Stinking Credit Card Debt

Discussion in Credit Cards started by rymick • Apr 18, 2012.

  1. rymick

    rymickNew Member

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    After getting duped into credit card debt last year with non stop enticing 0% offers (I take full responsibilty) I made a commitment to pay off all my debt and stay out of it for good. I went over all the numbers yesterday and am glad to say every balance has decreased over the past year, however I could not believe how high many of the balances still are. I am determined to not get discouraged and will keep plowing through but, wow, I wish I never got into this mess. I can't even account for 90% of the purchases that got me here.
    Any suggestions or success stories from anyone who is working on or has gotten out of debt?
     
  2. Sandra Piddock

    Sandra PiddockExpert

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    I can identify with that, because I did exactly the same thing myself. I can pass on this tip that I picked up. Never pay just the minimum amount, because it will take forever to pay off your debt. If you can only pay little extra on each card each month, it will come down sooner than you think. Don't be tempted to pay off too much, though, or you could struggle to make your other regular payments. You may find it more motivating to concentrate on paying off one balance, rather than spreading the payments over all your cards. Hope this helps a little.
     
  3. racechick79

    racechick79Active Member

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    I have been lucky enough not to ever have gotten myself into credit card debt, but do have family members that have fallen into the same traps that you have. The tricks that worked for them were to start with the credit card with the lowest balance and pay it off. Then move on to the one with the next lowest balance and pay that one off, and so on. That way you won't have so many cards that you are working towards paying off. Try not to get sucked into any further offers of consolidating, etc. Just take what you have and begin paying them off. It also helped for them to write down a monthly budget. They wrote down what they were bringing in and then wrote down what expenses they have. This gave them an idea of what money they had left over and how much they could put towards bringing the credit card balances down. If you look at paying down your credit cards as another bill, you will be more likely to pay it as such. Good luck, hope this information helped.
     
  4. Konstantina

    KonstantinaActive Member

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    Once you buy more things than you can pay out at full at the end of each month, things really get very complicated and the problem always gets worse. By that I mean that the amount gets higher. I was determined to pay off my credit card as soon as I realized ( but really realized) that I am actually giving the bank money for nothing. Ok, I had bought some things, (ok some expensive things) but you can actually pay 20 to 30 dollars more each month, if you don't pay your credit card. So if you just pay the minimum amount, in three months you give your bank around 80 dollars for nothing! So I stopped using it and used all my money to pay it out. I am also glad to say that this was many years back and from then on I use the credit card to get things I didn't have cash for but always paid it. I mean that it is actually a great tool once you learn to use it :) Good Luck
     
  5. dissn_it

    dissn_itActive Member

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    I am finally free of credit card debt. It took years to do it but just keep doing your best to bring the balances down, pay a little extra on each one if you can and do not use them for anything. Once you get them to a zero balance, close them and cut the cards up on all of them but one. The one you keep should have either no annual fee or the lowest annual fee and should be used only if absolutely necessary. It is nice to have no credit card debit and really worth all the effort to get there. Good luck and try not to get discouraged!
     
  6. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    I am personally so disgusted with my own credit card debt that I can't even find words for it. What makes it even worse (or maybe it makes it better?) is that I also managed to get behind on minimum payments for a good year and a half a while back, such that they've switched off my credit card. I don't even have credit anymore, but I still have the balance! I'm back on track to paying it down now, and I make payments every week instead of every month, but I wish I could get rid of it faster.
     
  7. rymick

    rymickNew Member

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    Thank you everyone for the advice and encouragement.

    I don't think disgusted is a strong enough word to describe how getting into debt feels. This is something parents, teachers, etc. should really teach children about because going from being comfortable to sinking in debt can be life altering. It can happen overnight and take years to correct and that is only with diligent effort.

    I am using my frustration to fuel me to get out of debt as efficiently as possible. All the suggestions given here are great, thanks agian.

    Anyone who does not have debt should guard that fiercely and those of us who are in debt should fight it fiercely because the bottom line is, they are coming after our money, fiercely!
     
  8. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    That's the thing, though. It's often one of those things where your parents and teachers DID teach you when you were a child (or at least they taught me), such that when it happens, it's like "but I knew better!"
     
