Decision

I decided to pay down my last credit card instead of saving for a car for my son. Thank you to everybody that gave input to my decision. Paying down the credit card is the responsible thing to do for my financial well-being and I think it is also the best decision for my son. He is choosing not to get a summer job because he is focusing on training for cross-country season. One consequence of not having a job is the inconvenience of sharing a car with your mother. I think that this will be a valuable life lesson.
$2600 left to pay on the credit card. My original goal was July 1, but that is not going to happen--too many Murphy visits--plumbing, car repairs. My revised goal is to finish by October 15.

Capital One--Canceled, but not gone

I just called and cancelled my Cap 1 card because they were changing the terms of agreement.
My current interest rate is 5%, and it was increasing to 13%. If I opted out of the new terms, my card would be cancelled., but my current rate will apply while I pay off my card. This sounds almost too good to be true--that I can keep the 5% rate. I'm holding on the the written notice, in case my rate does go up.
My new goal is to pay off the card by Oct. 15. This sure is taking longer than I thought!

Indecision..

I haven't posted in a while because I haven't been able to decide whether to keep paying down my credit card or save for a replacement car for my son, who wrecked his car in the spring. I still haven't completely decided, but I'm leaning toward not replacing the car even though sharing a car will be very inconvenient when school starts. Paying down the credit card makes more sense financially.

Rain is coming down and expenses are going up!

I'm still tracking my actual expenses with YNAB and they have been increasing. Last month, I spent 11% over budget. I overspent in just about every category except eating out. I went over in the basics like groceries and gasoline, as well as gifts, miscellaneous and house projects. With the increase in my spending came a corresponding decrease in debt repayment. It feels a little like my spending is out of control--things like AP test fees, doctor bills.
I'm starting to see that my beginning budget was not very realistic about unexpected expenses.

I hope the sun shines soon!

More Computer Woes

I'm whining just a little. My "a" key is broken, so to type an "a", I have to copy and paste. What a pain!

CC Interest Rates Going Down?

The interest rate on my last credit card has been slowly declining over the past year. It started at over 7%, and now it is just over 5%. Has anyone else experienced this? I think the CC company is trying to lure me into charging more!

Debt Reduction Doldrums

It seems like I have been five months away from being debtfree for the past 6 months! Every time I recalculate how long it will take to pay off my last credit card, the pay off remains 5-6 months away. Buying a new house, moving expenses and an unplanned income drop have all contributed to my inaccurate estimates. Now, I'm just tired of the struggle to keep paying to debt reduction each month. I want to spend on house projects, new clothes and things for my kids, not credit card payments!
Objectively, I know that I have made tremendous progress in reducing my debt. I owed over $13,000 in July 2007, and I now owe $3500, reducing my debt by $10,000. On the other hand, I've been working on this for almost two years, so this journey is getting a little old. Another worry at the back of my mind, is that my income will probably be reduced by $600/month after September. That means that I really must get my credit card paid off by September. After that, I'll only have about $200/month over planned expenses in my budget, so my savings rate will be very slow.
Okay, enough whining! What can I do now?
1. Stop worrying about what will happen six months from now. Concentrate on what I can do this month--follow my budget.
2. Look at the positives--I have a little (almost $1000) emergency fund, as well as growing sinking funds for irregular expenses.
3. I have $60 in the house project fund. Decide what to spend it on. Landscaping? Wooden blinds for the dining room? Slipcovers for the living room?
4. Make a list of nonfinancial things I would like to do--distract myself with other things until these doldrums pass!