You can call me Rose. I am married with one DD. Financial problems are not something I am familiar with until recently. I stumbled upon this place. Looking at other's posts gave me some hope and some motivation to fix the disaster that is my finances.
Why I am here - Until a little less than 2 years ago, I was in a good place financially. The only debt I had was less than $500 on my student loan and our mortgage. Today is a different story. I lost my job after buying a new car. We own a business but I work full time for substantially less than I was making. The business has had a rough year and we have found ourselves with some tax debt. We have made some changes and can see some brighter times ahead. But we owe roughly $17K. I have 3 credit cards that are all maxed out. I am working 2 additional jobs right now just to try to help make ends meet, but its not happening. I feel like I am in debt to my eyeballs. My credit score has dropped 100 points and I hate it.
I am trying to regroup. I want to go to minimal spending and a cash budget. I want to get this derailed train back on track. I would love advice or tips on what to do. Please know that we are not ready to close the business and we would like to keep the car. I have started an ebates account, although I can't buy much online right now. And I started using ibotta. I am clipping coupons and looking for deals. But I know there has to be more.
Thank you for letting me be here. I hope this is the beginning of something new. And thank you in advance for any help.
Who I am and why I'm here
March 7th, 2018 at 04:09 pm
March 7th, 2018 at 06:20 pm 1520446831
March 7th, 2018 at 06:34 pm 1520447671
Can you cancel television for awhile? So much on the internet for Entertainment? Have you heard of Ting or Republic Wireless for phone service. Many here use them and can give you their feedback. Do you have a stockpile of food you can eat from to save on groceries for awhile?
March 7th, 2018 at 07:07 pm 1520449639
I'm really impressed that you've a sidebar that outlines your situation with the numbers you face. I suggest starting by noting every spend, no matter the sum on 'notes' app on phone or a tiny notebook if preferred by you both. It's critical to identify all 'leaks' and to give every dollar a 'job.'
CCF gave the important list of what needs priority. A great many here have been in similar circumstances and worked through with short term adjustments.
March 7th, 2018 at 07:26 pm 1520450793
March 7th, 2018 at 10:18 pm 1520461108
Welcome to the site! It is the best place I've ever found for people who are genuinely trying to improve their finances. I hope we will see you here often.
March 7th, 2018 at 11:24 pm 1520465051
March 8th, 2018 at 02:01 am 1520474491
March 8th, 2018 at 10:55 am 1520506521
You've definitely stumbled upon the right place. I'm on this debt free journey as well, I know you mentioned that you don't want to sell the
car, but I'd start with selling the car.
Next track your spending, determine where you can cut to save money. Next create and stick to your budget. In the words of Dave Ramsey cut up those credit cards, immediately. Next any extra cash, save a thousand dollars and the tackle your debt smallest to largest.
Lastly, don't worry about your credit score.
In a nutshell I just shared with you the Dave Ramsey plan. I've been doing this since August and have paid off two credit cards on my way to the third.
Good luck
March 8th, 2018 at 11:40 am 1520509210
Are there items around the house you can sell on ebay/facebook marketplace/ offer up/ poshmark? Is there anything you bought that you can still return to the store?
March 8th, 2018 at 12:14 pm 1520511263
I would not waste time with an eBates accounts or coupons. Think about ways you can save hundreds of dollars, not quarters! You only have so much time in your life, so why not focus your efforts where it counts? You can save quite a bit of money just by making a few phone calls.
Here are some ideas:
1. Your cell phone bill seems very high. I use a Trac Phone with a prepaid plan; I pay $100 for 400 minutes, which lasts me all year. You can buy more minutes if you need to, but it would still be a heck of a lot cheaper than what you're paying now. Unless you're someone who is tethered to your phone and need to be on it all the time, I'm sure you can get by with a Tracphone.
2. Your car insurance also seems very high, but I guess that's for 2 vehicles. Are these new cars/old cars? When is the last time you asked your agent to shop for better plans for you? If they're older cars, you can drop collision. Safe driver courses are offered by many insurers; mine is Safeco (a division of Liberty Mutual) and I drove around with a gadget tracking my driving habits for 3 months. This earned me 18% off permanently, each year, for as long as I hold the policy.
3. I would also research homeowners plans, as they can be pricey and inch upwards if you're on top of it.
I've been tracking my spending....to the penny....for at least 15 years. It's not a big deal and becomes habitual after a while. You just hold on to receipts and such so you can later record purchases on an Excel spreadsheet you can create yourself. You can learn a ton of stuff by creating monthly, and especially, annual expense reports. They can be a real eye-opener. I blog about this at every year-end.
March 12th, 2018 at 05:50 pm 1520877017
March 14th, 2018 at 12:58 pm 1521032307
March 17th, 2018 at 09:49 pm 1521323399