by bigappledebtor on October 1, 2009
As I mentioned earlier, my debt has dropped quite a bit. I’m not sure if it’s because of that or because of something I read on this blog that made me reconsider my approach to paying down debt. I might have talked about this earlier but it’s a topic I keep coming back to. Ever [...]
by maeghen on August 13, 2009
I just don’t get it!
I would have to say that I have a hard time understanding some financial terms and concepts. I do though try to find ways to help myself to learn about what I do not understand. One site that I have found to be extremely helpful for me is feedthepig.org.
Weekly tips…
There is [...]
by bigappledebtor on August 4, 2009
I’m not talking about thousands of dollars but I thought it would be helpful to share some of the ways I have found to make some extra money. I’m not one to turn my back on money – no matter how insignificant the amount might be. A bunch of $3 checks might let me double [...]
by debt kid on July 27, 2009
Whoever decided to pick on the Latte when it came to cutting expenses…
Starbucks probably wants to kill them.
But “giving up coffee” to get out out of debt is about as cliche as you can get. And if it were as easy as just giving up the Latte, wouldn’t everyone be out of debt?
The reality is [...]
by Jessica W on July 22, 2009
You can keep your 12 steps.
I’m addicted to becoming debt free, and that’s OK.
I woke up at 2:30 am this morning realizing that I’d just made a deposit, which meant I could pay the next bill on my “snowball list.” After writing the check, and posting the envelope, I was so energized that I [...]
by Jessica W on July 21, 2009
here are a number of schools of thought on debt payoffs.
-Highest interest first—Suze Orman
-Smallest payment first—My financial planner from USAA
-Debt Snowball (smallest balance to largest balance)—Dave Ramsey
-Secured debt first, unsecured later—source unknown
I must confess, I’ve tried all of these methods in the past ten years, and the only one that has worked for me [...]
by Real Estate Kid on July 14, 2009
Over the past week or so I’ve been playing with my finance spreadsheets to figure out a way to try and start over with a clean slate. I’ve come up with a way to get the freshest start possible and give me some peace of mind with only 1 account to pay down at a [...]
by Jessica W on July 12, 2009
My last post was about how to create a budget and discover, retrospectively, how you’ve spent your resources.
With that information in hand, it’s time to triage and stop the bleeding and with any luck, heal the wound.
If you didn’t read and follow the instructions in my “how to make a budget” post–stop. Do not pass [...]
by bigappledebtor on July 10, 2009
I have gone back and forth on the emergency fund issue. Should I focus on paying off my debt first and THEN start building up my savings? Or should I build up a cash cushion before I focus on paying down debt. There are many schools of thought on this issue. Some say that having [...]
by Real Estate Kid on July 9, 2009
Where I Stand
My introduction post dealt mainly with how I accrued my debt. To see the whole picture you need to see my savings and investments as well. I made some very stupid mistakes which caused me to get into debt but I also made some smart moves in saving for my retirement. Maybe they [...]