Debt Dumpers 2026

[Mackenzie Click-Mickelson]

As I shared earlier this month, we did buy a new car. First payment goes out on February 9. She is fun but that payment hurts after not having one for several years Paying $60 extra toward the principal and hope the increase that amount as time goes on.

The lease on my husband's car (which is technically meant for both of us but I never drive it) runs out in August of this year but we have always assumed we'll extend it for 6 months that the dealership allowed for. We only got a leased car because my husband was in an accident in 2023 that totaled his 2010 car (long since paid off) and the interest rates at that time made no sense to buy another car vs lease. I'm not exactly looking forward to potentially looking at a car again. My car is an old beater of a car.

Did you find the interest rates decently favorable for you? Not asking you to disclose the rate but just how you felt about it.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

I went to Academy tonight after dinner because DW is taking part in a youth event at church (DNow for any of you familiar with it). I don't ever shop for clothes, shoes, anything like that. For example, I've had the same 3 pairs of jeans for 8 years, the same polos, button downs and tee shirts for just about that long (minus the ones we've gotten for or at Disney). And I haven't bought new tennis shoes in probably 12+ years (my father-in -law was a coach, and he'd order me a pair of coach's shoes when he did his orders).

But I went to Academy because I had a gift card I'd gotten for Christmas, and OH MY! I thought I'd get a new pair of shoes since my blue ones have a hole in them. I didn't. The prices on stuff were outrageous. Tennis shoes were $100+ for Nikes, and I don't think I saw a pair for under $60. For a pair of shoes. Levi jeans were $60, and don't get me started on Nike, Under Armor and Addidas polos. Like $40-$50 for one polo. I don't know how anyone can afford to go shopping, especially if they have multiple kids. I hear people talking about shopping for the start of school, and now I see why they're freaking out.

Anyway, I bought a new Texas Rangers polo. It was originally $70, but it was marked down to $54.99. And it was on a rack that said take an additional 50% off price. So I got it for $27 and some change. So I was able to get that and two 2-pound dumbbells for my walking I've started doing.

 

[afan]

I went to Academy tonight after dinner because DW is taking part in a youth event at church (DNow for any of you familiar with it). I don't ever shop for clothes, shoes, anything like that. For example, I've had the same 3 pairs of jeans for 8 years, the same polos, button downs and tee shirts for just about that long (minus the ones we've gotten for or at Disney). And I haven't bought new tennis shoes in probably 12+ years (my father-in -law was a coach, and he'd order me a pair of coach's shoes when he did his orders).

But I went to Academy because I had a gift card I'd gotten for Christmas, and OH MY! I thought I'd get a new pair of shoes since my blue ones have a hole in them. I didn't. The prices on stuff were outrageous. Tennis shoes were $100+ for Nikes, and I don't think I saw a pair for under $60. For a pair of shoes. Levi jeans were $60, and don't get me started on Nike, Under Armor and Addidas polos. Like $40-$50 for one polo. I don't know how anyone can afford to go shopping, especially if they have multiple kids. I hear people talking about shopping for the start of school, and now I see why they're freaking out.

Anyway, I bought a new Texas Rangers polo. It was originally $70, but it was marked down to $54.99. And it was on a rack that said take an additional 50% off price. So I got it for $27 and some change. So I was able to get that and two 2-pound dumbbells for my walking I've started doing.

You shop sales like you did or outlet stores, tj maxx, Marshall's, target, walmart etc. Academy wouldn't be a place I'd go for any of the things you are looking for.

 

[Tygerlilly]

I don't know how anyone can afford to go shopping, especially if they have multiple kids.

Thrift stores, resale shops, outlet malls, TJ Maxx/Ross, and just watching for end of season sales. That's how I do it. I find the best deals on shoes at TJ Maxx and Ross usually.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I shop at Kohls when I have a 30 or 40% off coupon. They can't be applied to Levi's so I use my Kohls cash to buy them for dh. Most of my pants I paid $19.99 there. I usually buy sneakers at asics.com when they're on sale and I buy something on clearance. If you belong to their free loyalty club you get free shipping and free returns. I'm on my feet all day at work so I refuse to buy cheap junk.

