Credit Card Debt Anyone?

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JessieNeutronGirlGenius
JessieNeutronGirlGenius Posts: 268
in Chit-Chat
'Tis the season!

Although I am extremely pleased with the outcome of the gifts I got for everyone I am strongly DISPLEASED with my credit card debt...holy crapola! I am indeed in the whole about 2gs ... Anyone else facing credit debt and how are you budgeting yourself so you can pay it off??

I'm using this app called Mint.com it is pretty neat...you can set goals for yourself on the website like trying to pay off your debt and how long it will take you if you pay x amount of dollars!
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  • _John_
    _John_ Posts: 8,641 Member
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    2gs is all you spent on christmas?

    nm...read that wrong...
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    You paid for Christmas using credit cards? Was 364 days advance notice not enough for you to plan ahead?
  • iamanadult
    iamanadult Posts: 709 Member
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    Buying Christmas gifts with credit cards is a rookie mistake, unless you have the 2 g's to pay it off right away you really shouldn't even have a credit card.

    Judging you. Not really.. sorry. I just started budgeting a few months ago so I'm feeling a little high and mighty.
  • rungirl1973
    rungirl1973 Posts: 2,559 Member
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    Never never never carry a balance on a credit card. I use credit cards for the cash back / travel points.
  • coretemp
    coretemp Posts: 1,796 Member
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    Had it once when I was about 21, never again
  • ZombieGeezUs
    ZombieGeezUs Posts: 476
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    Budget control, fail
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    Buying Christmas gifts with credit cards is a rookie mistake, unless you have the 2 g's to pay it off right away you really shouldn't even have a credit card.

    Judging you. Not really.. sorry. I just started budgeting a few months ago so I'm feeling a little high and mighty.

    I am judging her and I have been doing it for three years. The high and mighty feeling doesnt go away.
  • BlueBombers
    BlueBombers Posts: 4,065 Member
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    My Visa has a bit of a balance from stuff I ordered online but that will be paid off this week. Saved up for most of the gifts and started buying them early in the year.
  • MyChocolateDiet
    MyChocolateDiet Posts: 22,281 Member
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    The best use of credit cards during christmastime is to get ONE card with a great rewards program that you know you can get everyone gifts with. Keep your money you saved up all year for christmas nice and warm in it's account. if it's in the form of a tax refund you're expecting that's fine too.

    Use that card to it's full advantage earning miles, or points, or actual spending cash with said credit card. Pay off the card as soon as possible so as to avoid the fees involved. make sure to read the fine print on the card when deciding your strategy to get the most bang for yoru credit card buck.

    If i were you in your current situation I would do the following. Use that app to make a 6 months payment plan to pay off that card. For the following 6 months save up for xmas. In the last month or two before december find a card or store card that you personally can take excellent advantage of and use that 6 months savings as your xmas budget that you will pay down that card with. the first year will be cheaper gifts for all but the following year you should be back to normal. In the interim send lotto tickets with your christmas cards and yo won't get grinch status b/c if someone wins something, word will get around. Happy holiday$!!!!!!!!!:flowerforyou:
  • odusgolp
    odusgolp Posts: 10,477 Member
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    Best thing I ever did was to get rid of those damn things.
  • Thin4payton
    Thin4payton Posts: 234 Member
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    I have a ton of CC debt...but that is because I was out of work for a while and everything had to go on the card to survive. Been almost 2 years and I am still struggling pretty bad. If you can avoid it, avoid it at all costs!
  • TheSwollMinister
    TheSwollMinister Posts: 246 Member
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    Never never never carry a balance on a credit card. I use credit cards for the cash back / travel points.

    This.

    .
  • darkguardian419
    darkguardian419 Posts: 1,302 Member
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    Not pointing any fingers, but a certain person of the opposite sex, who is wearing symbolic semi-rare metal on her left ring finger as a symbol of my love, likes to look at credit limits as goals... so my only credit card, which happens to be my oldest line of credit (had it since I was 18) will not be canceled, just well hidden. :bigsmile:

    ETA: relevant because the current amount owed is due to holidays. A previous poster recommended 6 months to pay off, 6 months to save for next christmas. If financially possible, this is a great idea :)
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    Instead of judging, I guess I can be helpful. If anyone needs budgeting help, shoot me a PM and I will work with you.
  • JessieNeutronGirlGenius
    JessieNeutronGirlGenius Posts: 268
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    Didn't need this to be a bashing session...I'm 20 years old who wanted to treat my family for once rather then them spending all of their money on me.
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
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    Never never never carry a balance on a credit card. I use credit cards for the cash back / travel points.

    This.

    .

    Actually carrying a small balance is good for your credit score. Keep it less than 15% of your available credit amount.
  • JessieNeutronGirlGenius
    JessieNeutronGirlGenius Posts: 268
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    I know now obviously that using them wasn't a good idea but I guess life is all about trials and tribulations right? So now, I have to live with the consequences but I know that even though I'll be paying them off for quite some time...the smiles on my loved one faces will make it okay in my book.
  • TheSwollMinister
    TheSwollMinister Posts: 246 Member
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    My wife and I have done this for years:

    **Decide now what you are going to spend on gifts in 2014 (ie: $2000)
    **Open a savings account
    **Go to your HR dept and set up a split for your automatic payroll deposit (in this case, $167/mo; or about $77/paycheck if paid biweekly)
    **Enjoy paying CASH for all your gifts! :bigsmile:
  • wheird
    wheird Posts: 7,963 Member
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    My wife and I have done this for years:

    **Decide now what you are going to spend on gifts in 2014 (ie: $2000)
    **Open a savings account
    **Go to your HR dept and set up a split for your automatic payroll deposit (in this case, $167/mo; or about $77/paycheck if paid biweekly)
    **Enjoy paying CASH for all your gifts! :bigsmile:

    Nicely done. :)
  • JessieNeutronGirlGenius
    JessieNeutronGirlGenius Posts: 268
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    But thank you to those who have helped me! Your advice will definitely help me out! Happy Holidays to you and your family!

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