Biggest financial regret for 2009?

iVillage Member
Registered: 02-19-2003
Biggest financial regret for 2009?
15
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 1:20pm

Maybe you bought something you wish you hadn't. Loaned money to someone you shouldn't have or perhaps waited too long to negotiate a bill.


What was your biggest financial regret for 2009?


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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-02-1998
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 3:16pm
biggest regret of last year was to loan money to a family member to repair their vehicle. And then watch them buy all sorts of new toys (flat screen tv, motorcycle, fancy stereo etc) before even thinking about paying us back.




Avatar for sohappilyme
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 4:13pm

Tough one for me. I regret paying late fees and overdrafts, but they were always the lessor of two evils when it came down to it. If I have to pay an overdraft to keep the electric on, then I'm gonna pay an overdraft. Either way, it's certainly #1 on the list of things to avoid this year!

Otherwise, I don't have money regrets. We busted our tails for the progress we made, and I'm proud of it.

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FLINGING DEBT:
Sarah
iVillage Member
Registered: 11-02-1999
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 4:43pm

I'd have to say my biggest regret is not making a full-on effort to find a new job. Not only has my salary cut and consistently late payroll contributed greatly to our woes, it was also a source of enormous (and what should have been unnecessary) stress.

Onward and upward in 2010!










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iVillage Member
Registered: 08-08-2005
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 5:01pm
Absolutely!!! I too feel that pain, the nsf fees charged by the bank are crazy. (and I love how the pay the most expensive item of the day and then charge nsf fees on the tiny little ones that came in days before, because they were on hold - and then they could charge $108 instead of $36! - wow, I could vent for days!) I don't know about biggest, but certainly one of my biggest regrets was to get a payday advance from an online company. We borrowed $300 to keep the gas on (gotta have heat) and have since paid back $745.00 and still have a $150 balance!

Angel

Wife to Wayne, Mommy to Tyler (15), Nickolas (3) and Noah (1)

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-24-2007
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 5:29pm

Angel, OMG, that payday advance is horrible!

Kate


empty purse

iVillage Member
Registered: 08-04-2008
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 6:38pm

Regret - two traffic tickets. They were for going 36 in a 30 and 40 in a 35, not like I was going 80MPH or anything, and both roads came off of other roads or the speed limit reduced from well over what I was going, so I kind of consider them bogus tickets. But a cost of $285 total and the inability to change insurance providers for the next couple years.

-Marie




iVillage Member
Registered: 07-05-2006
Wed, 12-30-2009 - 10:53pm

I got so fed up with overdraft fees that I found a credit union that pays me back for them. Not easy to get though! It's because I am a platinum member (I have my mortgage through them) and platinum members get all kinds of benefits. I also have my savings attached to my checking for free and although there's a limit on the number of transfers you can have in a month, it has still pretty much totally gotten rid of my overdraft problems. I still have one other checking account that I use that sometimes gets hairy! But ever since I got quicken (and I use it religiously...daily) I've only had one overdraft this year and that's because they changed their banking policies on me and I didn't know! I fought it so hard too! But there was nothing I could do.

Sorry for the horrible run-on sentences...it's late!

Avatar for sohappilyme
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Thu, 12-31-2009 - 10:05am

I know a lot of people love credit unions, but I hate, hate, hate them! We've been members of two and both experiences were HORRIBLE. And not because of poor account management on our part. I think I'd keep my money in a shoebox before I went back to another one! In fact, we still have $5 in a savings account in one and DH refuses to go through the door to get it, LOL.

I'm not the type to hate the bank for overdrafts. I know they're my fault. Usually it's something like having an electric disconnect for Tuesday when payday isn't until Wednesday. I can pay it and the bank will cover it but I pay the fee. I'd rather pay the $35 fee than deal with not having electricity and the reconnect fee is higher than the overdraft fee anyway so I still come out ahead. All of our accounts are free and we have three at my "favorite" bank so I can transfer money easily before an overdraft occurs, but at the same time I'm not going to take away from what's in another account for the mortgage to cover the electric (to stick with the same example).

I think your advice is great and I appreciate it. Unfortunately, we're still the oddballs and until we make our ends meet a lot of the conventional rules don't apply in conventional ways, LOL.

Thanks, Abbie!

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FLINGING DEBT:
Sarah
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-01-2008
Thu, 12-31-2009 - 10:18am

I've started to answer this question twice yesterday, and chickened out both times.

Norma


"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble"- Plautus


iVillage Member
Registered: 11-14-2008
Thu, 12-31-2009 - 11:27am

I am not sure on this one.

I guess it would be realizing how important the efund is and how important savings are. By that i mean to say, not realizing it earlier.

I just want to pay down debt and then save but I'm afraid I am running out of time. I should have started saving for my kids education sooner. I did try to mention it a few times to my ex while we were married, but he always said we had plenty of time. He said that about everything though, paying off debt, paying more on the mortgage, saving for things we wanted to buy. I should have been a stronger person and made it a priority. Retirement falls into this category too. I need to save for that as well.

I suppose that is all in the past. So....moving onwards and upwards in 2010 to a more responsible adult(me! LOL).


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