Only if you're stupid about it. Credit cards are not just free money. Novelty items like TVs and computers should not be charged.

I noticed in the breakdown there was no school debt. You should feel lucky, I owe practically two new F150's worth of money in school loans.

 

What's the shame in getting your life in order? Gotta do what you gotta do. Myself, I buy what I can reasonably afford, but when it comes to cars, I buy not what I can live with, but rather can't live without. I never dress to impress sorta speak, buying to impress others, it just happens naturally As far as other debt, talk to a financial consultant at your bank or a debt consolidation expert, big business these days. The girl thing, oh boy, don't rush things anyways. How old are you? From my experiences, girls who want to settle down, want it before guys and therefore pressure is felt. If you want that before they do, somethings wrong. Those girls we call "fun"- get the pic? They'll leave when they see greener grass so beware!!!

When talking to the bank or whoever, talk about lines of credit. That way, you get that f'n credit card paid off, instead of 22.2%, it'd be around 8% or so, that is debt consolidation my friend. All you do is pay interest, but at a way lower rate! A example is I have 2 lines, 1 has the house and crap as collateral, at 35,000 ish, the payment would be about $150-$175 max per month. Without the house, the other L.O.C would be $30 or so per month on $5000 borrowed. Look into it bro, seriously, and fast. Hell, you might be able to keep the truck! Then when that's under wraps, do the college thing!

 

Good for you man. There are a lot of people out there in your situation and are also re-evaluating. A few years ago, banks were giving out ridiculous home loans to people who really could not afford to take them on, credit cards with super high limits and interest rates on them, etc. Now with the way the economy is and people losing work, they can't afford to pay the loans back.

It seems more and more people are now paying with cash and living more with in their means, and that's a good thing. Good luck to you.

 

Good for you man. I can respect making a major life change to get out of debt. If you want to do some reading, I recommend reading Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover.

 

You've made a tough decision, one that many are never able to make. Good luck on seeing it through. You will live a much better life in the long run. Many people are in debt all their life and live from one payday to the next. By getting control of your finances now, you will avoid this.

When I got out of college, I made the decision to save money and pay cash for everything I could. I did that and paid cash for every new vehicle I have bought. When I bought my home, I paid half down in cash and then paid the remainder in 10 years. I may not always have the latest things but I have all I want and really need. I have the comfort of knowing that if my job were to end, I have a nice reserve to carry me through and I have no debt and won't lose my home.

I applaud your decision and hope you have the will power to see it through. You sound as if you do. Good luck! Just because you don't have a truck, doen't mean you can't be active here. Keep us updated.

 

This is almost strange. I had a very good friend call last night and he is all upset about his business and wondering if it's all worth it. He does Gov't sub work as a concrete contractor. The prime on his jobs has been in control of the accounts payable and receivables to insure that all subs and materialmen he works with are paid. By contract he cannot be behind in paying any debts. Well, the GC quit paying anybody and then sued my bud because the subs weren't getting paid. Now the GC has taken all of my buds cash and told him to shove it- millions of dollars. Obviously, the GC is going to lose in the long run and he'll have to cough up the $$$ but now my bud is practically out of business. He's also a spender-house, many collector cars, ranches, etc. I told him he'll have to learn to live like me. I own everything I have- house, land, cars, trucks,stock, etc. I have no debt. Because of that, I have few worries and the worries I have are fairly minor. I think you're on the right track in life by lowering your debt or eliminating it completely. Yeah, a lot of folks can't go and pay cash for a house but do you really need a NEW truck? Do you really need a new IPhone? I have a flip phone, no texting, no internet, no big cell phone bill. If I need internet, I have a PC. I don't text which I think is stupid anyway. If you have something to say to somebody, call them. Once yer out of debt, YOU are in control of your life and your assets. People don't need a balance sheet in their life, they need to be debt free. Like Dave Ramsey has said for years, "Live like no one else so you can live like no one else", and he's dead right. Welcome to the real world.

 

I went to see the dealer on lunch, and I walked away. I wasn't happy with the deal and I decided that making one mistake is not going to fix the mistake I already made.
When I got there the terms kept changing, I felt really uneasy about it.
He wanted to give me less than what was told to me and wanted more for the car.
I am just not sure I can be happy with that.

Making one mistake to get away from another is not going to change anything.
The bank of (my sister) got wind of this somehow and she has offered to let me borrow some money if i need it.

I still plan on getting out of debt, and I am still looking for something I can trade down to. I would like to get out from under the truck, but I want a deal that I am ok with and I felt bad about the one I went to check on.

I have decided to sit down and draw up a plan for the next few months and see how well I can stick to it, I will also be looking to sale or trade my truck as well.

I am going to figure up what I make (conservatively) and my bills and see what I can do to get them paid off.

I dug this hole my self, and I need to figure out how to get back out of it.
Tax time is coming and I was hoping I might run across a sweet deal, I think I will just wait a bit and make sure what it is I need to do before I jump into anything.
Thats how I got to where I am now.

If you are wondering the deal when I got there was supposed to be 11,500 for my truck, and 3,500 for the car on the road.
When I spoke to him he changed it to 9,500 and 4,500 OTR. Plus what I had left from the truck, making it a bit over $5K for the car.

I was not happy, so I walked away.

if you guys want to know I may have a plan drew up here in a bit, while I got a bit more time on my lunch.
Thank you all for your advice.

I am just trying to make the right choice, but its hard to figure out what that is.
If something doesn't change I am not sure what I will do.
As long as I have the truck, and the payment I can not have anything else, just not enough money to go around. Come June ill be in the red. (a payment I have is a bit ahead)

I am considering a second job as well.

 

Typical dealerships,going back on their word. Good thinking on walking out if the deal isn't comfortable for you. Just hang in there...it will get better. Take care.

 

Try selling the truck outright then on Craigslist. Say you'll also consider a trade for a car + cash.

 

You must carry a boat load of cash around with you.

 

Glad to see you walked on the deal. I bet the delership could tell you are in a tight situation and felt they had the chance to squeeze you for more money. I'm in the school loan situation as well (have about 18,000 left), but my int rate is around 4%.

I second the suggestion to talk to the bank. You could consolidate all of your debt into one bank loan and put up your truck for collateral. Then you could probably reduce your monthly payments as well as decrease your interest you are paying.

Good luck, I'm sure you'll get everything worked out.

 

Debit/Bank Card or Checks

 

Sure, I see it too now.

I just don't carry a lot of crap in my pockets. A credit card and/or cash is all I carry. If it's over 20 bucks it goes on the CC, under it comes out of cash. End of the month pay the balance due.

Of course that younger version of me in Boone keeps his debit card on the ragged edge. Hahaha

 

I'm glad that now your doing what YOU want to do. I will also commend you on paying off debt that you created instead of walking away from it. This shows a level of responsibility. I wish you nothing but success in getting your life right.

 

Good luck with your decisions in life....

You gotta do...
Watcha gotta do....

Peace...