Dh follows a website, I think it's called Brad's Deals which emails him various things that can be bought with huge savings. Most of it is stuff we don't need or wouldn't use but sometimes it's awesome. He sent me a link in December for Walmart with Levi's for $15. I thought they might be knockoffs but they were not being sold by a 3rd party seller so I gave it a shot and bought 3 pairs for each of my sons. They were great. Dh always says the best way to save money is to not be loyal to any particular brand and also he likes to buy stuff at a time when he doesn't truly need it. So he always has his next pair of sneakers and work boots still in the box in his closet and never shops with urgency. (Except when our oven died, lol.)

We also do this when our coffeepot dies. We always have a spare in our closet because a coffeepot never dies at 2pm on a Saturday. It's always at 5am on a work day. So once our spare enters service, we start shopping around for a new spare and can do so leisurely over the next several months and wait for a great deal.

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

The last few polos I bought DH are from Costco. All $10-15 each. And if you ever manage to catch their end of season clearance they can have some great deals. Have gotten hoodies for the teens for $5 each.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

You shop sales like you did or outlet stores, tj maxx, Marshall's, target, walmart etc. Academy wouldn't be a place I'd go for any of the things you are looking for.

Makes sense. As I said, I don't shop for new clothes. I don't shop for clothes, lol. But I will have to soon as my jeans have just about had it. I hate buying new clothes.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

Thrift stores, resale shops, outlet malls, TJ Maxx/Ross, and just watching for end of season sales. That's how I do it. I find the best deals on shoes at TJ Maxx and Ross usually.

I don't mind TJ Max. Not about to step into a thrift store or resell shop, and I'm not too fond of malls. Nothing for me in them usually since it's all clothes, and I'm not big on shopping for them. But I get your point. Thanks

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

The last few polos I bought DH are from Costco. All $10-15 each. And if you ever manage to catch their end of season clearance they can have some great deals. Have gotten hoodies for the teens for $5 each.

I don't have Costco membership, but I will check into it. You're talking about Nike, Adidas and Under Armor, right? That's a great deal for those.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

I shop at Kohls when I have a 30 or 40% off coupon. They can't be applied to Levi's so I use my Kohls cash to buy them for dh. Most of my pants I paid $19.99 there. I usually buy sneakers at asics.com when they're on sale and I buy something on clearance. If you belong to their free loyalty club you get free shipping and free returns. I'm on my feet all day at work so I refuse to buy cheap junk.

Nice. I like Kohls. I don't buy much for myself in there but we've bought Christmas presents as well as some Christmas and Disney stuff too. How does your DH deal with it when he gets shoes or clothes online that don't fit? That's what I worry about and why I don't do any shopping online. DW loves to shop online. Mostly Amazon, and

 

[Twilghtsprkle]

I don't have Costco membership, but I will check into it. You're talking about Nike, Adidas and Under Armor, right? That's a great deal for those.

No, whatever brand golf polos they have. Many times they carry their own Kirkland brand items. My husband does not care about brands. He cares more about cut & fabric.

 

[barkley]

Thrift stores

these were AWSOME when mine were little and needed 'something nice' for a school concert or event. there was a rack at our (then) local that always had very fancy little girls stuff that you could bet was a flower girls dress or some other special occasion outfit that was only worn once by the donor's kid. likewise there were points a time of year when people were clearing out their kid's winter clothing and realized those cute holiday themed dresses and boys vests that their kids only wore once for their previous holiday photos were never going to fit again-so SCORE for the thrift store shopper!

