Debt Dumpers - 2016

[ruadisneyfan2]

JMHO, but don't think a $15 or 20 payment is not worth paying. I do those all the time. Probably every week. Sometimes even just $5 extra.
It's not a huge dent but sometimes it's enough to bring a high first digit down 1 and then it doesn't look so bad. Kind of like when you get the balance under $1000 and you know it's going to be gone soon. You do the little 3 digit dance. lol
It's progress.

 

[dayvewc]

JMHO, but don't think a $15 or 20 payment is not worth paying. I do those all the time. Probably every week. Sometimes even just $5 extra.
It's not a huge dent but sometimes it's enough to bring a high first digit down 1 and then it doesn't look so bad. Kind of like when you get the balance under $1000 and you know it's going to be gone soon. You do the little 3 digit dance. lol
It's progress.

I agree, mostly. I always pay more than the minimums on all (but one) of my accounts. The one I don't is because I can't figure out how to schedule the payment for extra.

But the first of those payments that came in, I wasn't sure that I would be able to stick to the plan all year, so I was "cheating" and using the amount as a cushion just in case. Then, when we hit November and I was pretty sure I was going to make it all year, I just didn't want to pull it out. Pure stubbornness on my part but I was not going to take money out of that account. (Until this week. 2 of my timeshare annual fees are due by Friday, so they are scheduled for Wednesday.)

ETA when I say all but one bill, I mean it. Including my water, electric, and gas bill. I schedule them to pay roughly 10% over what is due, and when I have enough of a "credit" built up equal to 1 month then I just pay the bill amount. I've had it happen more than once that the bill was "late" and I had to call and argue to get the late fee taken off. I've always won the argument - if the payment is late because of the way they process should not be charged to me, I made sure the funds were available on the date due. But this way, I'm roughly just a month ahead. It also works in an emergency if something happens and I can't pay bills for whatever reason. It's a built in extra month in which to get someone else access to my account to pay bills.

 

[potterfanatic]

I would like to join. We went through some hard times racking up a good amount of debt in the process. Then moved cross country for a job that did not provide relocation expenses in order to make more money, only to find out that they required a mandatory $400 a month retirement contribution, and insurance cost $300 a month more than our previous insurance (Yes, we should have looked into this before accepting the job. Lesson learned) bringing us to bringing home less money and living in a place with a higher cost of living.

In 2016 I intend to:

- Pre-pay our entire trip to Disney in February. My husband promised to take our girls before we hit our financial struggle.
- Pay off $2,000 on a cc that has 20% interest.
- Pay off $1,200 on a cc with no interest before interest kicks in in November 2016.
- Pay as much as possible after that on the rest of my cc debt.

 

[Gena001]

I’m in. I lurked on the 2015 thread for most of last year, but it’s time to get serious. I think actually joining in the conversation will help keep my accountable. I was able to finally come up with a budget and tracking method that works for me which has been a huge help.

For 2016 I’d like to:

-Pay off a small personal loan from my in-laws. We had to borrow money from them to pay for a few months of health insurance when I lost my job right after the birth of my son. They told us not to worry about paying them back, but I really hate having that out there.

-Pay off 1 of our 2 cc balances totally close to $11000 over the two cards. I’m not even sure how this happened which is the most embarrassing part I think.

-Put aside enough money throughout the year to cover Christmas 2016. Christmas is my weakness. I can say no all year long to extras, but come Christmas time I know I go overboard. I’ve tried to cut back and it never works. I always have a budget in mind for gifts but I’ve never really tracked just how much I spend on everything related to the holidays (gifts, food, wrappings, pictures, cards, ect) until this year. Boy was that an eye opening experience. So going into 2016 I know how much I really need to have the Christmas I want and a plan to save it so it’s not a shock again next year.

HMWINTER85, see if you can do $20 or $25 a week for Christmas. And then tuck in a few extra dollars when you can. That's my plan! My hubby and I get paid opposite weeks so I think this will be best for me. It will ensure we begin with $1,300. Actually, I think it will be more than enough for us. Good luck!

 

[peachy1811]

Hi,

This is my first post. I am joining in. I really need to pay down sone debt in 2016.

