**updated**-Dave Ramsey anyone?

It was actually about 3.5 years. We had started before we decided to have another child. I think we were just less than a year into it when I started this thread.

Rather you agree with Dave’s methods or not, the debt snowball is inarguably the best and proven way to tackle debt. After that, rather you choose to use cards or finance vehicles is up to you. Just stick with it. 3-1/2 years has gone by very fast! The hardest part was the first year.

We used tax refunds to go towards debt as well instead of trips and buying goofy things like many people. This year we used our tax money and pulled a few thousand out of savings to finish it off.

I also forgot to mention that during this period we stuck to a budget and set aside cash money to go to Disney World since this thread was started.

And though I have money to finally get my tow rig I’ve been waiting for, I will wait several more months and I will borrow money as suggested here and let my money sit in the bank. As I said, I used advice from this thread and have changed my views slightly. @shawn is right sometimes, even though I hate to admit it lol.
 
I have always payed cash whenever possible. If I want something, I work overtime. The only debt I have is a small student loan(>$4k) and less than a grand on a credit card. I never had a card of any type until I went to college, got a debit card because some places dont take cash apparently. My wife bought a car at carmax before we were engaged (against my advise, but we werent married so...) and had maybe $2k on a credit card from when she was out of work. We have payed that down a lot. We took out a small loan to front the costs of the wedding and payed it off about a month after the wedding. Our only major debt is the house and her car. We are working on the car debt. I think its great to not have a lot of debt hanging over us. We still budget tight and are hammering away at her car loan as much as possible. After that, we will be able to spend more on us.

We looked at taking a david ramsey course, but we stay pretty debt free and the timing didnt work with the wedding. We still want to take one just to see where we can trim the fat.
 
77GreenMachine said:
...the debt snowball is inarguably the best and proven way to tackle debt.
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I don't agree with that; You can definitely argue that the debt avalanche is the best method under many circumstances. I think debt snowball is a better way to stay motivated, which is what most people need for success, but if you have lots of interest-based debt then the avalanche can have some very real advantages. You don't always save more money in interest with the debt avalanche, etc., (because it's based on actual nuances of what types of debt you have, just like the debt snowball) but I'm just saying that "inarguably" is a bit of a stretch. People argue about those two methods all the time, because it's not as clearcut as one being better than the other.
 
@Fabrik8 I see your point, and agree. I may have used too strong a word for that. On paper the avalanche makes sense. But as you said for most folks, seeing the success from starting with the smallest keeps them motivated as they begin to see results.
 
shawn said:
If you use your debit card for everyday purchases, you're a fucking idiot.

I've had credit card numbers stolen often enough to know that even though it all works out in the end, its a huge pain in the ass, and the account is locked out for a week or two. The only time my debit card comes out of my pocket is at the bank.
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My credit card numbers have been stolen a couple more times since this post was written. It's never caused me any problems. :D
 
Atla said:
I hate to think how many websites have my card information stored. :(
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That's why I always just use somebody else's credit card number:D:eek:
 
I will defend debit cards... but only a little bit. I use mine all the time and yes I have had fraud, but honestly, If your Bank is a good one, they will normally block transactions that raise red flags. I deal with Debit card disputes all the time at the bank I work at. Some one comes in at 10:00 a.m with 5 transactions they did not make, dispute paperwork is filed, old debit card is "Hot Carded" and if your bank has instant issue machines, you can walk out with a new functioning debit card, and a provisional credit of the full amount of the fraudulent activity the same day.

Not sure on bigger banks, but a lot of your smaller community/regional banks will have a quick turn around time when it comes to the customer needing access to their money.
 
Cherokeekid88 said:
I will defend debit cards... but only a little bit. I use mine all the time and yes I have had fraud, but honestly, If your Bank is a good one, they will normally block transactions that raise red flags. I deal with Debit card disputes all the time at the bank I work at. Some one comes in at 10:00 a.m with 5 transactions they did not make, dispute paperwork is filed, old debit card is "Hot Carded" and if your bank has instant issue machines, you can walk out with a new functioning debit card, and a provisional credit of the full amount of the fraudulent activity the same day.

Not sure on bigger banks, but a lot of your smaller community/regional banks will have a quick turn around time when it comes to the customer needing access to their money.
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and thats still more hassle than 1-800-visa and they overnight me a card at no cost to me...
 
Loganwayne said:
Ya I was to lazy to look back


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this is going to sound harsh...i guess it is harsh...

if you are too lazy to look back at the post date, you are almost certainly incapable of excercising the self restraint to follow a plan like OP did
 
I put on a moderate amount of debt as a result of my divorce between attorneys, tax debts, new house, furnishings, and just trying to keep my head above water through it all. Still, outside of my mortgage I only have about 25k in debt that I hope to have paid off in the next 2 years, and my house (that I bought in Sept 2016) in the next 5-7. Of course, this depends largely on my vehicles holding out, both of which are 05 models but are in pretty good shape and well maintained.
 
13bullets said:
I put on a moderate amount of debt as a result of my divorce between attorneys, tax debts, new house, furnishings, and just trying to keep my head above water through it all. Still, outside of my mortgage I only have about 25k in debt that I hope to have paid off in the next 2 years, and my house (that I bought in Sept 2016) in the next 5-7. Of course, this depends largely on my vehicles holding out, both of which are 05 models but are in pretty good shape and well maintained.
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You are doing better than the average married man at $25k. Most people owe far more than that. That’s a manageable number. Stick with it my friend!
 
