Cash is not nearly as common as it once was. It used to be almost the only way to pay, with some people using checks, as well. Then credit cards came along and changed the game, allowing people to pay with a swipe. Now, in 2020, we have plenty of apps that allow you to spend money electronically, with your smartphone.
This is still real money, of course, but you never hold it. You don’t dig it out of your wallet. You don’t feel the weight of it or see the wrinkles in the paper. In a lot of ways, it feels more like a video game than anything real. You can send money to friends, buy things online and even make purchases in stores.
But, if none of it feels real, is that going to lead to overspending? It’s certainly something people are concerned about. Many who refused to use these services for years did so because they were concerned that they would be tricked into spending more than they could afford.
You can see how dangerous that could be. Little transactions add up. If you have just $50 in your wallet when you get to the store and you pick out $60 worth of items, you simply have to put something back. If you have an e-pay system that is linked to a credit card, though, you can just shrug and scan it. You assume you’ll deal with the cost later.
For $10, that’s not a big loss. But if this happens all the time, you could spend hundreds or thousands more than you mean to. And that type of spending can lead to significant debt. If you find yourself in that position, you must know what bankruptcy options you have.
