Debt Reducers

[Laxmom]

I'm in Northern Kentucky and our off-peak hours for running appliances are before 7:00 am and after 6:00 pm. We received a cost cutting pamphlet with our utility bill last year and this is what they recommended.

Do you have Duke Energy? If so, I somehow missed that pamphlet. Laundry will now be done in the evening in my house.

 

[FirstTimertoDiz]

One really great site recommended by Money magazine that I just started using is the Yodlee Money Center. You can keep track of all your bills, investments, bank accts, etc in one place. It also has a budget center that alerts you by email when you are close to you budget threshold in any given category-- all of which you set up yourself. Hope this helps someone.

Interesting- do you use this site? I was looking for information about it, and couldn't seem to find much to expain how it works. Course, it's late and I'm exhausted, so that may have something to do with it, lol.

btw Roadtripper- thanks for sharing your encouraging story! That is a great job! You worked hard, and I am glad you get to celebrate all your hard work at Disney- you deserve it!

 

[MissMichelle]

This has been really hard..I was planning my Disney wedding next year in August but Dfi and I sat down and really went over things and it has dropped on our priority list. We have been house hunting and we sat down with a mortgage broker who said ALL DEBT MUST GO first....So I just paid down the CC's with part of the tax returns so we only owe about $1,000 (no interest cards till the end of the year) and I have $13,000 still owed on my car...We need to meet with an advisor to see at this point whether we should throw our savings (about $14,000) onto the car and last CC and then try and see where we can come up with down payment funds for the house. THere is also closing costs and all that is scaring me because we need to move soon since Dfi's mother is moving with us (she is putting up $5,000 towards whatever aka down payment,closing, etc since she is disabled and doesn't have much of an income that is all she can do)

Long story short we are very confused right now as to how we will pull this off....I just keep thinking we'll need to buy somewhere that has all appliances included and be in good move in shape since we won't have funds for awhile (I am NOT touching the CC's at all once they are paid) to get anything.

 

[Heluvsme]

We have Duke Energy now, but it's only been in the last....ohhhhh 6, maybe 8 months or so? The switch seems like it's been less than a year ago to me. It was one of those single page inserts that come in the bill, I think it had "Energy Saving Tips" on one side and some other information on the other side.

They listed things like washing laundry in cold water. Checking the windows and doors for air leaks and replacing caulking around windows. Running appliances during off-peak hours and unplugging unnecessary appliances when not in use. Cleaning the refrigerator's coils regularly and insulating the water heater. These are just a few things that come to mind right now.

Count every penny because every penny counts!

 

[MissMichelle]

One really great site recommended by Money magazine that I just started using is the Yodlee Money Center. You can keep track of all your bills, investments, bank accts, etc in one place. It also has a budget center that alerts you by email when you are close to you budget threshold in any given category-- all of which you set up yourself. Hope this helps someone.

As you can see below, we're planning to take advantage those new DVC points in a few weeks- all paid for What a way to celebrate!

This site is AWESOME THANKS!!!! I have already added most of my debt and $$ accounts to it and I am seeing it one place making my life so much easier.

 

[duketennisgal]

I'm going to join in this thread.

I have about 9,000 is credit card debt and that's what I want to work on. I then have my student loans and my car loan which are at low interest rates and I don't mind putting them on the backburner while I focus on the rest of my debt. My goal is to have all credit card debt taken care of within 1 year, it's going to put a huge strain on my budget but it's going to be worth it in the long run!

 

[Deffenm]

I got rid of 2 doctor bills in Jan. only one left to go! We still have one credit card, my student loan, and my car payment (which is on schedule to be paid off in Sept.)

 

[jenm2878]

We're in too. We're at a frustrating point of our debt payoff because we're out of things with small balances so it'll be a while before we get rid of any one balance. It's great to see the #'s go down, but it's more motivating to know that one is almost gone, you know?

We have no cc debt, but have a HELOC that will probably be paid off in about a year. We've been paying extra on my car and it will get it paid off in around 2 years, and then we will snowball all of that money into student loans, which will take 5 or 6 years to completely retire. Sigh. My goal this year is to reduce our debt by $20-$25k. We've got a good jump on it so far with a decent tax refund!

 

[smiller]

Just transferred one of my CC balances to another card - went from 11.24% to 6.99% for life, no transfer fee!

 

[roadtripper]

Interesting- do you use this site? I was looking for information about it, and couldn't seem to find much to expain how it works. Course, it's late and I'm exhausted, so that may have something to do with it, lol.

btw Roadtripper- thanks for sharing your encouraging story! That is a great job! You worked hard, and I am glad you get to celebrate all your hard work at Disney- you deserve it!

