I'm debt free - but the house

[GOG]

Congratulations, that's absolutely huge!

 

[mattdomes]

Congrats!!!!!


Did you call the show? Big Dave Ramsay fan here

 

[mjbskwim]

Tell me how! ! I need to know

First think about what you REALLY need that you cannot wait and pay cash for.
Then take the smallest bill you have. Pay heavy on it and minimum on the rest.
The theory to this is you show yourself progress. The bill goes down and you hit it harder to get rid of it.
Then to the next one and on down the line.

NEVER fall into the bill consolidation BS or home equity loans to pay credit card loans,cars off or anything like that.

If your personal SHTF and you can't pay the bills,you can homestead the house and bankrupt the rest. If you have everything on the mortgage you may have to give up the house too.
Plus then you free up cards and can slip into using them again.

So buy cheap cars,or as cheap as you can and make it to work every day.
Don't buy anything on credit. Save up and pay cash.
Just buy cheap everything for a bit until you at least get your nose above water. After a few months you will see a difference.
Get rid of your car payments,any way you can.

Now one thing to remember about your mortgage. It says that if you don't pay,they get the house.
So if you are in dire straights,forget your credit and worry about what is best for your family. Stop making the house payments and start to recover.
There is no moral issue to worry about,the contract is the contract.And if you can't pay,you can't pay.
No need to feel guilty about it.
You Make rent payments and utilities,and down the road when things get better,you can build your credit up again. If times get good ,the banks will give credit .If times are bad,it won't matter.

Most of this is from first hand experience also.

 

[Kimber Custom]

What was the problem with Penguin Windows?

We have a house payment and one car payment. Partially a result of good planning, partially good fortune.

Ford product @ Cadillac price. I could have replaced the windows 3 times for what they cost me.

Haven't called the show. While we have been planning this for a while it didn't hit home that it was really done until I was putting the check in the mail.

 

[ejmpnu92]

Congrats....I am in the same boat, only I have my college loans still to finish paying off.
I echo what mjbskwin says.
I went almost totally (mortgage and student loans are the exception at the time) cash about 8 years ago.
I did some bad things with credit cards that caught up with me...it was not bad at the time, ie medical items and guns.
But lost my job a couple of times, got behind, began living to work for the money to pay the mortgage, instead of working to live.
I had to a voluntary repo on my home.
One of the best things that ever happened.
I almost made the mistake of looking at a VA mortgage loan recently....I caught myself....
Saving up for a truck and a ring....Not to far away...
Sometimes it is frustrating not to have what could be had on credit, but I grew tired of that problem.
So, all cash now!!!
Good luck!

 

[parallax]

Good Job!
I have been debt free for 20+ years and quality of life and opportunities have never been better.

 

[kibs45]

Congrats! My wife and I are in the same boat, and it feels great compared to the alternatives! We are actually going to do FPU again, to regain "Gazelle intensity" on some of the later baby steps.

 

[Burt Gummer]

It is not what you make as much as what you spend.

I've only bought two new cars in my lifetime and if I had a chance to do it all again I wouldn't have even done that.

No LT debt here and it is such a great feeling not being victimized by the banksters. Just think of what they do for a minute. B of A gets money at .02% from the Fed and then charges you 19%-21% + fees + service charges. I mean, come on. Americans are too conditioned to notice that robbers are running the financial world. Tony Soprano could only dream of having it as good as these con men in big finance.

I am probably the one of only a few that will say that real estate, owning your home, is not a great investment. The reason I say that is the RE market is just being propped up by the Fed and its phony money printing scam and 0% interest to the too-big to fails.

When that changes - and it will - and RE loans are 7-17% who is going to be able to sell their homes for 1/2 their current 'values' - answer: no one. I sold and put the equity into physical silver.

Put the ego away and rent/lease for now. RE has a long, long way to fall in a slowly dying economy. Don't even get me started about stocks - yes - Fed money printing is the ONLY thing keeping that casino going.

 

[mjbskwim]

Burt it will never end. Americans are just too used to getting everything they want NOW

 

[Barefoot343]

Wow, congrats to you!! We are fighting like heck to get out of debt...
1. Student loans
2. credit cards (2)

All of which I am embarrassed to say add up to nearly $20,000. I say this because it helps me every day to see how much I hate the debt and how it is literally an albatross around my neck, it also motivates me to work hard to get it paid off. Believe it or not it is one of my biggest prep plans...be debt free.

again to the op and all of you who have climbed out of that dark pit congrats! I will be there soon.

 

[TAD]

Ford product @ Cadillac price. I could have replaced the windows 3 times for what they cost me.

I got my windows with lifetime warranty installed on my old 1500 sf ranch for under $8K but these were no frill windows as I was fixing my house up to sell.

Sounds like you got a good deal on those penguin windows. I have heard many a horror story about those people feeding on the elderly and easily fooled.

I have seen quotes up to $150k not sure what kinda people do this to people but I have a spiecal place for them and it's not in my heart.

I had one penguin guy come to my door once. I invited him in but I think he might of seen the gun I was holding as a threat?

