Debt = lack of freedom....

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iVillage Member
Registered: 03-19-2003
Debt = lack of freedom....
8
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 10:45am

In church on Sunday, debt was the topic and even if you aren't religious I know these points are made by other authors too, I was just wondering your take on it.


One of the main things about being in debt (and this is specifically credit card debt/revolving accounts, not mortgage, etc...) is that it takes away your freedom.


I believe Carol Keefe (sp?) talks about that too how she heard about a great sale on airline tickets but because she was in debt, she couldn't take the weekend to go visit family where as if she wasn't she could since the fares were that low, etc....


I so think that is a big thing with me.

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-10-2004
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 11:03am
I feel this way.

 

iVillage Member
Registered: 06-18-2004
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 11:28am

ITA. DH and I used to live in Southern California. Right after 9/11 places like Seaworld and Disneyland, etc were giving free admittances to military and their families (or dramatically reduced entrance fees) and we couldn't take advantage of them because we couldn't afford the gas and hotel room. We finally got to the point that we went to all of those places in the six months before we moved because we cashed in a mutual fund to pay down our debt. We cashed it in because I didn't like the company or it's practices and that did give us a little freedom for a while, but then another move hit us and here we are trying to pay down debt again.

Where, o where is that tax refund check. That will give us a HUGE snowflake and help us to be out of debt completely by mid 2006. We don't own a house because of being military, so that is cc's, sl's and cars.

Kellie

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2004
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 11:44am
I totally agree. If you overspend today, you will have less money later, which means you will have fewer options later. Living within your means is the key. I feel I'm in a pretty good place because all my debt is sitting on one credit card at zero interest (except for the $2,000 I just charged as a down payment on my car, but my tax return covers that and it will be paid in a couple weeks). The minimum on the zero interest card is $10 so right now the only debt affecting my monthly budget is my new car payment. The bonus checks and the two extra paychecks I get this year will more than cover the remaining credit card debt, so all I have to do is keep living on only my salary. Once the debt is paid, those bonus and extra paychecks can be saved, providing me more options and more freedom.

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Registered: 02-06-2005
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 12:25pm

Having been in debt for so long and now FINALLY being debt-free except for the house, I can tell you that this is 100% true.

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iVillage Member
Registered: 12-05-2004
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 1:07pm

I felt this way just last night. Dh and I were talking about how we plan to take our first vacation since our son was born (he'll be 7 when we take this trip), and how great it would be to take him to Alaska, which is where Dh and I vacationed back in 1994 together, long before kids came into the picture. BUT...due to paying off debt, we can't afford that kind of trip, even though our son is at a great age to begin appreciating all that Alaska has to offer. So we're going to Florida by car (we're in GA), and visiting the attractions there with discount coupons and offers. It's still a vacation, and we're thrilled to be able to take it...but there's still that thought that it 'could' have been Alaska if we weren't in such debt. :-D

Pat

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-21-2004
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 7:41pm

"If you overspend today, you will have less money later, which means you will have fewer options later."

ITA!! Plus I think I have finally ingrained that into my husband's head. Lord that was a frustrating time though. I thought I was talking to a wall at times. He's coming around and I feel that is our biggest step to becoming debt free and staying that way. Whew!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 05-30-2003
Tue, 02-08-2005 - 11:47pm

Yep, that's kind of how we drew our line in the sand. I was tired of paying paying paying and not getting anywhere. What sent me over the edge was when it finally hit me that we were taking tomorrow's paychecks to pay for yesterday's 'fun', and not having enough to live on today.

I think that as we pay off more and more, we're seeing that it's going to be great to be debt-free. I still don't feel we have enough 'walk-away' power yet, so we'll keep working those extra jobs. By walk-away power, I mean that we could feel that we could walk away from some of our jobs if we didn't want to put up with the crap anymore. I'm honestly not sure when that point will come for me, maybe after we get all the credit card debt gone.

I would so like to be able to write a check to a charity without wondering what the impact on our budget will be. I'd like to hand out $100 bills just because. To me, that's good fun. But, until we get some debt-freedom, I really don't feel we can.

I know our day is coming...

Lisa

iVillage Member
Registered: 03-27-2003
Wed, 02-09-2005 - 9:52am
I definitely agree that Debt takes away your freedom. Even something as little as going to the movies or renting a movie I can't do for a while because that is simply a luxury I cannot afford. I think being in debt can also rob you emotionally as well. I find myself constantly worrying about debt and beating myself up over the mess I made. I am trying to do less of that now but it is definitely hard.