 

[4Mickeys]

Ok so I have been going backwards since around July 2015 when I had to move rental properties and the rent was $300 per month more than previous. I have been trying to bury my head about it all but that just mean that each week when we fell short things ended up on CC! So no more I am determined this year to manage my money more consciously. I tended to shop for food and other groceries as we needed it at the local supermarket. We go through phases of having takeout way too often - as a solo mum of 3 kids DS 15, DS11 & DD11 sometimes its the only break I get from cooking or if I have been disorganised with shopping its quicker and easier to grab on those nights I am too tired to think about it after work. I work full-time. Due to reasons I won't bore you with there is no financial assistance from the ex for the kids so all of our living expenses are met by me and me alone.

I went back to university and graduated 3 years ago now - Student Loans in Australia are funded by the government and then it is taken out of our pay based on a percentage dependent on our income amount. Bad I know but I'm not even sure what the current balance is I think about $27k. Because of how it is set up I tend not to think about that debt too much - I know its there and it is getting paid.

Unfortunately with a new job - came the opportunity to get into debt. Yes I have always had a bit of a need it now thing happening. But in saying that it is mostly now the kids I have trouble saying no to - I really don't spend very much on myself at all - I get a haircut about every 6 months, colour it myself, and wear clothes years and years old lol.

So now for the debt list.

CC 1 - $932 - currently in an interest free period expiring January 10.
CC 2 - $1467.22 @ 10.99% - current minimum monthly payment $30
CC 3 - $1999.98 @ 13.49% - current minimum monthly payment $40
CC 4 - $2429.95 @ - currently in interest free but will revert in April - current minimum monthly payment $50
CC 5 - $2853.32 @20.99% - current minimum monthly payment $78 - I got this card for overseas travel last year and had it back to a 0 balance but had to use it for the move and it unfortunately has been the one I have had to use to make ends meet the last few months.

Personal Loan 1 - $4320 @13.60% - monthly payment $98.48
Personal Loan 2 - $27256 @13.60% - monthly payment $523.86

Also I have an outstanding balance from my twins primary school tuition fees of $800.

To make matter worse I need to get a new tyre for my car approximately $205 and then 3 days ago the needs a service message started flashing on the car so now I have to factor that in approximately $150-$250 hopefully. Also, in Australia the end of January is the start of our school year so I have all the back to school expenses went to buy the new school supplies yesterday that came to $280.00 just for books, pens, calculators etc. Then I have to get them shoes - they go to Catholic School and they are very particular about uniform so the black school shoes will be about $320 for 3 pairs and then they also have to have runners - I am trying to save where possible on these even considering having the oldest start off in last years if they still fit but am possibly looking at about another $220 minimum for those.

I am expecting some extra income in 2016 so am planning on using all of that to dump the debt:

Next week I will get a School Kids Bonus - government payment - of $1275 - that is being used to clear CC1 and help with the car costs.
In the first quarter I am expecting a $1300 back pay payment after our union completes negotiating pay conditions - I will apply that to CC2 when it comes.
Then I won't get any more larger payments until July with the second School Kids Bonus - $1275 - I will put that to CC3.
In August I will get my Tax Return back plus a Family Tax Benefit which should be about $3000 - I will put that to any balance of CC3 and then I plan to put it towards CC5 just to get rid of the high interest card.

I think I will be able to pay about $500 towards to school tuition debt by the end of January as I am doing 3 half days private work whilst I am holidays from my usual job. Then I will just negotiate to pay the rest in small amounts each fortnight.

I will use the snowball method each time I pay off a CC and am aiming to pay an extra $15-20 per month to CC2 to start with. Due to Car Registration, Electricity and Twins Birthday all falling in the first quarter I won't have any extra to put towards it from my usual pay but come the second and third quarters there should be some more to throw on the CC's.

Oh also I get a rebate from my employer for using my own car for work - that I usually about $100 per month from say February to November - I get holidays from early December to almost the end of January so I don't get it for those months. I plan on putting this money on to the cards as I get it also.

So all I am aiming to have paid off just off 4 of the 5 CCs by September. Then I think I will use that money to save for Christmas, sons Birthday in November etc. Then start of that 5th CC and personal loan 1 in 2017.