not a 'thrift' store but another resource I discovered that saved us some $$$ is tuxedo rental stores. I went into one to buy a garment bag one day (they sell them new for a few dollars) and discovered a rack with very nice/no sign of wear men/teen/boy solid color dress shirts for pennies on the dollar of what they cost on the best sales at any store. the staff explained to me that they have a set number of times they will rent the shirts after which no matter their condition they are taken out of circulation. after that any time someone in the household needed a solid color men's dress shirt it was the first option (sooooo many white dress shirts for highschool choir were outgrown between christmas and spring concerts ).

end of season sales

yup-right now it's sooooo cold here but walk into the stores and the winter wear is on clearance. depending on who wins the Superbowl tomorrow the local team's swag may be deeply discounted

We also do this when our coffeepot dies. We always have a spare in our closet because a coffeepot never dies at 2pm on a Saturday. It's always at 5am on a work day. So once our spare enters service, we start shopping around for a new spare and can do so leisurely over the next several months and wait for a great deal.

i've got new backup vaporizer and a crockpot in my laundry room closet. vaporizer falls into the same never goes out until an inconvenient time and the crockpot was on clearance right after Christmas for less than what i priced out just replacing the crock in my former when it developed a small crack.

The last few polos I bought DH are from Costco. All $10-15 each. And if you ever manage to catch their end of season clearance they can have some great deals. Have gotten hoodies for the teens for $5 each.

costco's clothing is amazingly durable. I can buy the identical name brand of sweats for dh elsewhere and they don't last nearly as long. I've not bought polos there b/c it seems like every month or so Walmart will have a clearance round in the men's section and be selling them for 50-80% off their already lower prices (maybe it has something to do with seasonal colors?).

 

[barkley]

How does your DH deal with it when he gets shoes or clothes online that don't fit?

for my dh there are particular brands of shoes he likes-doc martins and vans. they are true to their sizing so purchasing online from their websites are no problem (and if you sign up to get notifications you can get better deals than at any of the brick and mortar locations). that said-we love it when we are visiting near a van's outlet-awsome prices so we stock up. for jeans he's a levi's guy and that's a company where (at least on the men's/boy's) if you know what style size you wear (which is on the label attached to every pair) their sizing doesn't change so it's easy to price compare amazon to jc penny to whereever and ensure a good fit.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Nice. I like Kohls. I don't buy much for myself in there but we've bought Christmas presents as well as some Christmas and Disney stuff too. How does your DH deal with it when he gets shoes or clothes online that don't fit? That's what I worry about and why I don't do any shopping online. DW loves to shop online. Mostly Amazon, and

He pays attention to the return policy but mostly we try to buy online from stores that also are nearby so we can return them locally. We have also bought shoes from Zappos.com and they have always had free return shipping. I'm not sure if we just got lucky there or if that's their policy all the time.
Dh has crazy wide Fred Flintstone feet so most shoes and boots he buys online end up being returned.

You can also try Ross. They have a lot of good deals though I haven't shopped there in a while. Dh likes the clearance rack at Kohls. Around 2 years ago he found a pair of Lee jeans marked down to $4. He had the whole front checkout area asking him where he found them and if there were more and other sizes, etc. People got out of line to go look. He has a lot patience to stand there and pick through 500 hangers to find something he could use. That would drive me crazy. He also shops at Good Will. I know you say that you couldn't shop in a thrift store and I know you're a germaphobe but also know that when you go to WDW and lay your head on the pillow, hundreds of other people used that pillow and pillowcase before you got there. The pillowcases are laundered and put back on. Do you bring your own pillows on vacation?

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

The last few polos I bought DH are from Costco. All $10-15 each. And if you ever manage to catch their end of season clearance they can have some great deals. Have gotten hoodies for the teens for $5 each.

We find a lot of good clothing deals at Costco but it's hit or miss. I found t-shirts & ski pants for ds that he really liked.