I was talking to another couple over dinner this weekend and this subject came up and they actually use a CC that gives miles, so when they went on a recent trip to Boston, there miles paid for their airfare. While that is nice, I don't really like to fly and don't plan on flying anywhere anytime soon. But a CC that gives cash back, seems to be the way to go. I need to research a little more and figure out what would work best for us. Do you guys know if there is usually an app that you can connect with your CC, so that you can see activity going on and know exactly what you have spent daily?
 
Cherokeekid88 said:
I was talking to another couple over dinner this weekend and this subject came up and they actually use a CC that gives miles, so when they went on a recent trip to Boston, there miles paid for their airfare. While that is nice, I don't really like to fly and don't plan on flying anywhere anytime soon. But a CC that gives cash back, seems to be the way to go. I need to research a little more and figure out what would work best for us. Do you guys know if there is usually an app that you can connect with your CC, so that you can see activity going on and know exactly what you have spent daily?
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My parents have had a USAir and now American Airlines air miles card for years. I've never had issues getting flights with those miles, but the flight cost relative to dollar amount spend is somewhere in the 0.5-1% range, and you're tied to American Airlines and their flight options. Fortunately, since we're in Charlotte, that's just about every flight you'd ever need. But I'd rather have the 1-2% cashback and be able to shop online for flights through whoever at the cheapest cost or best fit for my itinerary.
 
Citi MC has some good cash back options. Generally 3% on all purchases except for some select items that can get up to 5% or so. Amex has some good cash back options as well. They have like 2% on everything and then like 6% on groceries and 5% on gas.
 
Cherokeekid88 said:
I was talking to another couple over dinner this weekend and this subject came up and they actually use a CC that gives miles, so when they went on a recent trip to Boston, there miles paid for their airfare. While that is nice, I don't really like to fly and don't plan on flying anywhere anytime soon. But a CC that gives cash back, seems to be the way to go. I need to research a little more and figure out what would work best for us. Do you guys know if there is usually an app that you can connect with your CC, so that you can see activity going on and know exactly what you have spent daily?
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If you shop on Amazon a lot, get their credit card. It pays 5% back on all amazon orders, 1% on everything else, and 2% or something on certain other classes like gas. And no annual fee.

If you travel a lot but don't use consistent airlines, the Hilton Gold CC is pretty good too, can really net a lot of annual points for free stays quickly.

If anybody has figured out how to make mortgage payments using a credit card (without the fees exceeding the benefits) let me know ;-)
 
RatLabGuy said:
If you shop on Amazon a lot, get their credit card. It pays 5% back on all amazon orders, 1% on everything else, and 2% or something on certain other classes like gas. And no annual fee.

If you travel a lot but don't use consistent airlines, the Hilton Gold CC is pretty good too, can really net a lot of annual points for free stays quickly.

If anybody has figured out how to make mortgage payments using a credit card (without the fees exceeding the benefits) let me know ;-)
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I use the amazon card. It’s great I just let the points build and then buy something that I want. I just bought two bushnell scopes and payed 3 bucks. With the points.

I think @McCracken uses a cc to pay for all his stuff that goes towards points at Disney. Don’t know if he includes his mortgage


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RatLabGuy said:
If you travel a lot but don't use consistent airlines, the Hilton Gold CC is pretty good too, can really net a lot of annual points for free stays quickly.
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I'm pissed at Hilton right now. They recently cancelled their Citi affiliation and moved or are moving all their customers over to AMEX. That closed a 12 year old account and opened a new account all without me being able to stop either transaction. I tried. My credit score fell 12 points on Credit karma (not joking) from an 840 to an 828. GRRRR Im so mad I want to cancel the card but that would just make matters worse
 
Ron said:
I'm pissed at Hilton right now. They recently cancelled their Citi affiliation and moved or are moving all their customers over to AMEX. That closed a 12 year old account and opened a new account all without me being able to stop either transaction. I tried. My credit score fell 12 points on Credit karma (not joking) from an 840 to an 828. GRRRR Im so mad I want to cancel the card but that would just make matters worse
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With that credit score, your finance rates won't matter at least.
 
I use the Citi Visa Costco card. I just got a $300 check for my cash back rewards. We only used the card the last 5 months. I use it for customer entertainment, jeep parts, online ordering, my wifes business runs about $1000 or more each month, and we use it to travel. It's 4% on most things and works it's way down to 1% on everything. No fees like capital one I was using. I think it pays 2-3% on Gas.

Citi also has the App you mentioned which is very convenient!
 
77GreenMachine said:
I use the Citi Visa Costco card. I just got a $300 check for my cash back rewards. We only used the card the last 5 months. I use it for customer entertainment, jeep parts, online ordering, my wifes business runs about $1000 or more each month, and we use it to travel. It's 4% on most things and works it's way down to 1% on everything. No fees like capital one I was using. I think it pays 2-3% on Gas.

Citi also has the App you mentioned which is very convenient!
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wow. very nice!
 
Citi double cash, 2% back on everything (assuming you pay on time). I charge a lot, but I don't spend a lot in any one category so the special cards don't work as well for me.
 
Loganwayne said:
I use the amazon card. It’s great I just let the points build and then buy something that I want. I just bought two bushnell scopes and payed 3 bucks. With the points.

I think @McCracken uses a cc to pay for all his stuff that goes towards points at Disney. Don’t know if he includes his mortgage


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No, we don't do the mortgage but yes to everything else. My wife's Disney addiction has driven us to this. It works though and we've been able to see and do a lot of stuff there that most folks don't take advantage of.
 
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