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Tough Love From My Saving Advice Followers

December 14th, 2018 at 10:43 pm

I hate the tough love that you all give me but hey, you’re more financially stable than me so what do I know.

Right now I have about $8,000 in my savings. It’s not on the sidebar. I’m truly OCD about having money saved just in case. It’s money I just don’t touch or look st. I actually had the funds in a bank account at least a hour away. Today I closed the account and deposited the money into my account that is close by.

Why? Well to pay off CC9. But I’m nervous as hell. I don’t know if I can do it. I know I should but I’m absolutely freaking out. I just ay this CC off my left with about $2k to my name.

I’ve been let go twice and both times I was able to manage with my savings. I am absolutely afraid. Especially now that I have a mortgage

Posted in Miscellaneous , Debt | 12 Comments »

12 Responses to “Tough Love From My Saving Advice Followers ”

  1. Smallsteps Says:
    December 14th, 2018 at 11:17 pm 1544829426
    1544829426

    It is a hard thing to do. I say, do what make you comfortable maybe go half on card and half kept so you feel better having a safety net. No one else is in your shoes and since you have had times that you needed the savings being nervous/ or stressed is not worth it.

    In my case, I know that the "wise" moves would be transferring money from my one account to another that pays a bit more interest and to throw the money that I am prepaying my mortgage into investments that pay more then the interest on my loan BUT...….. I feel comfortable and confident in doing my plan and while advice can bring good ideas sometimes it is good to listen to your gut.

  2. DW Says:
    December 14th, 2018 at 11:52 pm 1544831563
    1544831563

    Amber, if paying off CC9 leaves you with a savings of $2k, I say don’t do it. The concerns you stated are valid. Just add that $8000 to your emergency fund. That should at least get you closer to 6 months of expenses. What I was trying to communicate in previous post was to place your focus on the CCs or student loans over mortgage pre-payment. Don’t put yourself out there on a limb.

  3. frugaltexan75 Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 12:08 am 1544832533
    1544832533

    I agree with DW. Put the $8k in your EF. Then be aggressive with paying down your credit cards. Other than your base mortgage payment, I wouldn't even consider putting any money towards that. Getting off the cc rolocoaster and funding retirement are MUCH bigger priorities (esp once you have a healthy EF - which $10k is decent in a debt emergency.)

  4. creditcardfree Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 01:13 am 1544836405
    1544836405

    Okay, let's back up a bit Amber. How much DO you have in your emergency fund? Is it only this $8K? How many months worth of basic expenses would your current savings cover? What number of months of savings would feel the most comfortable? Three, six, eight, ten or twelve? While we so desperately want to see you pay off debt, we really don't want you do it to the detriment of your savings or if you feel insecure. As a single person, you can only rely on yourself for an income, so an emergency fund is a legitimate financial step.

    While many can go down to just $1K in EF savings it really is VERY low for the majority of people. Dave Ramsey knows that being a little insecure can be emotional and likely can induce the gazelle intensity that he wants to see his participants achIeve to get out of debt.

    I remember for a long time that $10K was our minimum EF. Anything above and beyond that went to debt. Figure out that number for you...and then go gazelle intense. You won't regret it.

  5. monkeymama Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 01:26 am 1544837214
    1544837214

    What are the interest rates on the credit cards? This whole conversation is completely useless (to me) without knowing if you are paying 0% interest rate or 20% rate. That number changes the equation significantly. If you do have a low interest rate, when does it expire? If not, can get a lower interest rate?

    Sorry if this has already been discussed.

  6. crazyliblady Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 03:17 am 1544843846
    1544843846

    I would keep the money in savings where it belongs but not contribute more to it until you pay off the credit cards, then starting adding what you were paying on the credit cards to savings.

  7. Homebody Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 06:29 am 1544855398
    1544855398

    I agree with CreditCardFree. Everyone has a number that makes them feel safe. For us it is $30,000. I now have that in savings and am throwing everything I can at our home.

  8. AnotherReader Says:
    December 15th, 2018 at 12:31 pm 1544877119
    1544877119

    Congratulations! You have an emergency fund! Is the $8,000 in addition to the $1,281 Baby Step 1 in the sidebar? If so, you have over $9,200 to cover whatever life throws at you.

    Time to have a hard look at those credit cards. What are the interest rates? If there is a big discrepancy, you might want to attack the higher interest rate one first. How is your credit score? You might qualify for a balance transfer to a zero percent rate card if your score is good. Because you are financially responsible now, you will get better offers.

    At some point, your car will have to be replaced. If you can knock out the cards by then, it will be less of a burden to buy a newer car.

    Pretty sure once SO is out of the house, you will find and plug a bunch of money leaks you didn't know existed. When you live with someone who is a spender, you tend to be looser with your spending, so that's what usually happens.

    You have accomplished a lot in a short time. I think your dad would be really proud of you and how you have navigated your way through this difficult time.

  9. LuckyRobin Says:
    December 17th, 2018 at 05:34 am 1545024845
    1545024845

    Have you considered getting a roommate after your ex-fiance moves out? If you can find another professional woman like yourself that you get on well with, you'd have another income stream to pay off debt. Do a six month lease (and run a credit check) to start so that if it turns out you don't get on well after a couple of months, you aren't locked into it. It wouldn't have to be forever, either, just until you are out of debt. Having someone responsible who can pay half the household expenses would take a bit of the burden off of you.

  10. kashi Says:
    December 17th, 2018 at 03:37 pm 1545061065
    1545061065

    Echoing everyone else - don't touch your emergency fund. You'll feel more secure in case of a real emergency and can focus on chipping away at your credit cards.

  11. GoodLiving Says:
    December 19th, 2018 at 04:37 pm 1545237450
    1545237450

    It's funny to me how my base line of what a good emergency fund changes. Many folks talk about 3 months expenses. Frankly, I don't trust it and I think I have at least a year's worth but I can't imagine feeling good about accessing that money and would focus huge on building it back up. My two cents on your situation, I might split it. I also hate paying interest on anything. I'm so happy you're deadline for your SO is coming up. You really deserve to have a contributing partner in your life.

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