Help........have no clue !

[kickchk]

I highly recommend Dave Ramsey and his Financial Peace University. Great read and it really works.
http://www.daveramsey.com/fpu/home/

[Thatcantberight]

Originally Posted by Teamroper

Okay, I am new to this forum, but have read some of the articles and think that I might be able to get some help here. Looking to get out of probably somewhere around $90k in debt.................and most of it is credit card debt believe it or not. I have read on debt consolidation (read the bad stoires also), read about consumer groups (and some of the scary stories with them)...........so now I am left not knowing which direction to head. Me and my wife together make around $150k of income, but we are not going in any direction,and then with the price of everything going up such as gas and all, we are not able to make any headwind. ANy suggestions on how to get this ball rolling to get us out of the hole! Like I said, I am open for any information!

This may sound like it is flippant advice, but by following it to the letter, you and your wife could be debt free in two years.

Change your lifestyle drastically.

If you have cars, sell them and find cheaper alternatives...bicycles...walking...mopeds.
IF you have a choice between walking and taking a bus, walk.
Use the proceeds from selling cars to pay off debt immediately.

Cancel all credit cards. Keep none.

Never use a debit or bank card to purchase anything. You can only buy the bare necessities from here on in. Use cash only.

Stop going to the mall. the only thing you can buy now is food and toiletries like toothpaste, soap, and toilet paper when they are on sale. Give up shampoo and use soap instead.

Move to a cheaper place that has utilities included in the rental price, even if you think a place is a dump, the savings in rent and utilities per year would be considerable. Use those monthly rental or mortgage savings to pay off debt. Find a rental for under $600 a month, swallow your pride and move into a low rent district.

If you own a home sell it and use the proceeds to pay off debt immediately.


Never eat out. Skip lunch at work. Budget $200 a month for all food and toiletry costs.

Don't buy coffee while going to work, at work, or going home from work. Never visit Starbucks or doughnut shops or fast food joints. Don't consume soft drinks. Learn to love cheap homemade food and tap water.

Only buy essentials...food...the cheapest toiletries... with a monthly budget of $200 dollars...wait for sales. Buy the cheapest products, don't pay for brand names.

Don't buy new clothes, you already have enough. If they wear out, get a needle and thread and fix them yourself.

Make gifts for birthdays, don't buy anything to just give away.

Your wife and you should get other part time jobs in the evenings and weekends. Work in a shop or a restaurant. Use the extra cash towards paying off debt.


IF daycare, is an expense, find a relative you trust to take care of the kids. That's what grandparents, aunts and uncles, and unemployed sisters and brothers are for. Be a burden. Explain your situation. Don't pay them in cash, pay in favors.
Use the daycare savings to pay off the debt.

You may not like this advice, but you are so far in debt that you can't think of retirement any more. Stop contributing to any Retirement or 401 K. Keep it at the current level but do not invest any more of your own money toward it. Use the savings to pay off debt. When the debt is paid off, than start making contributions again.

Don't buy any books. Find a library.

Do not take vacations. If your company makes you take time off every year, use it to find temp jobs and use the money earned to pay toward the debt..

Do not travel.

Do not subscribe to magazines or get home internet or cable services.

Give up your attachment to things. Sell anything you don't use or don't really need anymore, and use the proceeds to pay off the debt.

Give up expensive sports like skiing or golf. Don't pay to exercise at a gym. Do it at home or in a park or at a free local recreation center.

Use any money you earn, except from betweem about $800 to $900 a dollars a month for a place to live, gas for the moped, and food and use eveything else to pay off debt.

You said that you and your wife make 150 k a year. Follow my plan and you would be free in no time.

Learn to live a completely different lifestyle to pay off the debt.


Stop consuming, except for the bare necessities and with your wife and yours combined income you could be out of debt in less than two years.

Better to be poor in the short term. Live poor for the next two years to use all your money to pay off debt. When the debt is paid off, then you can start living again. But then, pay cash only.


For real advice, find people to talk to who live on less than $900 dollars a month all the time because they are poor.