Sorry didn't mean to hijack, please just shop around before making major purchases. Nice windows do add value to a home but diminishing returns come to mind.

 

[sagebrush sam]

Congratulations. I too am there, finally. We had to sell a wonderful home to get there but we are free now and have all of our ducks in a row.
We followed Dave Ramsey too. Feels great!!! Now to get a paid for house!

 

[tunus]

It is not what you make as much as what you spend.

I've only bought two new cars in my lifetime and if I had a chance to do it all again I wouldn't have even done that.

No LT debt here and it is such a great feeling not being victimized by the banksters. Just think of what they do for a minute. B of A gets money at .02% from the Fed and then charges you 19%-21% + fees + service charges. I mean, come on. Americans are too conditioned to notice that robbers are running the financial world. Tony Soprano could only dream of having it as good as these con men in big finance.

I am probably the one of only a few that will say that real estate, owning your home, is not a great investment. The reason I say that is the RE market is just being propped up by the Fed and its phony money printing scam and 0% interest to the too-big to fails.

When that changes - and it will - and RE loans are 7-17% who is going to be able to sell their homes for 1/2 their current 'values' - answer: no one. I sold and put the equity into physical silver.

Put the ego away and rent/lease for now. RE has a long, long way to fall in a slowly dying economy. Don't even get me started about stocks - yes - Fed money printing is the ONLY thing keeping that casino going.

While I agree with you regarding real estate in the short to medium term, I disagree in the long term. If you buy a home to live in 20+ years, it makes sense to buy and fix the loan at ~3% now. Even if the market collapses in the future and you then buy at 50% of current values, but pay 10+% in interest, you will still end up paying more if you see your loan through. Your investment horizon will determine if It's a good investment or not.

Sent using Tapatalk 2

 

[fredball]

Congratulations Ben, It's a tough road to pull but you past the hill now it's all down hill, temptation will be knocking at your door and you will need willpower
But I have every confidence you will overcome and stay on that road .

 

[Allfat]

This conversation really opened my eyes as to how deep my wife and I are in debt. This weekend I rented his book from the library and we started off by making a budget. We found that by cutting back on some key things, we will be able to put up a bunch of money into my wife's student loans and almost eliminate one overnight. That felt really good to see the projection that we may be able to get out of debt in less than 3 years. We are 26 years old, and I think that I will thank myself later on for doing this. It feels good just to get a start.

Thanks for opening my eyes to see how deep we are, and to recommend a path to get out!

 

[Redcap]

What was the problem with Penguin Windows?

How much time you got?

 

[CharonPDX]

As others have said - get rid of credit cards. If you cannot pay all your bills on your current pay, then you either need to earn more, or spend less. *DO NOT* put another penny on credit. No "well, this one offers 5% back, so I'll just pay with it, then pay it off at the end of the month." That's a trap that will have you building the debt on it. If you can't pay for it with cash you actually have, don't buy it.

I would suggest keeping one card at zero balance as an "emergency only" card - stick it in a zip-lock bag filled with water, then put it in the freezer. That way, you have to *REALLY* want it to use it. (But if you truly to *REALLY* need it, you can use it.)

Make a list of your debts. Pay the minimums (that at least pay the interest) on all but the highest-interest. Pay as much as you can on the highest interest one, then when it is paid off, move your way down.

Make a list of all of your fixed (or near-fixed) monthly bills. As soon as you get your pay check, put aside as much money as needed to pay those bills that are due before your next paycheck. Make a budget - track your money in and out *EVERY* day. Every week, compile your cashflow and actually look at where it goes. Every month review it to find places you can adjust.

 

[Jumpkix]

"Live on less than you make."

That, right there, is all you need to do. Never, ever borrow money unless it's for a house. The Bible says that the borrower is slave to the lender, so I won't ever be borrowing money in my lifetime. The key is simply being content with what you have.

Kimber, congratulations on being weird!!! Breathe the free air, and enjoy being debt free!!!

PS-As a tip for the non wealthy, NEVER EVER EVER EVER BUY NEW CARS!!!

 

[kibs45]

This conversation really opened my eyes as to how deep my wife and I are in debt. This weekend I rented his book from the library and we started off by making a budget. We found that by cutting back on some key things, we will be able to put up a bunch of money into my wife's student loans and almost eliminate one overnight. That felt really good to see the projection that we may be able to get out of debt in less than 3 years. We are 26 years old, and I think that I will thank myself later on for doing this. It feels good just to get a start.

Thanks for opening my eyes to see how deep we are, and to recommend a path to get out!

My wife and I aren't much older than you. It can frustrating to watch all your friends go out and buy junk. Don't worry about it too much. It changes significantly after you clear out the debt. Good Luck!

 

[CharonPDX]

PS-As a tip for the non wealthy, NEVER EVER EVER EVER BUY NEW CARS!!!

Yup, the one and only new car I bought was one of the first-generation hybrids, because I wanted the long warranty. (Which turned out to be unnecessary, it's now at over 120K miles, and running better than ever.)