well, i am still in the process of deciding to change. I have tried and tried to get on a budget , but we just keep blowing it. like last night, i had food out to cook and we decided to go out to dinner. 40 dollars later, we both felt guilty. I think it happened because we hadn't treated ourselves in so long that we felt we deserved it, you know? anyway, the thing that made me want to get going on a budget is the fact that we have a mortgage now and i want to have money to put into the house. we have lived here for 2 months and i haven't even bought a curtain yet, because we just can't afford it. the dishwasher also died on us and i can't buy a new one. dh and i are just sick of killing ourselves working just to pay late charges and finance charges on crap that we bought 6 years ago.
Yeah, me too...still in the process of changing. We paid off our cc about 3 years ago, the maximium was $8000, but it just never seemed to go away so we attacked it & got rid of it. However, our vehicle loans, boats, 4 wheeler, parent plus loans etc have been ridiculous. I do believe we are in agreement to pay them off & not borrow again, I certainly hope so! I think for us we finally realized that we have been blessed for many years with good jobs & good health, big bonuses at work once a year ranging from (5,000 to 15,000) & yet still have debt. Its like what are we working for just to pay the banks?!
It is time to act with care & diligence & get this debt gone. Then we can build wealth & give to church & charities & the needy!
I can't decide if I haven't of if the change has been really gradual-in terms of our current debt-don't laugh but we seriously racked up 12,000 in CC debt, 13,000 in student loan debt and I'm not sure how much we started at on the second mortgage (I believe 17,000) in about 6 months. Before that, we were really careful on most things and had been without CC debt for a while-DH had debt coming into our marriage, I had never had a credit card until then.
The biggest obstacle is my husband. I don't think we'll ever fully agree on money. We talk it out and compromise and each of us is willing to give in some but there are just a lot of things where we disagree i.e. he's very into new cars-but is willing to drive them for a while. He does not want to pay off the mortgage early particularly-thinks it's better to invest any extra funds. I really want to stay home until Ian goes to school, DH thinks it would be better if I were earning money.
Hi, Danni and Taylena (oops-soorry-spelling). Thanks, Taylena for the debt book lists. Finally, I can see the list and get what I want. A big hug to you!! Let's see--AHA moments, brain freezes, etc. Well, as you all know, it is a work in progress. l) Defining moment: 8 yrs ago---$50K medical bill, $500/month back IRS taxes, 8 cc's, loss of job(S), working two jobs beneath what I was capable of earning;DH losing job. I Worked two jobs for 7 yrs. PT/FT Sooo--took some classes, and got a better job. Refi house. . 2) Ultimatum moment: DH said I could no longer have cc's. Why? Because it is too easy and tempting. DH said it would lead to divorce if I kept my CC's Why? Because I had the bad habit of racking up debts. So, I have one cc that I racked up $7k this yr!!! We had so much debt, we couldnt put a new roof on house for several yrs, and the rain ruined a lot. 3)Turning point: opening a credit union account. Having some money debited from my paycheck toward 403B. 4) Eye-opening moment: Seeing myself fritter away money, and couldnt remember what I had bought. Then paying interest on it for years!. So, I stopped and thought about how hard I had to work to get that hour's worth of money. Then, had someone hand me $20 (of my money, of course), and say, this is what you get for that hour. I know that sounds silly, but that is what it took to really hit the point home.
Lessons: l) DONT get ARM for mortgage. You pay interest only, and rates and payments go up each month. Refi done this week for fixed rate! 2) Writing the creditors and keeping track. Pay off small items first to get victories. 3) Not postponing things. We waiting 3 yrs to get roof, and the water ruined a lot of stuff in the bathroom, kitchen, etc. Postponed dentist, and had a LOT of work to get done (and still do!) 4) Looking back. Wallowing in despair, anger, etc. of my stupidity.Oh, I could write a book on the stuff I did wrong. (Danni, you know my trials in the past!) Sooo---I Signed up for some classes to better myself. To this day, I tend to dwell on the past mistakes. Yes, I still blow it. But, there is hope in this board, and wonderful ideas, too. 5) OPEN that savings account and Credit union (go to the HR dept and set it up). Believe me, you wont miss that $25/month. This is absolutely the best thing I ever did. It took over 3 yrs to save, but I now have about $85K in the 403b.. No, it isnt much, but it is a start. 6) Mary Hunt newsletter (awhile back) and collecting recipes for easy meals. Money magazine has helped, too. You gotta start somewhere. Believe me, I used to hide the bills under the couch (drawer), because I didnt want DH to see we didnt have enough to pay it. No more. Remember----you will get through this. WHiz.
well, i am still in the process of deciding to change. I have tried and tried to get on a budget , but we just keep blowing it. like last night, i had food out to cook and we decided to go out to dinner. 40 dollars later, we both felt guilty. I think it happened because we hadn't treated ourselves in so long that we felt we deserved it, you know? anyway, the thing that made me want to get going on a budget is the fact that we have a mortgage now and i want to have money to put into the house. we have lived here for 2 months and i haven't even bought a curtain yet, because we just can't afford it. the dishwasher also died on us and i can't buy a new one. dh and i are just sick of killing ourselves working just to pay late charges and finance charges on crap that we bought 6 years ago.
kel
I'm still working on the changing things part!
