For the past ten years we have been using credit cards and paying them off. Now that I am approaching my 40s and he is approaching his 50s, we finally learned our lesson the hard way. Right now we are going through rough times but it is well worth it. We are tired, we are working overtime, we miss our kids but we are going to be able to give them a better life and put them through college.
When I went back to work after being a stay at home Mom, and looking back I never needed to go back, but I wasn't used to having all money to spend. I got a lot of credit cards because I could afford the minimum payment. Huge mistake, one of the biggest mistakes I've ever made. Do not ever do this. I went to town. I like going wherever I wanted buying whatever I wanted but didn't need and spoiling the kids. Now I need to teach my spoiled second born needs before wants. Now we all make mistakes and learn from them. I have a difficult job as a caregiver and I have sure learned my lesson.
My husband and I have about 15 credit cards. Absolutely ridiculous. The first way we tried paying it off is he went to a credit Union and transferred the credit cards onto another credit card from the credit Union. Big mistake if you don't have self control and discipline. Then we maxed out the cards we payed off.
Then after that we took out a home equity loan but it didn't count against us as in if we miss one payment we lose the house. Don't ever do this. Then again, history repeats itself, we maxed the cards out that we payed off. Both of us must be hard headed. Finally, when we couldn't make our monthly payments we called National Debt Relief. They were very friendly, supportive and helpful. They found all of our debts for us by looking them up. They consolidate with your creditors and come up with monthly payments that are less than what you were paying beforehand. They settle your credit card balance and you pay less than what you owe! You just pay national debt a monthly payment. We got sued by a creditor, and I was freaking out! I was freaking out! I was looking for a second job, and side hustles. I thought I was going to lose my house, get garnished and so on. No, no, no, this didn't happen. I was worried for no reason, they went to court for me and made a settlement with my creditor. I didn't lift a finger. National Debt Relief is exactly what they say they are, a HUGE relief. Your credit score will drop drastically but you can always rebuild it. We bought two new cars so that we are set before this and we also refinanced the house beforehand. I have one more year left. I cannot wait. I will be saving so much money and be able to rebuild my credit. It is a good alternative to bankruptcy. It is the second to the last alternative with bankruptcy being the last alternative. I heard that you have to pay taxes for the credit cards that you pay off but we'll be fine.
This has definitely taught me how to work hard. I've been pretty spoiled my who life.
I recommend having self control when it comes to finances. Please learn from me. Don't get credit cards if you don't have self control. Use credit cards only if you can pay it off right away. For example, you save up for a computer, put it on the credit card and use this saved money to pay the credit card balance off. This will build your credit. I recommend the snowball effect by Dave Ramsey. Start by paying off your smallest debt first and keep going. Also try working overtime or a side hustle or a second job, to pay off debt. Do this while you're still young. Make sure you have a 401k and are saving up for retirement before you are too old to work. I work with some 60 and 70 year old caregivers. Trust me you don't want to be working that hard when you're older.
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