 

[FreeTime]

He pays attention to the return policy but mostly we try to buy online from stores that also are nearby so we can return them locally. We have also bought shoes from Zappos.com and they have always had free return shipping. I'm not sure if we just got lucky there or if that's their policy all the time.
Dh has crazy wide Fred Flintstone feet so most shoes and boots he buys online end up being returned.

You can also try Ross. They have a lot of good deals though I haven't shopped there in a while. Dh likes the clearance rack at Kohls. Around 2 years ago he found a pair of Lee jeans marked down to $4. He had the whole front checkout area asking him where he found them and if there were more and other sizes, etc. People got out of line to go look. He has a lot patience to stand there and pick through 500 hangers to find something he could use. That would drive me crazy. He also shops at Good Will. I know you say that you couldn't shop in a thrift store and I know you're a germaphobe but also know that when you go to WDW and lay your head on the pillow, hundreds of other people used that pillow and pillowcase before you got there. The pillowcases are laundered and put back on. Do you bring your own pillows on vacation?

And to add to the comment about goodwill clothes and used pillows and washed pillow cases that you lay your head on @WDW_fan_in_TX when you buy new clothes think of the bugs and mice that have crawled on them, the blood from people who have cut their fingers on boxes when packing them or pricked themselves with industrial needles - germs are everywhere. I find great deals at thrift stores. A recent find was a $750 raincoat for $12. Also, @WDW_fan_in_TX of you are wearing 8 year old tennis shoes you are likely causing yourself expensive health problems later. With how your wife spends, surely you can get a pair of shoes.

 

[focusondisney]

Also, @WDW_fan_in_TX of you are wearing 8 year old tennis shoes you are likely causing yourself expensive health problems later. With how your wife spends, surely you can get a pair of shoes.

I absolutely agree with this. Especially trying to walk for exercise. Sneakers only last 300-500 miles. And even if he only wore them occasionally, the rubber that makes up the tread & foam on the interior deteriorates over time.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

And to add to the comment about goodwill clothes and used pillows and washed pillow cases that you lay your head on @WDW_fan_in_TX when you buy new clothes think of the bugs and mice that have crawled on them, the blood from people who have cut their fingers on boxes when packing them or pricked themselves with industrial needles - germs are everywhere. I find great deals at thrift stores. A recent find was a $750 raincoat for $12. Also, @WDW_fan_in_TX of you are wearing 8 year old tennis shoes you are likely causing yourself expensive health problems later. With how your wife spends, surely you can get a pair of shoes.

I don't shop at Goodwill or Thrift stores for fear of that stuff. As has been established, I am a big time germophobe. Just walking into those places gives me the heebie-jeebies. I could buy shoes, well could. But now I'm trying not to spend money until we get out of debt. I just don't want to spend $100 on a pair of shoes. Plus, I like having the air pocket on the bottom for cushion. And those run more expensive.

 

[WDW_fan_in_TX]

I absolutely agree with this. Especially trying to walk for exercise. Sneakers only last 300-500 miles. And even if he only wore them occasionally, the rubber that makes up the tread & foam on the interior deteriorates over time.

I've never heard of that, but that's interesting. I'll have to keep that in mind. The inside of my blue pair is pretty much gone, and the side has a hole in it. My black pair is in good shape, except one of the shoelace loops has broken off. So the laces don't tie right.

 

[barkley]

I find great deals at thrift stores. A recent find was a $750 raincoat for $12

that's fantastic! gotta ask-what brand? are you loving it???

we have a mix of 'thrift stores' in our area-there's the goodwill/salvation army/value village kind of places and their pickings can be pretty slim but it may be b/c it seems like some of them have gotten saavy and now have in-house 'pickers' that look through donations and if there's anything of higher quality you will see it listed on ebay (I was recently surprised to see how many listings on eBay disclose that they are goodwill or salvation army stores in other states) . the places that tend to have better quality at very reasonable prices are the individual charities (like the local cancer society and a local veteran's group) b/c people will donate their nicer items to them (they seem to appreciate that the money goes strictly to local causes).