would have bought ONE then paid off the CC, then bought the second and so on... And I would still have what was once my most prized possessions...

So I guess the only suggestion any-one can make is that you aply the use of "debt" to your personal circumstances and if it can work for you thats fanstastic!! If its going to be too hard a stretch I'd suggest avoiding the slippery slope into the debt mindset. Each of us comes from different age groups and different demographics so whats good for one isnt always good for the other, though if we can learn from others shared experiences then we are moving forward towards a more enjoyable hobby...

 

Being someone who has used a credit card to purchase a doll i can say that i would never have done so if i was unable to pay it back. I agree with what Zagzagael has said, they are a tool. Owning a credit card does not mean you have money. However it can be a godsend when a lovely crisis comes out that you simply are not able to pull the full funds together in time. I do not go into debt over dolls as i am easily able to pay the credit off

There's a difference between people who use their credit cards. Some use it for buying what they want when they want without regards to the future, others use it in moderation and sensibly. I cut up the last credit card i used once i'd paid the doll debt off the following month and i havn't gotten another since. However i take offense to being called an idiot or a moron simply because i've used a credit card to purchase a doll. SystemRose you should really think hard before posting in a debate. No one is here to slander or mock anyone else.

 

maybe my vision is a little skewed, but I pay all my bills on time and I always pay over the minimum and only have 5% interest rate. So I justify it as satisfying my wants now and paying for it later. For instance if you buy a car you pay for it over time with interest. So why is that any different than the doll? It's the same principle right?

 

Personally i am a great fan and believer of layaway especially when it comes to purchasing dolls. To me the dolls i have bought have been fairly expensive and therefore i've been very fortunate to be able to acquire my dolls and pay them off in installments.

 

I'd never buy a doll if I can't afford it.
If I couldn't, I wouldn't feel like the doll was 100% my own. I'd feel my bank owned it. xD

 

I must admit to being curious: I have been watching the world's economic experts say we are in a worldwide financial crisis, companies are folding, stock markets are crashing, entire countries are in very scary positions (check out what is going on in Iceland and Pakistan) and governments worldwide have had to bail out banks. The root causes for this situation are in no small part due to easy credit, handed out willy nilly by banks etc. (Not my perception - listen to the experts). Yet none of this is filtering into this discussion.

Is it just me or is there a little bit of a disconnect here?

 

No, the discussion is about personally going into debt for dolls-- it's not about the world economy or anyone's national debt. Besides, it was begun 'long ago' (June), months before the current crisis.

Of course that's not to say you can't start bringing it into the discussion. Go 'head. How do you think it relates to going into debt for dolls? (Topic title being "Getting Into Debt For Dolls - are the potential long term consequences worth it, and why or why not?")

I personally wasn't using my 401K money or my mutual funds to buy dolls anyway, in the first place, and my credit-card balance is 0... so things are holding steady thus far...

 

I can only buy dolls and items for them with cold hard cash. I have no credit cards. I decided to do away with them 5 years ago. It's funny, I have been so proud for not having a credit card all this time and keeping my credit good or so I thought. Until I went to buy a car a few months back and couldn't because I have no credit. If I would have had a credit card I would have been able to get the loan. That seems a little backwards to me. Owing money to a credit card company will get me a loan instead of being free from any finacial liability...hun? Credit cards leave a bad taste in my mouth, especially after Walmart labeled them "consumer cards" But I have seen some awesome dolls that make me ache for a credit card sometimes.

 

Lol, no disconnect--it's just two different realms...well, I suppose it could overlap if someone's doll debt was compounding financial problems caused by the crisis, but it may be a stretch for most people. Dolls have nothing to do with my 401K, and don't encompass the amount of debt that would cause me issues of that magnitude (I mean there's debt then theres debt)--for most people it's probably not going to be on the same scale as what you're talking about.

 

I agree, the scale is just massively different. I suppose some people might rack up $20,000 or $100,000 in doll debt... maybe... but it'd be pretty difficult. However, there are lots of people around the world with that much debt and more from mortgages and car loans, in addition to recklass spending on other big ticket items. I would imagine even people with a lot of doll debt on a credit card would probably generally be under the $5,000 mark, simply because there aren't all that many dolls that are that expensive. It does add up, though, and it can certainly get individual families into a bad situation!

