money advice...

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PA DETAILER

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well, after selling my ZR2, it put a few bucks in my pocket. NOW, i am looking to payoff my credit card debt. my credit is good. a boring way to spend money, but i think it would be wise. sat down this morning and added them up, to see how much i am "in the bucket". i allways use to bay my balances off EVERY MONTH, but a layoff, and lesser paying job took care of that. i heard it's good to keep some revolving credit. well, what would you do? thanks for some input. my only concern of paying them off would be "money's tight." but if i don't pay them off,i know, that money will dissappear on "stupid things".
 
You are going to get feedback from the people who say that cash is king, but credit is also good. You don't have to be in debt to have awesome credit either. There are actually some very smart ways to use credit that will make you money.

For example, I use the One from American Express as my credit card. It is a charge based lending card that has no limit, but it does let you revolve a balance. The nice thing is that you don't pay interest on new purchases. So I pay my bill every other month and I let the money that I would have paid it off with sit in the bank for an extra month. Which bank? The American Expresss Federal Savings Bank, of course. The One card comes with a high yield savings account that earns 5% interest right now. I put $15,000 in there when I got the card and it has been growing ever since. This isn't a CD or some strange thing that locks your money up for life either. I have it connected to my checking account and I can transfer money back and forth online or through the automated system. And on top of all that, 1% of my spending is deposited automatically into the savings account. Add to that the benefits of the American Express card like the automatic extended warranty and purchase protection in case I break or lose my new purchases in the first 90 days, and I just don't see how cash is better.

That may sound like a commercial for AMEX, but it is just the rantings of a very happy cardmember. I could use cash to pay for everything, but how does that add money to my savings account? Paying with cash is like renting your house. It just doesn't get you anywhere when you have options like this card.

So my suggestion is to stay out of debt and find a credit card that gives you great kickbacks like the One from American Express. I don't know of any other card that offers a savings account, but if you find one that works better for you then go for it. My money makes me money every time I spend it. You can't ask for more than that. :)
 
I don't know too much about your financial situation, but there are a few key pieces of information that you're missing to recieve good help. How many other things are you paying on monthly? Do you have another car loan? Do you have any expenses that could be cut down or completely out? Do you have a family? What are you willing to do to get rid of the debt? I currently have more credit debt than I want(around $5500) and am taking up a second job to pay it off more quickly. I could just keep on doing my normal job and pay it off slowly, but I'd rather just get rid of it as quickly as possible. I'm not going to dive into investments, because there are just too many options and opinions as to which are better.
 
here is some more info. monthly: rent-car payment-and of course food- etc. single. my income covers these expenses. but i am looking for a better job. the sell was not enough to "pay off" my current vehicle. in case anyone was wondering. the cc debt is not bad. about 1.5K. so i am leaning towards paying it off, and putting the rest in my savings.
 
It might be worth it to pay the card off and put the rest into your current vehicle. If you really want some sound advice, you could find a financial advice center in your area. Most give really good advice when given the full details of your financial situation. The best part about their information is that it's free.
 
I'm the cash is king guy that Jngrbrdman was talking about. The piece of mind that comes with owing no one is a big deal to me. Countless families and marriages could have been saved it this were the general mindset. Having said that, the scenario that Jngrbrdman used can be a good thing. The most important part of what he said is that he has $15,000 (probably more) in the bank. He could easily cover his debts should the circumstance arrive. I don't view this situation the same as most people find themselves in. If one can at the blink of an eye pay their debtors without putting themselves in dire straits on day to day living expenses they're not really in debt. It's kind of like gambling, if you can afford to lose it, it isn't really gambling. The same can be said of the stock market and other higher risk investments. When you have something to fall back on you can play a little more boldly. My advice would be to put yourself in this situation and then should you wish make your money work for you.
 
I'm with Gearhead :rockon ..I learned from a very close friend quite a while ago that if you can pay things off that you are paying interest on, then do it. If you say you have good credit, then you can always borrow again if needed.
On a side note, I was watching a program last month on the making of millionaires, and one thing that was common among most of these people, was that they own what they have..they do not finance and end up paying 2 or 3 times what its original cost was. this was true for cars, jewelry, and even homes in some cases.
 
well,goodbye....sears, wall mart and two other cc. have two more left to pay off. one more visa and a firestone. might keep some revolving balance. (heard it's a good thing). NOW....to avoid temptation to rack them up again. that's the key!!!
 
