What is an acceptable amount for cc fees & interest?

[recoveringfrombk7]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Or even alternating $$ vacations with inexpensive vacations like camping every other year.

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Bk really changed things for my family and though I zeroed out consumer debt I still have 35k in private student loans and 175k in federal.  We have a mortgage, two cars, and DH owns a small subscription-based business so income for him is not completely fixed.  Now that I've finished school my income is 6 figures, but we have obligations as you can see.

We've reduced our trips to one across country this year by plane/hotel.  The rest we camp.  The investment was minimal in camping gear.  We stay at KOA campgrounds which have all of the amenities of a really nice hotel, you just sleep outside.  We have a no electronics rule.  We hike and relax.  The kids love it and we save A LOT of money.  We are also on track to be entirely debt free in 8 years.  Gotta pick what's important and it is different for everyone.  The BK changed our life approach and we are finding that for us our new way of saving a lot, paying down debt aggressively, is somehow way more relaxing than the vacations we were taking.  We do plan to travel the world once our obligations are met.

[Anonymous]

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@recoveringfrombk7 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

Or even alternating $$ vacations with inexpensive vacations like camping every other year.

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Bk really changed things for my family and though I zeroed out consumer debt I still have 35k in private student loans and 175k in federal.  We have a mortgage, two cars, and DH owns a small subscription-based business so income for him is not completely fixed.  Now that I've finished school my income is 6 figures, but we have obligations as you can see.

We've reduced our trips to one across country this year by plane/hotel.  The rest we camp.  The investment was minimal in camping gear.  We stay at KOA campgrounds which have all of the amenities of a really nice hotel, you just sleep outside.  We have a no electronics rule.  We hike and relax.  The kids love it and we save A LOT of money.  We are also on track to be entirely debt free in 8 years.  Gotta pick what's important and it is different for everyone.  The BK changed our life approach and we are finding that for us our new way of saving a lot, paying down debt aggressively, is somehow way more relaxing than the vacations we were taking.  We do plan to travel the world once our obligations are met.

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Camping got 10x as great for me after moving to NYC. Such a relief to be unplugged and out of the city!

I'd generally camp in the same manner - a campground with facilities and the car nearby. I used to follow concerts extensively around the country, and camping was a great way to save money when seeing a multiple night run in a different city.

I've only just now gotten comfortable with spending some money after my BK on concerts and travel again. There are a few splurges this Spring and then I'm going to see how lean I can run things from summer through the end of the year. 

I constantly run through what if scenarios in my head . . if I were to lose my job tomorrow for instance, how long can I get by? I won't sign a lease or a new car note. Always making sure I have options available for cheap borrowing if I need it. I need to reel in my disposable spending, but my obligations are in a place where I could live on $1000/month in an instant if needed.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Thank you all for the responses.  I've been writting budgets for myself for years but last year was the first time I actually stuck to it.  In the span of 3 months, I fell back into my old habits.  .......  Part of me is thinking about what I want to do this summer.  Then I look at my payback schedule (12-18 months).  Then I get depressed........

 ......It really shouldn't have taken me so long to get my financial life in order.  Having said that, the struggle is real. 

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Habits are very hard to break especially when they have been set in place for potentially years. As I've said in other parts of this forum, every single American would have a perfect credit file 7 years from today if they started following good habits today. Learning new information about credit strategies is suprisingly the easy part. When you are alone with your family at home, or in the mall, or on Amazon and you know doing something would be a bad financial move but you do it anyway...THAT is the hardest part of the credit rebuild. Some people have great habits and life just hits them hard and their safety net wasn't big enough. I believe many of us in credit repair land have BAD financial habits so then even when life doesn't hit us OR it hits really small it really screws up our balance. 

YOU HAVE TO FIX YOUR HABITS AND MAKE THAT A PRIORITY if you ever want to have a solid financial future. I know you can do it. You are showing the desire in this forum. You just need to find a way to hold yourself accountable and make the best choice every time you swipe your card.

[Anonymous]

If you don’t carry a significant balance, than why not PIF?

