Getting out of Debt in 2009

Seems like everybody is in debt right now... including companies. I am in debt about $7,500

I heard about the snowball method which means that you pay off your lowest debts first, but make sure to give the minimum payment to the rest of your debts....

I hope to decrease my debt this year... it really is no fun living in debt.
I've already put away my credit cards and now if I buy something it will only be cash or debit card.... no more credit card purchases!

How about you? What's your situation?

Scoot over girls...I'm on the wagon too. I hope to have a credit card paid off by April. We haven't used it in some time but the debt is slow to lower. I'm beefing up on the payments and making it history.'
We have taken the Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University course and its helped alot.
(daveramsey.com) If you take this course you are lifetime members. You are then able to go to any place the course is given for free.
It teaches you everything from simply saving to retirement methods to saving for your kids college years. I recommend this for anyone no matter your age or income status.

I've managed to keep my debt down to a low roar fortunately, but, when money can be so tight these days, it is hard to not use the cards for necessities like prescriptions, whatever (ones that my insurance doesn't cover). I have vowed to not use the cards for anything but necessities, so that should help...

Wow Lily how does it feel? lol
Congratulations!

Gin, that sounds interesting... I will look into that

Dave Ramsey teaches you to have $1000 set aside to have for those "emergencies" that we all have. Then its easier not to use the credit cards for things because you have money set aside to then turn around and get those paid down.
It all takes time and discipline but when you are totally free of it you feel SO good.
(THEN you can buy LH dvds --all the time!) LOL

Go ahead and smack me, but except for the mortgage, we're free and clear. We use our credit card to pay for everything, but we make sure we don't spend more than we can pay off every month. But it's getting harder and harder and we've come close to dipping into savings the past few months--not that there's a lot there--and that's why I need to find a job that pays more than my virtual book tours.

One thing that could help some people is to adjust their withholding. When I started working, the philosophy was to claim zero or one so that you get a larger return. But in essence, you're floating the government a loan all year. If you adjust your witholding by claiming more deductions on your W-4 (I think that's what the form you fill out for your employer to deduct taxes is called) then you get more money in your pocket each paycheck. You just have to be careful to make sure that they take out enough in taxes so that you don't end up owing.

Gin wrote:

Dave Ramsey teaches you to have $1000 set aside to have for those "emergencies" that we all have. Then its easier not to use the credit cards for things because you have money set aside to then turn around and get those paid down.
It all takes time and discipline but when you are totally free of it you feel SO good.
(THEN you can buy LH dvds --all the time!) LOL

I would highly recommend looking on his site, too. We have his book that David has been reading and we listen to him on the radio/tv when we can and he's got some excellent advice!

I have a $30 debt except that I have to pay to my mom. Tis bout it. But hey I'm 16 and was recently let go from my first job * stay strong Robin twas nothing personal * so $30 dollars is a lot for me. Kinda sorta.

Like Cheryl, thankfully the only debt we have is the mortgage and if we use a credit card we pay it off in full each month. I know many who aren't as fortunate. Thankfully here in UK we don't have medical bills to worry about as that's all free, apart from prescriptions.

I almost bought the Dave Ramsey book last week. Then I realized how broke I'd be if I bought it!

Just kidding, I've heard good things about him and I am definitely going to get his book and check out his site. Gotta start somewhere. We're not 'knee deep' by any means, but I don't like being in debt AT ALL. We try very hard not to buy anything but the important stuff on credit, and we're going to 're-evaluate' what even 'important stuff' actually constitutes in the future. :unsure: We've gotten into debt because, no doubt, some of this 'important stuff' really could have waited until we'd saved for it. We're in the 'instant gratification' society, and we Americans are going to have to change our mentality, me included. It's time to go back to the way Charles Ingalls lived his life, "Cash on the barrel". America is in huge trouble because of people maxing out credit cards and buying homes they couldn't really afford. Very sad.