Buried in Debt

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I used to have $25,000 on credit cards.

My advice is put your credit cards on ice - literally - put thin in a container with water and then into the freezer. You can get them if you really need them, but otherwise just dont use them.

Pay off the small balances first - after there are clear they is less payments to deal with and you can put more money onto the larger debts. After the small ones are gone, concentrate on the highest interest rate debts.

This year I paid off my last credit card and owe nothing on my car

that is really good advice, i think (bolded). i read somewhere that it has a positive psychological effect to pay off the smaller debts first, as it gives a person a sense of accomplishment, and that positive feeling helps to keep the debt payments on track.

I like to have a program/structure to follow, so I am using the Dave Ramsey plan. There is lots of info on the internet, so I will not get into it here. There are also several good websites on frugal living. As of today my credit card debt is gone, my student loans will be gone early next year, next will be my car loan, then (after I am completely debt free) I will save up 20% down for my next home.

I was pretty close to financial ruin a few years ago after the long illness and passing of my late husband. I had deep debt and I sold my house at a loss to get out of Calif. Rebuilding is not fun, but it can be done.

Some good advice here. The bottom line is ... getting out of debt, like losing weight, is damned hard and there's no quick and simple way to do it. You just have to bite the bullet, make a plan, and stick with it.

I well remember the day I woke up and discovered I had $15,000 rung up on credit cards, and no idea how the hell I'd done it. Well, it took a couple of years, but I paid them all off and these days I shun the damn things. I use a debit card, but I have no more credit cards at all, and I don't miss them in the least.

I don't claim to be any financial wiz, but in my opinion, credit cards are nothing more than gimmicks to give the bankers one more way to screw you. Salt away five or ten thousand dollars in a savings account for emergencies or "must have" buys, and throw the damn cards in the toilet.

it's not that i'm so terrible at handling money, certainly no worse than average, but i'm really terrible at MAKING money, as i have no marketable skills nor any prospects of somehow getting any by osmosis. and even if i did have marketable skills, i cannot market myself effectively so they would be all for naught.

It really is a two-parter. I'm not poking fun - I have the same problem, I just think it's funny how often we forget about the income part.

yeah, us stragglers need to stick together and give each other moral support. in a better world...

If you don't have a budget, start with that. I use an Excel spreadsheet, which is based on the old envelopes system. Also, I created a budget over the course of the next 12 months to give me an idea of where I am. Knowing all this helps me with regard to my loans.

Scott