Well, in case it's not too late to add, try to pay off the highest interest cards first. Seems common sense to me, but I see people have the choice of (for example) paying off 2 cards with $1000 debt each and interest of about 10%, or paying off 1 card with $2000 debt and 19.9% interest. They choose the 2 cards with low interest, as they look at it as getting rid of 2 debts, but I see it as paying twice as much interest each month than they would have had to.
 
I see a lot of young folks that are my age, a year or two younger, or older, that are already in debt up to their eyeballs because they have tons of cc debt or auto loans that they really can't afford, and it makes me happy to know that I don't owe anyone money :rockon

I've watched my brothers ruin their credit, I've seen some of my friends get a few thousand bucks into debt, and I don't want anything to do with it. I'd have to say credit is a good thing, but ever since I heard the words "If you can't lay out cash to buy it, then you can't afford it", I've lost all desire to have a cc. I'm pretty sure I'd be smart with one but IMO it's not worth the risk, at least right now. When it comes time for me to buy a house or a new vehicle that will be a different story, but I'll be sure to find a loan that works for me and not the banks :bigups
 
LikeaRock said:
I see a lot of young folks that are my age, a year or two younger, or older, that are already in debt up to their eyeballs because they have tons of cc debt or auto loans that they really can't afford, and it makes me happy to know that I don't owe anyone money :rockon

I've watched my brothers ruin their credit, I've seen some of my friends get a few thousand bucks into debt, and I don't want anything to do with it. I'd have to say credit is a good thing, but ever since I heard the words "If you can't lay out cash to buy it, then you can't afford it", I've lost all desire to have a cc. I'm pretty sure I'd be smart with one but IMO it's not worth the risk, at least right now. When it comes time for me to buy a house or a new vehicle that will be a different story, but I'll be sure to find a loan that works for me and not the banks :bigups
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Credit cards are good, it's just their abuse that is bad;) It's always good to have a credit card when you travel, especially in case of emergency. It is also great when you travel to another country as the credit card company will often give you the best exchange rate. Credit cards will make it easier to buy your first house or finance your first car, but just know your limits and what you can afford to pay back:bigups
 
Credit cards are good. I have a Mastercard that gives me rewards in the form of gift certificates to various stores. I pay the balance off every month, so I pay no interest. I use it for everything I buy, but I deduct the money from my checkbook when I charge it. That way, I only spend what I have. I was able to do almost 100% of our Christmas shopping with the gift certificates last year. It is a great program, you just have to have the discipline to pay off the balance, every month.
 
Poorboy said:
Credit cards are good, it's just their abuse that is bad;) It's always good to have a credit card when you travel, especially in case of emergency. It is also great when you travel to another country as the credit card company will often give you the best exchange rate. Credit cards will make it easier to buy your first house or finance your first car, but just know your limits and what you can afford to pay back:bigups
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The thing is that I can be a spendy person from time to time :notme: But I've gotten MUCH better over the past 6 months, and since I'm moving out within the next few weeks I've really become a tightwad. Before I don't think I was ready for a credit card and I still don't, but I'm getting closer. I'm pretty financially stable now and it's just getting better so soon enough I'll look into one. I'll probably get one through my bank, they're a local credit union and the corporate office is just over the hill from me so I can go there and ^%$^$# them out anytime I want :crazy2: They start you out with a ow limit and they raise it as your credit score gets higher and as you accumulate more money in your account (I think that's how they do it?)
I wasn't trying to say they're bad, but I also come from a family that believes in using cash whenever possible, and it's rubbed off on me quite well. Then again, they charge everything out their arses too, go figure...

I think the main reason I don't want one is because I know I'd start using it non-stop to make my Jeep into the machine I want it to be :notme: :D
 
well, i continued what i started. two more gone today. that leaves just a small balance on one card. i could not see paying the high interest rates. done....
 
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