Thank you!
Yes, I do use the site, but you're right-- it's not very user friendly at first. Frist you add all your accounts in (based on the username and password you use for online access to the account), then you can see the "dashboard" which is a snapshot of accounts. I also like the spending reports page, where you can categorize transactions, and it will give you a pie chart showing what percentage of your income you're spending on certain things--groceries, loans, utilities, charitable contributions-- whatever. It will even tell you what your house is worth, based on zillow.com, so that it can be included in your net worth profile (somehow, that makes me feel better!)It automatically updates all of your accounts, which is the best part, and you can link right to those accounts from the Money center. Hope this helps!

 

[IheartDL]

Our church is doing a Crown Financial series starting next week. Has anyone done that? Was it helpful? We know what to do to get out of debt, but getting the funds is our challenge. All money now is going straight to bills just to get by. We're SO tired of living like this. My goal is to reward our debtfreeness with a paid in cash trip to WDW in 2009.

I've been lurking on this and the "no-buy" threads for a few days now, but I just had to jump in when you asked this question.
The Crown Financial Bible study is amazing and life changing. You learn so much, and it's great to have the accountability. I'd highly recommend it!

Since I'm jumping in, this is the year DH and I have decided to crack down and stick to a budget. It seems the more available credit we have, the more we spend. Just reading this thread is inspiring, though.

Yeah, and we're so tired of living like this too. Always starting a budget and recording spending and falling off the wagon again and again!

 

[rluey29]

We just paid off our $3500 cc with 25% interest - Woo Hoo!!! I bet that company was floored. They probably thought they'd be sucking money from us for awhile.

We have another cc with $7000 on it that will be payed off in a week thanks to a good tax return and a cancelled WDW trip. We'll be free of credit cards after that!

 

[NewmanFam6]

My DH and I began using Dave Ramsey's envelope system in Sept 2007. We have a strict budget and if there is no cash in the envelope then it doesn't get purchased. It was really hard at first but easier now. We have paid off his car and most of our CC debt. We will be debt free when I graduate nursing school in 2009 except his SL which will be paid off by 2013. He owed alot in school loans between his BS in Chemistry and his Doctorate in Pharmacy. I definitely use the menu planning and only buy the items for those recipes while grocery shopping with the exception of necessities(milk, detergent, etc) Stick with it everyone we can do this

 

[Laxmom]

We have Duke Energy now, but it's only been in the last....ohhhhh 6, maybe 8 months or so? The switch seems like it's been less than a year ago to me. It was one of those single page inserts that come in the bill, I think it had "Energy Saving Tips" on one side and some other information on the other side.

They listed things like washing laundry in cold water. Checking the windows and doors for air leaks and replacing caulking around windows. Running appliances during off-peak hours and unplugging unnecessary appliances when not in use. Cleaning the refrigerator's coils regularly and insulating the water heater. These are just a few things that come to mind right now.

Count every penny because every penny counts!

Thanks! I use ebill so I didn't get the insert. We do most of this already except for the off hours thing. I think I will give it a try and see.

 

[mami2camjax]

My debt haunts me during the day and at night. I am a single mother of 2 who has somehow managed to get herself into A LOT of debt! I'll do good and get things paid off and then it just adds back on and that cycle keeps repeating and I need it to stop. I need to be debt free and start saving for my kids and for my future.

I currently have about $13000 in credit card debt - split between 2 cards. I am hoping to pay one off with my tax refund and then cut up that card so I can never use it again. Then work on the other card.

I have my student loans which is about 12,000

and then I have my stupidest purchase ever - my minivan that I just had to have and I'm stuck with a ridiculously high payment for a LEASED van - so I'm pretty much stuck with that till October 2009 - so I have to work around that crazy payment - which I am far too embarrassed to post on here.

I have very little in savings - about $900 in an ING account. I spend my kids child support to help pay things down, when deep down, I know I should be saving that to help them. I'm just in a bad spot

I have a boyfriend who is very savvy with his money and I think he'll freak when he sees what kind of mess I have myself in. I want to be debt free asap and start saving so I can buy a house for my kids and I too live in. I'm tired of paying my Mom rent (she eats up a lot of my money too ).

This is the post I need to motivate me, encourage me and for me to not feel so alone in my past bad money mistakes...

