Were you using the HH Amex only for those "grocery store" purchases or were you using it for other purchases as well?

It was my initial purchase. Like an idiot, I activated the card and within an hour, tried to charge $1k. When I called in, the CSR said I was locked pending FR and I would need to send in a bunch of tax related stuff. I got him talking and discussing it and when he asked what the grocery charge was, I said I was buying gift cards to take advantage of the 6x HH points at the grocery. (what was the risk? I was already assuming I was SOL with Amex) His reply: "huh..that actually makes a lot of sense". We chatted a bit more and he unlocked everything and sent me on my way.

Since then, I use it for lots of general spending but a vast majority of it is "grocery"

You knew better than to spin up a card right away.:rolleyes: The best thing to do is season it with chump change transactions for a week or so then gradually build up. Fast motion attracts attention because people often spend fast prior to bailing out on debt. Ask not what you can spend, but what your spend looks like to the Cardinals. Keep your spend real, as real as you can make it appear.:D

I -did- say I was an idiot. I don't need you to validate it ;)

I still take the occasional stroll in my AMEX boots but I keep it short and stay on the path. I have much more comfortable ones when checking seedlings, saplings and others that seem to live in the jungle.

Hey, gang-

Haven't been able to find an answer to this question, but any idea if those of us in California will be taxed on AP purchases now that the Jungle is taxing all Internet purchases by Californians shipping to Ca. (as of Sept 15th I believe)

Thanks in advance for any data points!

I don't know how they could tax you. I know some people use AP to pay rent and AFAIK rent isn't subject to sales tax in any state. Paying someone through AP is no different than if you paid them through an online bill payer check on your bank site. The seller of the merchandise is the one responsible for remitting the sales tax.

Besides paying someone rent there are a lot of other charges that wouldn't be subject to sales tax. It could be possible for me not to have any cash and eat at a place where the credit card machine is down or who doesn't accept cash and someone else pays for dinner and I reimburse them through AP. Sales tax had already been paid. Or someone could have bought theater or concert tickets on their credit card so the seats were together and I remburse them via AP I could be paying my cleaning lady via AP as well and no sales tax would be due unless that state has a sales tax on cleaning services..

AP is acting as an intermediary exchange and they have their limits, terms and conditions in place.

You are not paying AP for good and services, you are paying someone else. Its up to the receiver to charge you a tax or the payer to show tax-exemption to the receiver if they request it or is required.

and of course everyone is paying their self-reported use tax on these payments for "goods and services" as well haha

Absolutely!! report every dime folks, every dime.

Ah. Didn't realize they were considered an intermediary. Thanks for the info. Off to pay my taxes like a good boy. :)

All, especially people just getting a new card: Take these words and burn them into your memory. Put them on a sign upon your door. Heck, I'm thinking of having t-shirts made with them.

Mike

"Real" purchases - yeah ala Texas. The other kind, heck no.:p

the jungle is very fickle, and only likes up to three flavors of ice cream, sometimes less. I once tried to enjoy more than three, and was quickly excoriated from the jungle. I suggest enjoying the triple dip cone and being content with that.

that matters though ... were the scoops of the same flavor, or were they different?

I mix my ice cream with a Serveing of sorbet from the confectioner across the street.