I really need to get it under control this year as the School Kids Bonus is being phased out by our government this year and I won't get it next year. Also, they are talking about removing the lump sum family tax benefit that I will get in August and diverting it to families with younger children in day care. So I also possibly won't have that income next year either.

I will have all 3 kids in our high school system next year - but in Catholic Education which even with a discount will probably cost me $8-9k next year. I have agonised about moving them to the public system but we have been in it so long and they have really good friends I just can't bring myself to do it even though I know it would benefit us financially in the long run.

Costco is new to us here in Australia - but I joined last week and went for my first shop there - I have done lots of reading and done a comparison of supermarket prices - I think that there are quite a few things I can purchase there that will help me save in the long run. I already had my membership fee back with savings on my sons toiletry items e.g. deodorant, razors and shaving gel.

I downloaded DR's EveryDollar to help with planning my budget.

Wow - I did it I owned the debt and got it out there to share with your guys!

 

[Alice Sr.]

Hi All- I am terrible at budgeting, so fly by the seat of my pants every month. I use my debit card for almost everything which makes it too easy to spend (for me), that is part of the problem. I have tried, and have made some progress but for the most part I fail in this area. I lack discipline, it is easier to put my head in the sand because it is difficult and challenging for me. I tried to sell my house last year but apparently I live in the only neighborhood in the whole country that went backwards in value in 2015. I am contemplating renting it for a couple of years and moving into a smaller rental unit until I can sell it. If everything worked out (and I didn't end up with bad tenants) that would reduce my housing by 50%. I definitely need to get a better handle on what goes out and where, every month to help me determine the best immediate path forward. I saw reference to YNAB in a couple of previous posts, what is that? Are there any online resources that you can recommend for budgeting strategies? TIA!

 

[bababear_50]

Hi All- I am terrible at budgeting, so fly by the seat of my pants every month. I use my debit card for almost everything which makes it too easy to spend (for me), that is part of the problem. I have tried, and have made some progress but for the most part I fail in this area. I lack discipline, it is easier to put my head in the sand because it is difficult and challenging for me. I tried to sell my house last year but apparently I live in the only neighborhood in the whole country that went backwards in value in 2015. I am contemplating renting it for a couple of years and moving into a smaller rental unit until I can sell it. If everything worked out (and I didn't end up with bad tenants) that would reduce my housing by 50%. I definitely need to get a better handle on what goes out and where, every month to help me determine the best immediate path forward. I saw reference to YNAB in a couple of previous posts, what is that? Are there any online resources that you can recommend for budgeting strategies? TIA!

Hi Hon <Welcome!!!
I think half the battle is realizing that you need a budget,,so congratulations on your first step.
I also contemplated downsizing last year but when I looked at the costs to do this it just seemed better to
stay where I am for now.
One step that has been hampering my success was not really knowing all of my debts and monthly expenses. This past weekend I dragged all my paper work out and now have a fixed monthly amount that needs to be directed to bills and debt.
I am a 10 month employee (school) so I have to try and configure this budgeting into 10 months.
It surprised me how little I have left over, due to a loan and a credit card.

I also spend using my debit cards,and I realized three debit cards for me is tooooooo much so it is time to get real and get rid of two of them. I am going to have to look at banking fees as I am paying way too much
each month.
I can't comment on YNAB but I know many here use it and will hopefully jump in with some suggestions.
Keep swimming Hon things can turn around.
Hugs Mel

 

[bababear_50]

Ok so I have been going backwards since around July 2015 when I had to move rental properties and the rent was $300 per month more than previous. I have been trying to bury my head about it all but that just mean that each week when we fell short things ended up on CC! So no more I am determined this year to manage my money more consciously. I tended to shop for food and other groceries as we needed it at the local supermarket. We go through phases of having takeout way too often - as a solo mum of 3 kids DS 15, DS11 & DD11 sometimes its the only break I get from cooking or if I have been disorganised with shopping its quicker and easier to grab on those nights I am too tired to think about it after work. I work full-time. Due to reasons I won't bore you with there is no financial assistance from the ex for the kids so all of our living expenses are met by me and me alone.

