Negative payment hierarchy is when credit card companies use any payment made to pay off debt which is accruing at low or zero interest, whilst the debt which carries higher interest continues to accrue charges at the higher rate.

Australian banking major NAB is seeking to end its practice of negative payment hierarchy, and has flipped it on its head by allowing its borrowers to pay off their higher interest debt first.

Negative payment hierarchy is an industry wide practice according to NAB personal banking group executive Lisa Gray.

“This will no longer be the case for NAB customers, credit card transactions attracting the highest interest rate will be paid off before the lower interest rate, helping to reduce the overall interest cost to our customers.” Ms. Gray said.

The changes imply that all balance transfers will shift to the lower interest rate at the end of the introductory period, which will reduce the interest charges for borrowers.

The new systems will apply to all NAB consumer and commercial credit cards, which total about 1.5 million accounts, the bank said.

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If you are looking to finance a new flat screen television or go on holiday, or any other luxury, a personal loan is not your best option. Fortunately the financial crisis has made most people more aware of their finances and changed the way they think about borrowing.

More people are saving to buy life’s luxuries, and we are far less reliant on loans and credit for our spending.

If you need the money for something really important, then borrowing through a personal loan, is far cheaper than through the use of a credit card.

Here are five tips for personal loans.

1. What are your options?

Before starting the whole application process for a loan, you should check whether you have any cheaper options available for borrowing the money.

There are a couple of things you should think about first before borrowing from a bank, You should work out how much cash you really need, whether you can save the amount, and whether you can borrow the money you need from friends or family.

An easy way to borrow cheaply, is to use your credit card and for a small fee transfer the debt to a new zero per cent balance transfer card. For the introductory period, you will not have to pay any interest, but when that expires the amount can start racking up hefty interest, so you should be careful to make sure you know when the period expires, and set up a strategy to ensure you don’t exceed the period, whether that means transferring any balance remaining to a new card or having paid the amount off depends on you.

2. Check your credit rating

If you find that your only option happens to be a loan and have started shopping for one already, you should know that the “typical” low rates aren’t actually offered to everyone.

Lenders who advertise such rates, are not obliged by law to offer those rates to everyone and unsurprisingly only tend to offer them to a small percentage of their customers, who tend to have near perfect credit ratings.

If you don’t happen to have a perfect or near perfect credit history, then you have a very low chance of being offered the best rates in the market. Lenders will either turn you down or offer you the loan at a higher rate.

You should also be acutely aware that how often you apply for loans is noted by borrowers, and if they get a sense that you have tried to borrow money many times in a short period of time, that starts to send alarm bells ringing.

So make sure you apply for a credit report and have an idea of how clean your record is, before starting the application process for a loan.

3. Compare the TARs

Whenever you shop for a loan you should take your time and look for the best deal, as you would do for any other product.

Whilst many of you are familiar with the Annual Percentage Rate (APR), which is the rough rate of interest you pay annually for a loan, you should also be aware of the lesser known TAR.

TAR stands for Total Amount Repayable, and is an accurate indicator of how much the loan actually costs, and sometimes when you find out the true cost of a loan, it can be quite an eye opening experience.

Always check the TAR when comparing different loans with one another; it is the best way to ensure you are getting the best deal available to you.

4. Avoid secured loans!

Personal loans tend to be what is known as unsecured loans, that is to say they are not backed up by collateral. This differs with the secured loan which is backed by collateral such as your car or house.

Secured loans often seem to be cheaper than unsecured loans, but before jumping in, you should be aware that they often come with variable rates of interest. This means you run the risk of having your interest payments spike into something that becomes unaffordable.

They can make sense, but you should be careful to understand what the trend in interest rates happen to be, and whether you run the risk of them spiking before you have paid off the debt.

5. Minimise your term

The best way to keep the cost of a personal loan down is to pick the shortest term you can possibly manage. Doing this ensures you pay the least amount in interest rate charges. Taking a look at the numbers as an illustration. The rule is the shorter you borrow money for, the less interest is charged.

Finally, after investigating TARs you’ve undoubtedly been suitably shocked at how much your seemingly cheap personal loan will cost. Assuming you borrowed $ 3000 at 7.9% APR

Paying back a $3k loan over 5 years would mean a total repayment of $3,641 – $641 obviously being interest.