Becky
CL of 4th, 5th & 6th grade Scoliosis
Yeah, me too...still in the process of changing. We paid off our cc about 3 years ago, the maximium was $8000, but it just never seemed to go away so we attacked it & got rid of it. However, our vehicle loans, boats, 4 wheeler, parent plus loans etc have been ridiculous. I do believe we are in agreement to pay them off & not borrow again, I certainly hope so! I think for us we finally realized that we have been blessed for many years with good jobs & good health, big bonuses at work once a year ranging from (5,000 to 15,000) & yet still have debt. Its like what are we working for just to pay the banks?!
It is time to act with care & diligence & get this debt gone. Then we can build wealth & give to church & charities & the needy!
cindylee (32 months to be debtfree)
I can't decide if I haven't of if the change has been really gradual-in terms of our current debt-don't laugh but we seriously racked up 12,000 in CC debt, 13,000 in student loan debt and I'm not sure how much we started at on the second mortgage (I believe 17,000) in about 6 months. Before that, we were really careful on most things and had been without CC debt for a while-DH had debt coming into our marriage, I had never had a credit card until then.
The biggest obstacle is my husband. I don't think we'll ever fully agree on money. We talk it out and compromise and each of us is willing to give in some but there are just a lot of things where we disagree i.e. he's very into new cars-but is willing to drive them for a while. He does not want to pay off the mortgage early particularly-thinks it's better to invest any extra funds. I really want to stay home until Ian goes to school, DH thinks it would be better if I were earning money.
Taleyna
Hi, Danni and Taylena (oops-soorry-spelling). Thanks, Taylena for the debt book lists. Finally, I can see the list and get what I want. A big hug to you!! Let's see--AHA moments, brain freezes, etc. Well, as you all know, it is a work in progress. l) Defining moment: 8 yrs ago---$50K medical bill, $500/month back IRS taxes, 8 cc's, loss of job(S), working two jobs beneath what I was capable of earning;DH losing job. I Worked two jobs for 7 yrs. PT/FT Sooo--took some classes, and got a better job. Refi house. . 2) Ultimatum moment: DH said I could no longer have cc's. Why? Because it is too easy and tempting. DH said it would lead to divorce if I kept my CC's Why? Because I had the bad habit of racking up debts. So, I have one cc that I racked up $7k this yr!!! We had so much debt, we couldnt put a new roof on house for several yrs, and the rain ruined a lot. 3)Turning point: opening a credit union account. Having some money debited from my paycheck toward 403B. 4) Eye-opening moment: Seeing myself fritter away money, and couldnt remember what I had bought. Then paying interest on it for years!. So, I stopped and thought about how hard I had to work to get that hour's worth of money. Then, had someone hand me $20 (of my money, of course), and say, this is what you get for that hour. I know that sounds silly, but that is what it took to really hit the point home.
Lessons: l) DONT get ARM for mortgage. You pay interest only, and rates and payments go up each month. Refi done this week for fixed rate!
2) Writing the creditors and keeping track. Pay off small items first to get victories.
3) Not postponing things. We waiting 3 yrs to get roof, and the water ruined a lot of stuff in the bathroom, kitchen, etc. Postponed dentist, and had a LOT of work to get done (and still do!)
4) Looking back. Wallowing in despair, anger, etc. of my stupidity.Oh, I could write a book on the stuff I did wrong. (Danni, you know my trials in the past!) Sooo---I Signed up for some classes to better myself. To this day, I tend to dwell on the past mistakes. Yes, I still blow it. But, there is hope in this board, and wonderful ideas, too. 5) OPEN that savings account and Credit union (go to the HR dept and set it up). Believe me, you wont miss that $25/month. This is absolutely the best thing I ever did. It took over 3 yrs to save, but I now have about $85K in the 403b.. No, it isnt much, but it is a start.
6) Mary Hunt newsletter (awhile back) and collecting recipes for easy meals. Money magazine has helped, too. You gotta start somewhere. Believe me, I used to hide the bills under the couch (drawer), because I didnt want DH to see we didnt have enough to pay it. No more. Remember----you will get through this. WHiz.