I went back to university and graduated 3 years ago now - Student Loans in Australia are funded by the government and then it is taken out of our pay based on a percentage dependent on our income amount. Bad I know but I'm not even sure what the current balance is I think about $27k. Because of how it is set up I tend not to think about that debt too much - I know its there and it is getting paid.

Unfortunately with a new job - came the opportunity to get into debt. Yes I have always had a bit of a need it now thing happening. But in saying that it is mostly now the kids I have trouble saying no to - I really don't spend very much on myself at all - I get a haircut about every 6 months, colour it myself, and wear clothes years and years old lol.

So now for the debt list.

CC 1 - $932 - currently in an interest free period expiring January 10.
CC 2 - $1467.22 @ 10.99% - current minimum monthly payment $30
CC 3 - $1999.98 @ 13.49% - current minimum monthly payment $40
CC 4 - $2429.95 @ - currently in interest free but will revert in April - current minimum monthly payment $50
CC 5 - $2853.32 @20.99% - current minimum monthly payment $78 - I got this card for overseas travel last year and had it back to a 0 balance but had to use it for the move and it unfortunately has been the one I have had to use to make ends meet the last few months.

Personal Loan 1 - $4320 @13.60% - monthly payment $98.48
Personal Loan 2 - $27256 @13.60% - monthly payment $523.86

Also I have an outstanding balance from my twins primary school tuition fees of $800.

To make matter worse I need to get a new tyre for my car approximately $205 and then 3 days ago the needs a service message started flashing on the car so now I have to factor that in approximately $150-$250 hopefully. Also, in Australia the end of January is the start of our school year so I have all the back to school expenses went to buy the new school supplies yesterday that came to $280.00 just for books, pens, calculators etc. Then I have to get them shoes - they go to Catholic School and they are very particular about uniform so the black school shoes will be about $320 for 3 pairs and then they also have to have runners - I am trying to save where possible on these even considering having the oldest start off in last years if they still fit but am possibly looking at about another $220 minimum for those.

I am expecting some extra income in 2016 so am planning on using all of that to dump the debt:

Next week I will get a School Kids Bonus - government payment - of $1275 - that is being used to clear CC1 and help with the car costs.
In the first quarter I am expecting a $1300 back pay payment after our union completes negotiating pay conditions - I will apply that to CC2 when it comes.
Then I won't get any more larger payments until July with the second School Kids Bonus - $1275 - I will put that to CC3.
In August I will get my Tax Return back plus a Family Tax Benefit which should be about $3000 - I will put that to any balance of CC3 and then I plan to put it towards CC5 just to get rid of the high interest card.

I think I will be able to pay about $500 towards to school tuition debt by the end of January as I am doing 3 half days private work whilst I am holidays from my usual job. Then I will just negotiate to pay the rest in small amounts each fortnight.

I will use the snowball method each time I pay off a CC and am aiming to pay an extra $15-20 per month to CC2 to start with. Due to Car Registration, Electricity and Twins Birthday all falling in the first quarter I won't have any extra to put towards it from my usual pay but come the second and third quarters there should be some more to throw on the CC's.

Oh also I get a rebate from my employer for using my own car for work - that I usually about $100 per month from say February to November - I get holidays from early December to almost the end of January so I don't get it for those months. I plan on putting this money on to the cards as I get it also.

So all I am aiming to have paid off just off 4 of the 5 CCs by September. Then I think I will use that money to save for Christmas, sons Birthday in November etc. Then start of that 5th CC and personal loan 1 in 2017.

I really need to get it under control this year as the School Kids Bonus is being phased out by our government this year and I won't get it next year. Also, they are talking about removing the lump sum family tax benefit that I will get in August and diverting it to families with younger children in day care. So I also possibly won't have that income next year either.

I will have all 3 kids in our high school system next year - but in Catholic Education which even with a discount will probably cost me $8-9k next year. I have agonised about moving them to the public system but we have been in it so long and they have really good friends I just can't bring myself to do it even though I know it would benefit us financially in the long run.

Costco is new to us here in Australia - but I joined last week and went for my first shop there - I have done lots of reading and done a comparison of supermarket prices - I think that there are quite a few things I can purchase there that will help me save in the long run. I already had my membership fee back with savings on my sons toiletry items e.g. deodorant, razors and shaving gel.