Repay it over 3 years and it would cost $379 in interest saving $262.

And over 2 years it would cost you just $253 in interest, saving another $126.

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That kind of insecurity is usually a result of inability to decide what to do and what the consequence of a particular course of action may be.

Many people confuse fact with fiction when trying to decide how to solve their problems so in this post, we try separate truth from fiction.

1) You could Go To Prison If You Don’t Pay Off Your Credit Card Debt

Total Fiction: You will not be sent to jail if you end up defaulting on an unsecured loan or credit card debt.

The worst legal thing that can happen is you could be issued with a court order that stipulates how much of your income must go towards paying off an individual debt.

If legal action is taking against you by a creditor such as a bank or credit card company, and a judgement passed, that will remain on your credit record for a number of years, which will negatively affect your ability to obtain future financing.

Once the court has ordered you to make a payment, and you still find you cannot make the payment, you will still not go to prison, but the court may require your employer to make the payment on your behalf by deducting it directly from your salary.

Alternatively the court may issue another order which allows the credit card company or bank to take some the of the sale proceeds when you sell your house. These type of court orders are not that uncommon, however the order does not require you to actually sell your home, only that when you do ultimately sell your property, the creditor has the right to receive some of the proceeds.

2) Credit card companies Can Send Bailiffs To Collect

Another old wives tale is that credit card companies can send their bailiffs round if you are a habitual defaulter and miss payments continuously.

This is nonsense, card companies do not have the right to send a bailiff to your home, if someone from a card company threatens you with that kind of action, you should simply not believe them.

Card companies can apply to the court to send a bailiff round, and can only make that application once a judgment has been passed against you. Before the court has passed judgment, the only thing a card company or creditor can do is hire a debt collector who can try and collect the money owed, but the debt collector has no legal authority, so you are not even required to speak to him.

3) Bailiffs Do Not Have The Right To Force Their Way Into Your Home

This is not true, ordinarily bailiffs do not have the authority to force their way into your house to take your belongings. They can however apply for a warrant to force entry, though in practice this is very rare.

If you end up behind on rent or mortgage payments, your landlord or mortgage lender may obtain a court order to force eviction. In that situation, bailiffs have the power to break in to your home. Bailiffs also have the right to break into your house if they have previously been given permission to enter your home, and you have failed to stick to a debt repayment arrangement.

In general though, bailiffs have a code of conduct that they must adhere too. To begin with, they must provide their identification and authorization if they are asked for it. If they are collecting rent, they are required to only attempt to do so between sunrise and sunset and in practice, really between the hours of 8am and 8pm.

4) A Bad Credit Ratings Is For Life

This is untrue, bad credit ratings usually last a few years, in most developed countries, no more than six to eight years.

5) You Need To Pay For Debt Advice

This is complete fiction and is a debt rip off. Some lenders will try and charge you for advice, and there is absolutely no reason why you should be paying anyone any money for advice, because it can be gotten free from a number of debt counselling organisations who will provide guidance on a range of options to suit your personal needs and help you with your debt problems. So don’t pay for something you can get for free!

6) If You Die Your Family Will Have To Pay Your Debts

This is mainly false, but has a little truth to it. In general, your family are not liable for your debt in the event of your death. If however you have borrowed money jointly, with your spouse for example, then that person is liable for all your joint debts in the event of your death. The person however will also end up with full ownership of any asset that the debt was used to acquire, for example property.

If your estate has sufficient assets to cover all liabilities, that will be done by the executors of your estate. If there is a remainder after settling all outstanding debts, that will be distributed, and if your estate is not large enough to cover your debts, then what ever remains is usually written off.

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1. The Debt That Never Ends

The minimum payment on many credit cards barely meet the interest being incurred on your debt, which means if you only ever make the minimum, you’re debt will never reduce and seem to be endless. Occasionally a card will be offered with such a low minimum monthly payment, that your debt ends up actually growing.

So if you want to ensure that your debt ends up being a thing of the past, then make sure you make payments well in excess of your minimum monthly payment.

2. Negative Payment Hierarchy

Perhaps the single most important thing when it comes to understanding your credit card debt, is the concept of negative payment hierarchy.

Simply put, when you make a payment towards your debt, the money is used to pay of the debt which is attracting the least interest, whilst the debt that incurs the most interest is left unpaid.

