Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm not completely debt free but I'm getting there. The only debt I have is house payments so both are considered short term liabilities and long term assets. The goal is to have them both paid off in 15 years. One home is my primary residence and the other an investment property.
As long as I have a tenant in the investment property it cash flows. If no tenant, I make enough to comfortably pay my primary residence mortgage and the mortgage of the investment property.
I have no other loans and no credit card debt. I use credit cards daily, but that's just so I can earn points to go on trips. I pay all bills through my CC and then pay off the balance every month. I've been able to go on a few trips overseas with my plane ticket "free" paid from my points.
Some things I learned along the way:
Don't buy a new car - I bought new when I finally got a great job. I've since paid it off, but I could have easily bought a cheaper used car and pocketed the difference. The new car smell was great. It's since faded away...
Don't carry over debt on credit cards - The finance charges quickly mount up and you end up paying more in the long run. If you can't afford it all at once, then save up till you can buy it cash.
Live below your means - I always wondered how some friends or cousins were always in nice clothes and going out to eat all the time. Well I found out that they were racking up large amount of credit card debt. A few filed for bankruptcy. I on the other had been living below my means and I've got all my stuff paid for and I own a house.
We started at 25(age) paying down debt but then took on a house we'll live in for 25 years. We've paid off about 80k(cars/some student loan/10% house down) in the last five years and are now set to pay down about 25k each year. We should be debt free by 40.
As someone mentioned the key is to not increase expenses as you make more money. I recently got a new job that pays 15k more and all of that, minus the new addition of daycare, is going towards debt.
its all about balance. You can live in a really nice place and never go out with friends. Or you can live in a closet and go out 5 nights a week. Most people cant do both, trust me I've tried it. I have friends that literally think that you have to spend every dollar you make and dont believe in savings. Others that dont take vacations, dont indulge on things that cost $, just cause they dont want to spend it. I dont get either side. Set a few bi-annual or annual goals (stretch the goals a bit) and try to make them happen. I dont have any debt but have saving goals (house DP, retirement, ect)
I'm 25 years old. I just manage to budget the money I have with my wants and needs. When there is a time that I borrow a money of filed for a loan, I made sure that I can pay it on time and lessen my expenses. Charge card delinquencies have been declining for a while. Credit card debt is dropping too. More people are getting charge cards and paying them off, according to recent data from credit bureau TransUnion. Customers are starting to responsibly use credit again.
Yes, they have to learn to use their credit card with a lot of responsibility now. Budgeting is definitely important. Needs are your priority, you should know how to strike a balance between your needs and wants. It's much better you pay them off in time, rather than bearing huge amounts of interests and other associated charges.
I have no debt other than a loan for a used car that's under $10,000. Of course, I also have no assets or property. I see it as a catch-22. There are a lot of things I need now, but unless I buy then on credit, then I probably won't be able to buy them any other way. I hate wasting good money on rent, but again, what choice do I have at the moment without incurring debt.
I'm student loan debt free! Paid off $24,000 in the last three days and kissed it goodbye. Not that it made any kind of material impact on my day-to-day life, but I wanted to reduce to the number of fixed allotment loans to boost my credit score. Paying it all off right now versus continuing monthly payments was a tough decision since the interest rates were so low on the loans but since the stock market is at an appreciated level right now, I wasn't going to put any more money in it at the moment. Was sitting on a pile of cash, so decided to use it to pay off my student loans.
EDIT: That actually means I'm completely debt free. Since I pay off my four credit cards monthly, there's not a penny of debt I carry.
I'm student loan debt free! Paid off $24,000 in the last three days and kissed it goodbye. Not that it made any kind of material impact on my day-to-day life, but I wanted to reduce to the number of fixed allotment loans to boost my credit score. Paying it all off right now versus continuing monthly payments was a tough decision since the interest rates were so low on the loans but since the stock market is at an appreciated level right now, I wasn't going to put any more money in it at the moment. Was sitting on a pile of cash, so decided to use it to pay off my student loans.
EDIT: That actually means I'm completely debt free. Since I pay off my four credit cards monthly, there's not a penny of debt I carry.
When I was in 8th grade, I had a 31 year old English teacher that didn't have a credit card. He told us to never get a credit card and he said the average person with a credit card is 15k in debt.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