[MrDisco99]

One of my rules when I started back on credit cards after being cash only for about a decade was that I would never pay interest.  Three years later, I have a 100% record on that.  If I can't afford to pay for it by the next statement date then I don't buy it.  Thankfully, I make enough money now that sticking to that rule is not too difficult.

I save up my rewards (cash and points) and use those for vacations.  My signup bonuses paid for my big splurge trip in fall of 2018.  I now have enough rewards banked to pay for another big trip.  We just need to figure out where we want to go next.

As for fees, I do have a few cards that charge annual fees that I still consider keepers.  We occasionally do trips to neighboring states to visit friends or to see a show so the free annual IHG night gets used, making the $49 fee on that card a no brainer.  I've also renewed the fees on my Amex Gold and Citi Premier because the points earning and benefits on those cards are worth it to me.  All my other AF cards I typically cancel or downgrade after the first year is done.

[Anonymous]

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@MrDisco99 wrote:

One of my rules when I started back on credit cards after being cash only for about a decade was that I would never pay interest.  Three years later, I have a 100% record on that....

I save up my rewards (cash and points) and use those for vacations.  My signup bonuses paid for my big splurge trip in fall of 2018...

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x10000 Textbook example of proper credit card use. PIF and milk rewards.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:
If you don’t carry a significant balance, than why not PIF?

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For me, the balance began to grow when I had impulse spending.  Want to go out of town for a weekend?  Found a flight for $227.  That yearly trip with my college buddy to Vegas?  Extend your stay a couple of days for hotel and change fees of $1575.  Then a couple more trips for your birthday and NYE.  Another 2K in swipes.  Now I've been paying my fixed monthly expenses but I have accumulated  5K of debt.  Dividing that up over 12 months so that I don't feel like I need to dump my entire disposable income into that for the next 6 months. 

Now I'm feeling paralyzed.  Should I go out of town this weekend and use points for a hotel and pay last minute price on airfare?  Do I go out and have a good meal?  or do I just stay at home, eat grilled cheese sandwhich and tomato soup?  for the next 18 months, then again for another 6 months so I can save for the vacation I want to take.

[Anonymous]

Sometimes situations arise where you need to take on debt. But until that is all paid off, no vacations. Vacations are a necessity when you work hard all year, but if you have debt, you cannot afford to do so, and they are then a luxury. Find out ways to cut other expenses so that you have more discretionary income, so that you can get out of debt faster. Then start saving money. Then take vacations.

I go on 2 or 3 vacations a year, most involve flights. But I prepay these (most of the expenses), so the trips are mostly paid well before I take them (the remainder of the expenses aren't due until arrival, such as rental car expense, food, activities, etc.). That's the best way to do it. 

Get yourself to that point, and vacation expenses are worry free. But you must pay off debt and at least have a running start (savings) in order to do so.

[spiritcraft1]

Interest is a tax on the working stiff that lines the pockets of fatcats.  Save up a bit prior to be able to pay that balance off so that the Fatcats end up paying you in points, rewards or CB!

[MrDisco99]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:
If you don’t carry a significant balance, than why not PIF?

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For me, the balance began to grow when I had impulse spending.  Want to go out of town for a weekend?  Found a flight for $227.  That yearly trip with my college buddy to Vegas?  Extend your stay a couple of days for hotel and change fees of $1575.  Then a couple more trips for your birthday and NYE.  Another 2K in swipes.  Now I've been paying my fixed monthly expenses but I have accumulated  5K of debt.  Dividing that up over 12 months so that I don't feel like I need to dump my entire disposable income into that for the next 6 months. 

Now I'm feeling paralyzed.  Should I go out of town this weekend and use points for a hotel and pay last minute price on airfare?  Do I go out and have a good meal?  or do I just stay at home, eat grilled cheese sandwhich and tomato soup?  for the next 18 months, then again for another 6 months so I can save for the vacation I want to take.

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Living beyond your means will always catch up with you.  You need to pay for it sooner or later and it's usually cheaper to pay for it sooner.