very stupid question. gross household income

[dorkiedoode]

Family of four. My brother is independent but is still living with us. Do we include his income as our annual household income too? i am kind of confuse with the annual household income term i don't get why would credit card company ask for household income and not your own income?

[catlinye_maker]

... i don't get why would credit card company ask for household income and not your own income?

They do it for people like me, who don't work outside the home but nevertheless can make credit card payments from the household income. Re your question, I'd only include your brother's income if you can use part of it to pay your CC bill. We don't include my MIL's income (she lives with us) in household income because we don't have access to it, for instance.

[dorkiedoode]

okay that make sense. thanks!

[laceshawl]

Does your brother make contributions to grocery, power bills etc? Say he pays you a set weekly amount - I would include that in your income. Don't include his gross income as he won't be the one responsible for paying the CC - it is really both spouses' income that they want to know. Plus possibly a high schooler with a p/t job, but again I would only include that if he/she makes a contribution to household expenses.

[vsjhoc]

Welcome. It is not a "very stupid question" at all. You should see the discussions we get into about how to calculate net worth, LOL.

BTW: I recently asked my current credit card issuer (AmEx) to switch me to a different type of card. They asked about my household income. I said I'd prefer not to respond. They balked at first, but then approved the application. This may not work with a new application, i.e., you may have to give your HH income in order to get approved. But it's worth a try if you are sensitive about providing this info.