So for example if you have part of a balance on a zero per cent transfer deal, and the rest attracting interest at 18 per cent APR, and you make a $500 payment, thinking you will reduce your debt, well that money goes towards your zero per cent deal, whilst the balance that costs 17 per cent continues to remain unchanged and attracting interest until the full debt is paid off.

The easiest way to avoid this pitfall is to have one card for your balance transfer and a separate card which you use for purchases. That way you can isolate which debt is paid off whenever you make a payment.

3. The Hidden Cost Of Balance Transfers

Balance transfer deals are unquestionably a good way of reducing your overall cost of debt. But they do have hidden costs, for example through NPH a 3 per cent fee for a zero per cent balance transfer might on the face of it seem very reasonable, but might actually mean an APR of 4 to 11 per cent.

If you want to ensure you have a low APR, you should look for longer deals with lower fees. Save your money in an account that pays reasonable interest, and pay the entire balance off at the end of the offer.

4. Balance Transfer Fees Can Cost Interest

When you transfer a balance onto a zero per cent card, the fee is usually added to the balance, but some lenders may class the fee as being a purchase and charge you interest on the fee and because of NPH, the fee will continue to incur interest until the whole balance is cleared.

So make sure you read the fine print, understand the terms of the deal, and kick up a fuss if something like this happens when it shouldn’t.

5. Typical APRs Not Obtainable

Typical APR’s quoted by lenders are only ever offered to customers with the best credit score, and for most people lenders offer APR’s which can often be much higher than the typical APR quoted.

Some lenders may even reject the application outright, and pass the details on to a less than savory lender who will make the loan.

If you have been rejected, then do not take out a product offered by a third party, and make sure you check your credit report for any errors.

6. High Increasing Standard Rates

Even if you manage to obtain the typical APR, they are exorbitant at the best of times, and can average as much as 10 per cent above the cheapest personal loans, and lenders can hike interest rates at will. So always keep your options open, and if you can, balance transfer the debt and take advantage of low interest rates.

7. Calculating APR

Lenders can calculate their interest in different ways, and some estimate that there are as many as 12 different methods, which means APR’s can have very little meaning.
The best way to avoid this is the age old zero per cent balance transfer, but you should also seek to avoid cards which have lots of fees and charges.

8. ‘Cheap’ Monthly Interest

Cheap monthly interest rates are disingenuous. In fact I would go as far as to say they are outright fraudulent. A monthly interest rate of 1.5 per cent might seem like a good deal, but in actual fact it adds up to 19.6 per cent APR, which is far higher than the average rate. So make sure you are not taken in by cheap monthly rates.

9. Credit Limit ‘Rewards’

Some lenders may say they are rewarding you by increasing your credit limit. You should be careful not to see your new limit as a target for spending, and add to your debt burden for no reason.

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1. Over-Priced Protection

Insurance offers that credit cards tend to present are horribly over-priced. You should avoid signing up to these and instead look on the internet for a better deal.
Stand alone insurers offer policies at sometimes even 1/10th the price a credit card charges, and this is true for moth types of fraud or theft insurance that you would normally obtain from your credit card lender.

The law also offers fairly good protection against fraud or theft limiting your exposure fairly heavily.

2. Insurance You Did Not Buy

Some lenders have few misgivings about charging you for insurance you did not actually buy, or even went as far as declining to buy.

If you find this happens to be the case, you should take your application form to your lender and show them as evidence when you lodge a complaint.

3. Small Mistakes Lead To Bigger Mistakes

Missing even one payment deadline is enough to incur a charge. If the late payment was really just an oversight on your part, you should call your lender and appeal the charge. If the appeal fails, you can always switch lenders, but the best way to avoid the problem is establish a direct debit.

4. Don’t Use Your Credit Cards For Withdrawals

Cash withdrawals using your credit card or cash advance attracts hefty fees and is not a cheap way to access or borrow money.

Using your credit card for a withdrawal incurs a fee of 2.5 per cent of the amount withdrawn, and the cash advance itself can have APR’s as high as 25 per cent with no interest fee period.

Do not use your credit card for withdrawing cash.

5. Credit Cards Are Not Cheques

Credit card account cheques are just an expensive method of obtaining cash as credit card withdrawals, with similar upfront fees and APR’s and again no interest free period, so again avoid using them at all costs.