I downloaded DR's EveryDollar to help with planning my budget.

Wow - I did it I owned the debt and got it out there to share with your guys!

Yeah!!!
Congrats to you,sometimes writing it all out helps to better understand where you are at and how to take the baby steps to get back on track. I am a single solo mom of three. Mine have all finished college/university and I tried to help as much as I could,,sometimes I wished I could have done more but like you there was no partner contributing. As my dad would say "I did things backwards" and had my kids first then went back to school with three kids 5yrs and under,,,boy what a crazy life it was for two years, but well worth it as I ended up being the sole provider in the family. Remember to always be proud of yourself for being a strong, caring and contributing mom! One thing I did when mine started to hit their teens was to put them in charge of shopping lists and cooking. Oh yah the kitchen was a mess but today the skills they learned have served them well.
Good thoughts and hugs being sent your way
Hugs Mel

 

[bababear_50]

Hi,

This is my first post. I am joining in. I really need to pay down sone debt in 2016.

Hi hon
Welcome
Pull up a chair and make yourself at home.
You can pay down debt!
Hugs Mel

 

[bababear_50]

I would like to join. We went through some hard times racking up a good amount of debt in the process. Then moved cross country for a job that did not provide relocation expenses in order to make more money, only to find out that they required a mandatory $400 a month retirement contribution, and insurance cost $300 a month more than our previous insurance (Yes, we should have looked into this before accepting the job. Lesson learned) bringing us to bringing home less money and living in a place with a higher cost of living.

In 2016 I intend to:

- Pre-pay our entire trip to Disney in February. My husband promised to take our girls before we hit our financial struggle.
- Pay off $2,000 on a cc that has 20% interest.
- Pay off $1,200 on a cc with no interest before interest kicks in in November 2016.
- Pay as much as possible after that on the rest of my cc debt.

Hi Hon
Darn life lesson can be as bad as "Murphys",,I had a few of them along the way and you will get through this time and become stronger.
Hugs to you
Mel

 

[DisneyMandC]

Hi All- I am terrible at budgeting, so fly by the seat of my pants every month. I use my debit card for almost everything which makes it too easy to spend (for me), that is part of the problem. I have tried, and have made some progress but for the most part I fail in this area. I lack discipline, it is easier to put my head in the sand because it is difficult and challenging for me. I tried to sell my house last year but apparently I live in the only neighborhood in the whole country that went backwards in value in 2015. I am contemplating renting it for a couple of years and moving into a smaller rental unit until I can sell it. If everything worked out (and I didn't end up with bad tenants) that would reduce my housing by 50%. I definitely need to get a better handle on what goes out and where, every month to help me determine the best immediate path forward. I saw reference to YNAB in a couple of previous posts, what is that? Are there any online resources that you can recommend for budgeting strategies? TIA!

YNAB is You Need a Budget, a budgeting software. I just downloaded the software and started it, so I can't speak a lot to it right now, but a lot of people swear by it! I haven't done everything in terms of getting my "buffer" and whatnot, but am enjoying putting in my expenses so I can at least see where my money is going. My biggest problem was that DH and I are fortunate to have good incomes, but had no idea where our money was going. I'm definitely planning to take the classes they offer, but I think they're out for the holidays right now so there aren't any being offered. I haven't checked today though.

Christmas update: DH's parents gave us $500 for Christmas, which was very unexpected! We just asked for money or gift cards, but I was expecting more like $100. So that's going straight on my credit card. I get paid on Thursday so DH and I will be paying off our credit cards that day, and then the mortgage comes out Friday!

 

[Shmily1]

Joining. I need to get rid of some debt. I want to get rid of my car payment ( I took it over from my DD to help them out but I really didn't need it), credit card debt, and personal loans. I want to make more this year to get all this done and if DS could get a job (has a MBA but no experience), it would be great! I also want to do a few trips this year so no charging to do it!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

We are joining. I won't post our circumstances as that tends to become fodder on these boards sometimes.

But we have debt. We have a goal. And we are finally motivated to follow through.

Lots of car repairs this year as well as new home purchase.