[mydebtquest]

My wife and I are in the process of "correcting" our financial situation, too. We started with about $48,000 in debt between medical bills, credit cards, student loans, and auto loans. We decided, though, that we want to get out of debt without feeling like we're sacrificing our lives. Our process, which has worked so far:

First, we took a very close look at our spending. I use Quicken to track all of our finances, so getting a very accurate picture of our expenses did not take much. We considered what was important to us, and trimmed everything else - extra services on the cable, eating out frequently, going to the movies, etc. Now, we go out to eat on special occasions, and since we don't do it every week, it really is a special occasion.

Then, we set up an emergency fund. The biggest setback in getting out of debt is to run up more debt. The emergency fund provides a buffer, so we have cash on hand to take care of unexpected expenses. We actually set up a couple of emergency funds - one with our bank, linked to our checking account, and another with a better interest rate at an online bank. The one linked to the checking account is a buffer, in case we go over budget during the week, so we don't have to use credit cards. The online savings account is our actual "emergency fund," which will eventually house six months of living expenses. Every time we get paid, the first transfer out goes to the emergency fund.

Finally, we listed our debts, along with their interest rates and minimum payments. Every month, we pay the minimum payment on every debt. Whatever money is left goes towards the debt with the highest interest rate, our "target."

Getting out of debt requires some sacrifice, but I don't think it needs to be painful. We still have a vacation fund that we contribute to out of every paycheck. We still have some money available for feel-good purchases with no bearing on our long-term success. Of course, this is all with a cost - a delay in resolving the debt. In our case, it is a price we are willing to pay.

[hermione]

I recently wrote a blog post titled Discerning Luxury from Necessity that might be helpful in determining what expenses to cut. It's not very in-depth, more of an overview, but maybe it can help point you in the right direction.

As for your horses, have you thought of ways you can try to make some extra money with them such as by offering riding lessons, roping lessons (I take it from your username you competed in roping) or even recreational rides?

I used to have horses and know it can be complicated with safety issues, the horses' temperaments, and having people sign liability waivers, but if you have the right facilities and the horses, it might be worth thinking about. Unless where you live, there are already so many people with horses that it wouldn't be that big of an attraction.

Well, I hope this helps. Good luck.

[xshopr]

You have a lot of debt, but you also have a lot of income. I noticed with myself as my income increased, the less attention I would pay to my finances. A tool that has completly changed my spending habits has been my monthly spending report that is linked to my checking, savings, & credit card through Wells Fargo. I don't know if all banks have a spending report for online banking, but if they do it can be an eye opener. Every week or every couple of days I log on and adjust purchases & payments into catagories like monthly consumables (ie: gas & groceries) & utilities, the report has been invaluable to help get a handle on my spending. Once I stopped letting money slip through my fingers and started tracking every dime, I found I have at least an extra $1,000 a month. A few other things I have done is:
Inventory the house & garage. Literally all cabinets, closets, dressers, & storage bins. I went a 1 year without having to buy cleaning supplies or toiletries. I won't even get into the clothes, shoes & linens!!
I never shop for anything (even a can of tomatoes) without checking to make sure I don't already have it.
I keep a running list in my kitchen with a pen close by for weekly trips to the store, following the above rule of course.
I take my lunch and snacks to work every day, I also have a pretty thermal mug that I enjoy using for free tea, coffee, & water.
I started washing my own car & doing my own yard work.

I read on another blog that if you count the pennies the dollars will follow & I have completely found that to be true. Debt is way too stressful. Good Luck!!!

[moneymatters]

I would second the suggestion of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University - it has a great program for saving, getting out of debt, and rearranging your personal money situation.

When my wife and I started looking at our financial situation, we found that there were a ton of ways that we were over-spending, and not paying as much attention to where the money was going. For example, we love to eat out, and we found that in some months we were eating out to the tune of 8-1000 dollars a month! We had no idea!

When we looked closer at clothing spending, we found that my wife was spending a lot more than she thought she was.

When I looked at it, I found that I had a habit of buying coffee and pastries that added up to hundreds of dollars a year!

When all is said and done, if you really take a close look at what you're spending, you'll find a lot of areas that you can cut out. Take the money you're saving, and snowball your way out of debt. We've done it, so can you! It wont' be easy, but you can!

Good luck!

[fredrickjones]

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[Jason830]

I also heard some positive feedback from Dave Ramsey's as well...It doesnt hurt to check it out. Good luck!

[spencer]

First stop accumulating additional debt, then start living below your means and use everything you save to repay the debt. It's very simple.