6. The Price Of Rewards

Credit card lenders love to offer rewards to their borrowers, because from their perspective they are a good way to attract new customers and encourage existing customers to spend using their card, which means it is profitable to run a rewards program.

If you sit down and add up the value of the rewards you are receiving, compared to the interest you actually pay, you will more often than not find they do not offer very much value relative to their cost.

7. Admin Fees

Some credit card lenders have the wherewithal to charge you administrative fees for moving home and changing your mailing address with them. If you find this is the case, there may be very little you can do, but you should express your displeasure and kick up a stink. The lender may decide to forgo the fee.

8. Penalties For Being Debt Free

Some lender will charge you a monthly fee for not using your card or incurring debt. Some even charge customers for carrying a positive balance, so you really should watch out for this, its terribly unfair.

You should use your card when buying things on the internet or when making big purchases. They give far more protection than a debit card alone. Just remember to make sure your whole bill is paid.

9. Playing For Time

Credit card lenders are not always consistent with when they send you your statement, sometimes moving it closer to your payment deadline, leaving you less time to make your payment.

The best way to avoid this is to have a direct debit set up, and even better, if you can pay your bill off in full every month, most of the problems can be avoided.

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Here are four current account mistakes to avoid.

1) Do Not Be Ruled By Overdraft

Your overdraft should not merely considered as spending money. If you do run an overdraft, you should make every effort to pay it off.

If you do however have a need to run an overdraft, then you should make sure you prearranged one with your lender, with a set limit that you know you can stick to. For example if you know you are going to spend more than $500 a month on your overdraft, there is no point in agreeing a $500 overdraft with your bank, not unless you prefer being hit with higher interest charges and fees.

Similarly, make sure you’re getting a competitive deal on your overdraft – preferably by finding an account that doesn’t charge any interest at all.

2) Don’t Ignore The Interest Rate

Some people believe that the interest on their current account is not relevant, but why receive no interest on your deposits, when there are some banks out there willing to pay you interest on what you do hold in your account.

These days Australian lenders are fighting an increasingly competitive war for depositors as they seek more stable sources of funding, so it’s worth checking out which current account deals are on offer.

3) Don’t Pay For Extras You Don’t Need

A lot of current accounts come with extra perks, such as airport lounge access, travel and mobile phone insurance.

What most people fail to understand is that these perks come at a cost, that can be as much as $300 a year. Before you commit to these perks, which often sound quite tempting, you should find out how much having access to them will cost you, and whether that cost is actually worth it.

For example you may want to find out whether the insurance you receive with your current account covers your needs, or whether you can save money simply by applying for insurance when you need it.

4) Not Using Direct Debit Facilities

One of the biggest advantages of a current account, is the ability to set up direct debits that pay your bills off on time.

Direct debits not only help you remember to pay your bills, but can save you a ton of money. For example setting one up to pay your monthly credit card bill means you never miss a month’s payment. Failing to pay a monthly credit card bill is a very common mistake and usually results in being charged additional fees, and in the worst cases, even have you card cancelled.

Paying utility bills such as electricity through direct debit can in some cases also result in your provider doling out discounts.

Direct debits are also a great way of saving money, in effect transferring money you want to save every month from your current account to your savings account.
So make sure you take advantage of the facility.

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Of course it is completely possible to borrow money interest free, and we will explain three methods of doing so.

In life when someone offers you something for free, that is usually the signal to start paying attention and find where the catch is. So whilst we seek to let you know how to borrow money for nothing, you should also be aware of the pitfalls associated with each method.

If you do not mind your finances properly, these methods of borrowing can lead you deeper into debt. So do be careful.

If you’ve been hunting through the personal loans section at your bank, you won’t have found these options. In fact, providers don’t label them as ‘loans’ at all!

1.) An interest-free overdraft

A lot of current accounts these days come attaches with 0% interest overdraft facilities attached to the account. The amount one can borrow varies from account type to lender, but can be as much as $5000.

The major drawback with this is that 0% is usually an introductory offer aimed at attracting new customers, and usually not applicable after the first twelve months. After a year lenders will usually charge some kind of usage fee.

Obviously your overdraft limit will be determined by your credit rating, and the length of time you can borrow money is dependent on the account.

Overdrafts are not a long term way of borrowing money, and after the introductory period expires, usually they attract substantial interest rates on the amount you are overdrawn.