 

[LisaSunshine]

I'm in! I lurked toward the end of last year, but I'm ready to get serious about it now. DH and I don't have a lot of extra income to put towards debt dumping, so my first priority is to figure out our spending and where we can make cuts to help. A real-life budget would help, too. DH might be getting a promotion of sorts at his work (fingers crossed), so that should help. As for me, it's either a raise at my current job or I'm finding something else. So all that pending, here's my plan for 2016:

1. Pay off our smallest CC balance. This is DH's old card that's been cancelled, we just need to pay off the remaining balance, which is about $1500. Most of our extra money is going to this until it gets paid off because it's so so soooo close.

2. Rebuild our savings. Last year, our dog got glaucoma and my car broke down all in the same month. It destroyed our savings and we had to use our CC to pay for some of the dog's vet visits and medications (she currently gets 3 different eye drops, but we've been using Target gift cards from Swagbucks to help us pay for them now). The rest of our extra money will go here until DH's old card gets paid off, then I'll snowball that money here until we at least get a little cushion.

3. Pay down our Chase CC. With the dog and car issues, this got way out of control, and the interest rate is too high for us to have such a high balance on it. My plan is to snowball the money from paying off DH's card here once we get a little savings cushion. Once the balance is a bit lower, I'm going to try to transfer the remaining balance to a 0% interest card (or at least one with a much lower rate) and continue to chip away at it. At this point, I think our balance is too high to transfer it to a new card.

4. Once all that happens, we may work on paying off the loan DH's parents gave us to help us buy our house. They don't charge us interest, but it is our next smallest balance after DH's card, and it's another $100/month that could go into our Chase card.

Whew. That seems like a lot, but I'm confident we can at least make a sizeable dent in our debt this year. I'm excited to see all the progress everyone will make this year!

 

[Lisa loves Pooh]

JMHO, but don't think a $15 or 20 payment is not worth paying. I do those all the time. Probably every week. Sometimes even just $5 extra.
It's not a huge dent but sometimes it's enough to bring a high first digit down 1 and then it doesn't look so bad. Kind of like when you get the balance under $1000 and you know it's going to be gone soon. You do the little 3 digit dance. lol
It's progress.

This is something I need to remember. So easy to say what's $5 when you blow it at a store. Do that enough times...

Bits and pieces of extra $ will add up eventually if you do it enough.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

This is something I need to remember. So easy to say what's $5 when you blow it at a store. Do that enough times...

Bits and pieces of extra $ will add up eventually if you do it enough.

Sometimes I like it just to keep me motivated. Every time I can cross out an old balance and enter a new, lower one, my heart does a little Snoopy dance.
If I could only see that balance change once per month I would have given up years ago.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

This is something I need to remember. So easy to say what's $5 when you blow it at a store. Do that enough times...

Bits and pieces of extra $ will add up eventually if you do it enough.

This is another reason I would transfer the snowball to a different checking account when I first started. I knew I wouldn't trust myself to be so diligent if the snowball blended in with funds for our regular bills.
Now, every bit of that snowball is my first priority and I try to be thrifty all week so that some of my weekly cushion is still leftover the day before payday. So anything leftover becomes another payment!

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Another thing I have learned in the past 2 years is that I no longer feel embarassed to simply say, "No thanks. I can't afford that." I used to have a hard time saying no and disappointing people. Family, friends, coworkers. Everything from manicures to dinner out for Valentine's Day. No need to discuss debt in the conversation but just say no.
If it's not something I'm dying for, I just decline.

 

[DisneyMandC]

Another thing I have learned in the past 2 years is that I no longer feel embarassed to simply say, "No thanks. I can't afford that." I used to have a hard time saying no and disappointing people. Family, friends, coworkers. Everything from manicures to dinner out for Valentine's Day. No need to discuss debt in the conversation but just say no.
If it's not something I'm dying for, I just decline.

I have to start doing this more, especially for eating out. We've eaten out way too much lately. DH is always the one who wants to order food, and I feel bad saying no all the time because he's the one that does ALL the cooking (we're lucky I don't burn the house down making myself toast), so I feel bad saying he should really just cook something. We really need to get the ball rolling on these frozen crockpot meals and fight the temptation to order Chinese.