When people are talking about credit handed out by banks, it includes more than just your average credit card mailouts with a $5000 limit. And regardless of the amount of credit given, it tends to be more important how risky that credit is- i.e. how likely the person who's receiving it is to pay it off on time... or at all. It's more risky to hand $2,000 to someone who is unlikely to pay it back than to hand $200,000 to someone who is likely to pay it back. And of course the most risky is to give $200,000 to someone who isn't likely to pay it back... which is what had ended up happening.

 

I'm hearing what you are all saying - and I seem to be looking at this issue from a different perspective. As I have listened to the news, to the economists talking, etc, I have heard them talk about the interconnectedness - that this isn't just a simple issue of irresponsible bankers - that the easy spending habits of the consumers figure into this too. If you listen to people like Suze Orman you will hear her say people need to analyze needs versus wants, stop going into debt for anything other than big ticket items such as houses and cars (how to deal with the ridiculous dichotomy of having to establish credit first is beyond me...) and basically wake up and start paying attention to their financial lives.

Perhaps it's just a difference in philosophy - I believe nothing is without meaning - and that everything we do - and I mean everything - has impact...is connected - and deserves thought and consideration.

 

Wow! I am glad I found this thread. I was going to start one on the topic about whether the current world economic crisis would have an impact on the "bjd or dolly world" in general. I liked your comments Tumble. I have only read part of this entire thread so I hope I don't repeat any of the excellent ideas already put forth.

I only buy dolls I can afford. And now I am being much more discriminating, really checking out a doll before I buy. When I first fell for bjds, I paid $950 for my first Unoa kit. Now that I look back, I should not have been in such a hurry and been more patient. I could have saved a lot of money had I waited! And if I make a mistake or grow tired of a doll or they don't live up to my expectations, I sell them off. Even if I loose a bit, it is better in the long run not to be stuck with a doll that I don't play with.

I do not believe in going in debt for anything, except big ticket items, house, car, etc. If you are having trouble paying your bills, don't buy a doll. Save, earn extra money elsewhere, sell something else, but don't go into debt. The doll will mean more to you down the road if you really waited and if it truly is owned by just you!

 

No. I would never spend money I don't have on dolls. It's very tempting, obviously, but I just could never do that to myself. As for a Credit Card. I would not use a one to buy a dolls, either. I would save up in CASH, then deposit that cash into my bank then pay through Paypal.
It has always been my preferred form of payment. Just my personal opinion, though.

 

Oh I agree with you completely. Having a father who is in the investment business, I hear about this stuff more than I want to-to the point of drowning it out. I can remember back when I was in high school there was an issue with college kids racking up debt because they kept putting small items (we're talking Taco Bell meals kind of small here) on their credit card, instead of using money they actually had. In fact, Suze Orman gave them a lecturing. Fact is, anything you put on your credit card that isn't an actual need has the chance of causing problems. It is all connected, which is why we are where we are today.

I say this as someone who put a doll on her credit card just last week, even though I had the funds in my checking. That was actually hard for me to do, but since one of the ways of establishing good credit involves showing you can pay off your credit card bill regularly, I just made myself do it. So I don't think there is anything inherently wrong with people putting a doll on their credit cards (assuming they can pay it off), but I do think they need to understand how credit actually works and affects other things in their lives (like being able to get a house or car).

 

I bought my SDC Kurt from Volks on my credit card. I decided to just take the plunge and go for it, because the day after was payday anyway. I'll have paid the entire bill off by next payday (Halloween) and I consider it a sort of secondary layaway process. I wouldn't have any problem doing it like that again...and it will have been the first thing I ever used my cc for. What's worse? One controlled, one-time payment, or several shopping sprees? I haven't hit my limit and I'm not struggling for money, using the credit card just allowed me to spread the payment out and avoid living off noodles

At the moment I don't have any credit history or credit rating and if I was to try and buy a house I probably wouldn't be able to because I live with my parents and I've never had to pay a bill in my life. If I can pay off a credit card bill in good time, before the final demand comes through the door, I will have a positive credit rating. Even if I then cut up my credit card and never use it again, banks, insurers and mortgage lenders will see that if I can pay that back, I would be a good risk for them.