What to watch out for: It’s extremely important you never exceed the 0% overdraft limit. If you fail to obey the limit you will be pushed into an ‘unauthorised’ overdraft – on which you’ll be charged horrendous rates of interest (typically 20-30% APR).

2.) A 0% on purchases credit card

The second method of obtaining free credit is to apply for a credit card which has an introductory 0% offer for all new purchases.

Obviously the lender will indicate what your credit limit is, even before you apply for the card, and will depend on your financial circumstances.

The interest free period depends on the credit card, usually the longest period you can borrow interest free on a credit card is a year, so clearly this type of borrowing is also not long term.
When the 0% deal ends, a very high level of interest on your remaining balance will be charged (typically 15-20+% APR) – so it is extremely important that you clear your balance before this happens.

If for whatever reason a balance remains, then you should seek out 0% balance transfer deals, and transfer whatever debt remains to the new card.

Transferring an outstanding balance tro a new card is not as easy as it used to be. In the post financial crisis world, lenders have tightened their standards, and it is not always guaranteed you will be given a deal.

You also need to make the minimum repayment every month. If you make it late or default on a payment, you may well be fined, and your 0% deal is likely to be taken away from you.

3) A 0% on balance transfers credit card

The balance transfer to a 0% card is the most common advice given to people who want to reduce their interest payments or borrow money for nothing.
God we have given it here many many times already.

The basic premise is if you have borrowed money already using a credit card, you can turn the debt into an interest free loan by shifting it to cards which offer 0% interest on balance transfer.
The amount you can shift will largely depend on your card issuer, credit rating and salary, and you will be given a limit before the card is issued.

Some balance transfer deals can last as long as 15 months, but as soon as the introductory offer ends, you will be paying very normal credit card APR’s.

The vast majority of balance transfer credit cards charge transfer fees (typically 2-3% of the total debt) to move your money onto them.

If you don’t manage to clear your debt during the 0% period, you’ll be saddled with big interest charges.

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Whilst most Australians who work have some kind of life insurance included as part of their superannuation, more often than not, this may be inadequate to cover those that depend on them, in the event the worst happens.

Many Australians who do not own a life insurance policy, often have the mentality of ‘it won’t happen to me’. In the event something does happen, many will have failed to provide their family with enough life insurance cover to help them once they have gone.

It is estimated that nearly 45% of Australians are underinsured. Many Australian families are left with an average payout of just $91,000 after the death of their primary income earner.

When thinking about taking out life insurance, below are some facts you should consider:

• Over 50% of Australians are underinsured by $100,000 for life insurance.

• On average, the life insurance cover that is included in most Australian’s superannuation is 20% of what is actually needed.

• Over 81% of people say life insurance is too expensive; however 61% of people over-estimate the cost.

• The cost of raising two children at Government schools to year 12 and then 3 years of university is around $537,000.

• Australian families are critically underinsured, by approximately $1.37 trillion.

• While 83% of Australians have car insurance, only 31% insure for income protection.1

When you think about whether you need a life insurance policy, you really need to consider the people in your life who depend on you.

We all know someone who has suffered from cancer, or lost a partner and loved one suddenly or unexpectedly. These are issues that impact on our ability to earn an income and continue meeting our financial obligations while providing for the future of ourselves and our family.

It is extremely unpleasant to think about the worst case scenario and no one likes doing it, but more often than not, planning for the future is being able to deal with the curve balls that life can cruelly throw at you.

Even funerals can be a huge financial burden, coming at a time when your loved ones are suffering emotionally. The average cost of a funeral is as high as $15,000.

Having a life insurance policy lets your loved ones say goodbye in a dignified manner without having to deal with the stress of a financial burden. It lets them continue their lifestyle, helps them pay the mortgage, rent or any other monthly expense, and lets you enjoy life safe in the knowledge your family is protected.

Suncorp has a great life insurance plan, called Suncorp Family Protect Life Insurance. For as little as $2.70 a week, you can rest easy knowing your family is taken care of in the event the worst happens to you.

You can choose a lump sum payment up to $400,000, the Suncorp Family Protect Life Insurance plan pays out a lump sum of money in the event of your death or upon diagnosis of a terminal illness. The policy has Guaranteed acceptance, this means there are no medical tests required, you simply need to apply and it just takes a few minutes to arrange immediate cover  for your loved ones.