  9. btatro

    btatroActive Member

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    Good luck to you. While I do not have credit card debt, I do have student loan debt ($30,000) so I understand the feeling of dread when you see the balances. Each year when I get my tax return, I put at least half of it towards my student loans in order to knock a big chunk off. Otherwise I just pay what is due because I am also trying to save for a down payment on owning my first home.
     
  10. Linky

    LinkyExpert

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    You are right, that money savvyness is not taught at school. So, maybe you can balance a ledger or do calculus...but working out the interest on your credit card is new. Well, at least, my school did not prepare us.

    I still have one credit card to pay off and one student loan. My student loans were the real hurts. I had 3 of them, and 2 is paid off, thus far. SO, I only have about 20% more to pay off. What helped stay focused was working through them, starting at the smallest in order to give myself confidence.

    It is the BEST feeling when you clear it. Chin up, stay focused and soon it will be history.
     
  11. melmac

    melmacMember

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    I hate to admit it, but I got out of debt (with the exception of my student loans) by filing bankruptcy last year. I just got approved for a credit card with a $2,000 limit so I can start rebuilding my credit and it absolutely terrifies me. I'm scared of getting myself into a bad credit situation again, but without a credit card--I would be screwed if I had car problems or needed help with tuition. I'm really hoping for the best.
     
  12. classicnyer

    classicnyerActive Member

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    The way to solve that problem is to not keep the credit card in your wallet, haha! Keep it in the place where you keep all your other sensitive documents. If it's in your wallet, the temptation will be there to use it.
     
  13. Isabellas2007

    Isabellas2007Active Member

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    I am working on getting out of credit card debt. I had managed to get out of it once and then got myself back into it again. It killed my credit, but I found that if I pay 10% of the bill each month it will clear it out in ten months. Not only that it will kill the interest they are trying to charge because I will pay it daily which reduces the daily balance.
     
  14. steph84

    steph84Active Member

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    Thanks for this tip. I am also trying to get out of debt. I made some stupid mistakes in college and used a credit card to pay for a spring break trip and I am still paying for that trip 6 years later! I can't wait to be debt free!
     
  15. meryliz

    merylizMember

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    It's so simple, but you're totally right! In the past month or so I had to cut down on my spending severely. I only used cash and my debit only a few times to limit my bank service fee. I had quite a large balance on my credit cards (compared to my actual income) and I have the weight of a $19,000 student loan on my shoulders, so needless to say I'm stressed out! But the simple act of taking my credit cards out of my wallet lifted a bit of stress (I didn't have the constant reminder of my shortcomings) and I didn't have the temptation to use it again. You know what they say, "Out of sight, out of mind!" Well, at least when I'm out; my credit card statements are always in view on my desk to remind me of my responsibilities!
     
  16. Cornholio

    CornholioActive Member

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    I know that feeling myself...I was out of work and had to survive off credit cards until I got a new job. And it is still haunting me...between CC and student loans I only get a small portion of each paycheck to use to feed and clothe us; then I have to turn back to the CC because I am out of money and we don't have anymore toothpaste.

    Vicious damn cycle.
     
  17. Parker

    ParkerWell-Known Member

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    There's a woman who used to hang out on my favorite internet marketing forum. She made of $72K+ debt by working online in about 2 years. The blog of her journey and continued success is

    Log In



    Good luck to you!
     
  18. Kaybee517

    Kaybee517Active Member

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    I definitely can relate to your experience with credit card debt. I too had just gone over my budget this weekend and decided to add all my balances and was shocked at the total. It's a damn shame really so much of my income is going to pay a credit card. I'm optimistic though. I've heard of a guy name Dave Ramsey that helps people get out of credit card debt with simple strategies. You should look him up on YouTube. I'm now determined to get rid of my debt in less than 2 years starting with paying off my smallest cards first.
     
  19. plsargent

    plsargentNew Member

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    Same boat here. I have been trying to get ours paid off for a couple of years but could not get my husband 100% on board. He was sick of the debt but did not want to do the work to get it paid off as fast as possible. But now he is and we are lightly following Dave Ramsey's plan. I can't wait to be debt free and be able to keep my money and not to have to always give it to someone else.
     
  20. writer811

    writer811Active Member

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    I agree that we're taught about the dangers of credit card debt in school and by our parents but it's not good enough. We were too young to really understand the conept of debt back then. I'm currently in about 10,000 dollars of debt for my student loans and I am terrified of that debt because my theatre business and online work make me less than minimum wage.