 

I know! I always thought it was a backwards system too. I'm a good person, I've managed to save up money for the stuff I want, I pay my bills on time. And now you're telling me I have to get in debt to buy something large?

It's not the debt they're looking for: it's the fact that you paid it down or make consistent payments on it. They're looking for your history...proof that you're a reliable person who can handle a larger purchase. Otherwise, why should they trust you?

As far as dolls go, I just purchased a Puki with my credit card. That helps with three things:

1. I can buy the doll now.
2. I'll pay off the card in a few more days, which means...
3. It shows I can handle larger purchases.

 

I actually have a credit card that I use just for dolly stuff....In a way it keeps me from over spending, since it has a rather low credit limit. I always pay at least triple the minimum payment, and I like it a lot because seeing that balance every month really makes me aware of just how much I am spending on a doll. When I make several payments on it, I realize that it really is a large purchase, so I think long and hard before my next one.

Another good thing about it is security....I once had a charge show up on my account out of nowhere...I had no idea why it was there. I called up the company and they removed it, no questions asked.

My reason for getting the card in the first place was to build credit...my husband always had to have his name down for things such as our car, or apartment. I wanted to be able to do that on my own if something should ever happen to him.

Of course it is very important for parents to teach their teens how credit cards work. I was raised by my grandmother, and my sister was raised by our mother. My sister recently got her first credit card at age 19, with a $500 credit limit. So I thought, yeah that's good, she can build credit and have low payments, and she won't get into big debts. Apparently my mother never told her how credit cards work....she called me up one day on the first of the month, asking how her credit card could have been declined. I asked her if she had used up her credit limit, and she said without missing a beat "Yeah, I used the $500 from last month, but this is the beginning of the month, so there should be another $500 in there, right?" I was speechless. Needless to say we had a conversation shortly after.

 

I would never go into debt for dolls. I have picked up extra shifts at work, and I have gone on layaway with future planning, but I don't plan to spend more than I can afford on a doll, ever. =)

I plan for the future, money-wise. I only have a small credit-card, and I'm currently using it for my layaway payments, as it'll help my credit rating. Might as well build credit while I'm still young.

 

I feel less lonely.

It certainly is getting worse out there. (Amusing side note: my fascination with faces and costume affect what I pick up - the talking heads on television go on, and on - and on, but I watch the BBC news and I am noticing anchors with hair slightly unkempt, or the same shirt and tie they wore the previous day...they are getting frazzled).

It looks like we are in a time when we will have to put more consideration into how we spend our money. As Bette said in 'All About Eve'; "Fasten your seat belts. It's going to be a bumpy night."

Things would have to get pretty dire for me to give up dolls, it is my only indulgence and I only have 2. Sheesh! But I certainly have it clear in my mind that they are a luxury. I think we are better people if we start to sort that concept out - look right now what is going on in the Democratic Republic of Congo - that pain and chaos has as it's fuel the greed over the minerals there - which go into cell phones and game systems. We have 3 cell phones in this family, and several game systems...

I don't know what the answers are - but more thought and awareness in our own lives surely could do nothing but good.

 

I'm a first year college student and because my parents don't make six figure salaries (that they are willing to hand over to me) I am automatically broke. I love BJD as a hobby, but as I just started getting into it and only ordered my very first doll yesterday, I have to say that I wouldn't want to face not being able to pay for my tuition or asking my parents for $500 for a doll. The one I ordered is going to cost 145 not including shipping- and that's as reasonable as I could do. I've been surfing ebay and the dolls there are in some ways extrememly affordable- but for me, just to get $100 takes forever since I don't have a job. (My parents want me to focus on my studies) There is just no way that I could spend the money I have access to on dolls when I need all of it for tuition next semester. Hopefully over the summer I'll be able to get a really good job and then I'll spend the money I make on my next doll, but as it is I'm already going to graduate with at least 6 or $7000 worth of debt in student loans- I don't need anymore.