am i ok? please help!!

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-28-2007
am i ok? please help!!
11
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 12:32am

i've been worried lately about my cc load, especially because i come from a cheap family (the frugalness skipped me, obviously...) who would always tell me to NEVER carry debt. and also because of gas and other high-priced bs we face.


i'm on my own, 26 yo, have a college degree and a decent job, and rent an apt (roommate

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Avatar for cl_phocid
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 12:39am

Hello and welcome to the board.

All my best,
Danni

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-28-2007
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 12:47am

thanks for your response, danni. my ideal would be to just have my student loans to worry about. i hate having this high-interest debt. i guess i've just been wondering if this is "normal" for my age, or if i royally screwed up or what... being hard on myself won't solve things, but it sure is keeping me up at night!


how long did it take you to get your situation under control? i've been trying to pay off everything for years now; this is the highest it's been, by far. but like you said, i had so many bumps -- a period of unemployment, bad breakup, a couple moves, etc. but i do admit i made some bad impulse

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iVillage Member
Registered: 11-17-2007
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 4:17am

Welcome to the board. My advice is The first thing I would do is sit down add up what you bring home in a month wages wise. Then take 35% of that. If you live in the East or Calif. I would take 40%.


Now add your rent and all your credit card payments just the normal ones not what you are paying extra. If they add up to 40% or less then you are in line with your income. At least you are not over extended. If it is more then 40% then you need to get the payments down to that much or less.


As far as the credit cards go. Which ever one has a balance of less then 1000.00 I would start with that and pay as much extra as you can and get it paid off.

iVillage Member
Registered: 11-17-2007
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 4:28am

PS to my posting Yes save some a little each week maybe 10.00 a week.

Avatar for cl_phocid
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 10:58am

Hey there - I'm more than happy to share my story, but while it started similar to yours, it took a pretty drastic turn at one point.


So I was (I think) 16 or 18K in debt in my mid-twenties.

All my best,
Danni

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-09-1999
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 12:48pm

Welcome to the board, showtime07, glad that you found us.

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-29-2006
Wed, 06-25-2008 - 6:45pm

Welcome Showtime07,


Love your screen name, BTW.

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-28-2007
Thu, 06-26-2008 - 12:08am

thanks so much for all your great responses.


as of now, i have a little more than $500 in savings. i've been putting $20/paycheck into it for the past few months. so i guess the rough plan will be to pay the mins on my cards until i get the savings

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iVillage Member
Registered: 12-07-2003
Thu, 06-26-2008 - 7:08am

When credit cards are raising your rates like that, don't use the card after you get the notice. Usually, if you read the fine print, the rate only goes up if you agree to the change by charging a new purchase.

Also, be very, very careful about paying the minimums on time. Despite having a pretty high debt to income ratio, DH and I have really good credit scores and part of the reason is we are never late.

baby in clothes basket
iVillage Member
Registered: 01-25-2008
Thu, 06-26-2008 - 4:24pm

Hi showtime07!

You are going to be OK! You have to give yourself some credit for taking a step that a lot of people today don't even dare to! And you are still young! At least you did not wait until your mid-thirties, married with kids, mortgage and so on!

And with all of the great advice you'll get here, you are well on your way to making a plan!

That's what has saved my family, is having a spending plan (or budget) and learning how to stick to it and to control our spending. You have to know what's coming and what needs to go out and to where.

I am also a fan of Dave Ramsey. We have paid off about $21,000 this past year and still have a ways to go. A few folks have already mentioned the importance of having an emergency fund of $1000, if you feel like you need to have a little more in there because of job stability, then you should put a little more in. After you have your emergency fund, then you can start on your debt, smallest to largest.

Keep an eye out for lower interest credit cards offers, like 2.9 until balance is paid. We have transfered a few balances around to try to keep the interest low on the cards we are only paying minimums on.

Just remember that you can do it! Even if it is slow going and takes you 5 years, you will be debt free at 31! And that is an accomplishment to be proud of.

Good luck and stick around here, these ladies are a great support!

Tashia

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