Not only that, you can save as much as ten per cent by applying on line. Of course there are lots of other insurers out there to choose from, but none that offer as quickly as Suncorp. Whatever you do, make sure you get covered today.

Chris Johnson writes to make Life Insurance easier to understand.

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Funding luxuries are not the best way to use a personal loan. But if you have a genuine need to borrow $10,000, or an amount that a credit card is just not going to cover, then a personal loan is the product for you.

Here are three tips when shopping for a personal loan

1 Make Sure A loan Is The Right Option

If you’re financial need is less than $5000, then a personal loan is not the way to go.

For small sums of money, then credit cards are likely to be your best bet. There are a couple of ways you can finance using a credit card. The first is using a zero per cent purchase card, or alternatively you can spend the money on an existing credit card, and transfer the debt to a zero percent balance transfer card, and that will enable you to money for a small fee and pay no interest.

2 Compare the TARs

When shopping for a loan, the Annual Percentage Rate (APR) is not the only thing you should be looking at, and you should also take not of the Total Amount Repayable or TAR.

Knowing what your TAR is on an amount your borrow is the best way of being 100 per cent certain how much the loan is going to cost and what you need to pay over the lifetime of the loan.

The TAR incorporates any interest payable as well as non option fees incurred. So really it is the best measure of understanding how expensive the loan is, and an invaluable tool when trying to compare deals.

3 Keep It Short And Sweet

When you do need to borrow money, it is important to borrow as little cash as you can possibly manage, and do so over as short a time as is humanely possible. Doing that will ensure you keep your interest costs as low as they can be.

Borrowing more than you need has absolutely no utility, and it is likely you will end up spending the loan on something you don’t need resulting in you carrying debt for longer than you have to, and paying more for the privilege than you need to.

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So why so much online angst over credit cards? Well the very real overwhelming fear that most people have of being in over their head in debt. Others worry that having a credit card, whilst not resulting in too much debt, may lead them to spend more money than they ordinarily would.

A lot of people who don’t have credit cards, just don’t see the point or any benefit from owning one. So the purpose of this piece is really to show how credit cards, if used correctly can be really beneficial.

1) Get Out of Debt Using A Credit Card

It may seem counter-intuitive that a credit card can help you get out of debt. If you tend to rack up huge bills that you struggle to pay at the end of every month, you might even think the notion a credit card can help you clear your debt is a joke.

The fact of the matter is there are a ton of 0 per cent balance transfer credit cards out there, that allow you to transfer an existing balance on a card, for a small fee onto another card, which doesn’t rack up any interest charges for the time the offer is valid.

So if you carry existing debt, a zero per cent balance transfer credit card allows you to establish and define your debt, and allows you to stop letting your current debt snowball, and pay it down instead.

Balance transfer credit cards only allow you to shift existing debts from your existing credit cards on to the new card, so it won’t be useful if you don’t have a credit card already, and if you don’t clear up the debt before the interest free period expires, then they can start attracting hefty interest, so you should be aware when the period expires, and ideally if the balance has not been cleared, find another balance transfer deal you can shift the debt too.

2) You Can Make Money Using A Credit Cards

Charging your weekly grocery shopping or petrol bill to your credit card might be enough to send a shiver down your spine, but the fact of the matter is, if you know you can afford to clear your credit card bill at the end of every month, then using it do your shopping can earn you money.

By now you are probably wondering how the devil that works, well the simple answer to that is cash back.

Some credit cards offer you cash back on your purchase, and if you get a new card the amount can be up to 5 per cent during the introductory period and then between 0.5 per cent to 1.25 per cent afterwards, depending on how much you spend.

Cash back means you can go about doing your daily shopping, in the knowledge that you are earning or saving on everything that you buy. You just need to be careful and remember that if you don’t pay off your credit card bill at the end of the month, you will be hit with interest rate charges.

3) Credit Cards Protect Yourself From Being Ripped Off By Retailers

Credit cards are quite heavily regulated by the government, and this means there is a certain amount of protection guaranteed by the government when you spend on one. If there ends up being some kind of problem with the completion of a purchase, then your card issuer is liable for refunds, and this means that when you spend or buy something using your credit card, there is an added level of protection that prevents you from being ripped off.

Credit cards really do have their benefits if you use them wisely, so be careful.

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