 

[minnie1928]

My debt haunts me during the day and at night. I am a single mother of 2 who has somehow managed to get herself into A LOT of debt! I'll do good and get things paid off and then it just adds back on and that cycle keeps repeating and I need it to stop. I need to be debt free and start saving for my kids and for my future.

I currently have about $13000 in credit card debt - split between 2 cards. I am hoping to pay one off with my tax refund and then cut up that card so I can never use it again. Then work on the other card.

I have my student loans which is about 12,000

and then I have my stupidest purchase ever - my minivan that I just had to have and I'm stuck with a ridiculously high payment for a LEASED van - so I'm pretty much stuck with that till October 2009 - so I have to work around that crazy payment - which I am far too embarrassed to post on here.

I have very little in savings - about $900 in an ING account. I spend my kids child support to help pay things down, when deep down, I know I should be saving that to help them. I'm just in a bad spot

I have a boyfriend who is very savvy with his money and I think he'll freak when he sees what kind of mess I have myself in. I want to be debt free asap and start saving so I can buy a house for my kids and I too live in. I'm tired of paying my Mom rent (she eats up a lot of my money too ).

This is the post I need to motivate me, encourage me and for me to not feel so alone in my past bad money mistakes...

I have several suggestions for you, but I'm getting ready for work so I'll keep it brief:

1. Go to the library and get some books by Suze Orman or Dave Ramsey. Read a little each night and they can act as a reminder/motivator to help keep you on track.
2. You mention paying off one of your CCs with your tax refund. If you typically get a decent refund each year then you should consider changing your witholding to get less tax taken off each check. That money could then be used to pay down debt.
3. Be honest with yourself, your mom and your boyfriend. If you can't do something because you need to pay something down/off, then you need to tell them the truth. I think they'll respect you more if you are upfront with them about the situation. The past is the past, what's important is what you are going to do with the future.
4. The minivan...can anything be done there? I'm no expert in leasing so I'll leave that to someone else.

Most of all I wish you the best of luck. Keep reporting back here and we'll support you as much as we can.

 

[Heluvsme]

Oh you guys, I'm so excited!!!

Since the Feds have cut the interest rates, I thought yesterday, Hey, what the heck, I'll call my credit card company and see what they can do for me.

I simply said that I was on a debt reduction plan and I was wondering if they could do anything about the 17.99% interest on my current card. Within 1 minute I was given an 11.99% interest rate!! No time limit! Just can't ever be late with any payments (which won't be a problem, we've never been late).

WAHHHH HOOOOO!!!!!


Oh, and the envelope system from Dave Ramsey, I second that, it works GREAT!!!!! Hard to get used to at first, but it really does work.

 

[alicenwonder99]

Hey everyone!

Glad to see so many more newcomers joining us and getting serious about snowballing our debts!

I'm going to be working on our taxes today. I'm expecting somewhere around $1000. Not sure what to do with the money, yet. So much debt, so little money!!!

I'm also going to do a balance transfer on the evil Bank of America who would only lower my rate to 23.99%. My other card sent me something for a balance transfer for 3.99% until it's paid off! That's almost as low as my student loan! lol.

I just got a raise. A whole whopping $1.50 an hour raise. Now, instead of my salary being embarrassing, it's now just pathetic...lol. Oh well, every bit counts. Dh STILL hasn't had his 2007 review, so no raise for 2008 yet. He said it will be retro once he gets it.

On the bad side, dd9 needs new ice skates. UGH! I have to get them this weekend because she has a competition in 2 weeks and she needs time to break them in. I told her we have to keep it under $200, and she understands. Now, I just have to be creative and find a way to come up with $200 in the next 24 hours...lol.

 

[aclov]

I'm going to try and stop my online shopping. I say "try" because I think I'm addicted. I usually get something delivered every other day! I keep hearing my dad "do you REALLY need that??" I don't need it but it's a good deal and maybe some freebies are included!

I also need to stop eating out, which I usually try to go someplace with a coupon or use my entertainment book. After tipping it really adds up and I refuse to leave a cheap tip.

Another spurlge is coffee and sometimes breakfast in the morning.

 

[WDWMagicNic]

I'm so glad to have found this thread! Our main New Year's resolution was to quit spending excessively and bring down our debt. This is wonderful motivation, and I really enjoy reading everyone's tips on how they are bringing down their debt and raising their savings. Congrats, group!

The way the economy is going, I wish there were even more folks who would be more mindful of what they are spending and make a real effort to get on solid financial ground. I will definitely be pointing my friends and family to this very motivating site!