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User Panel
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:10:32 AM EDT
[#1]
Month to month? ZERO.
I use cards for convenience but I waste no money on carryover. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:11:42 AM EDT
[#2]
0- 2 cards.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:12:15 AM EDT
[#3]
Zilch.
I went down that road once, to the tune of almost $100K (no, I did not hit zero twice by accident). I'll never do that shit again. EVER. Credit cards are tools of the Devil. 
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:12:45 AM EDT
[#4]
I owe 400 bucks to one, 450 to another, and 322 to another. The first two were mainly school expenses and the last one was a snowblower I had to replace (used regular gas instead of mix... DOH!).
Anyway, after that I owe 340 bucks to my college. When I get my taxes back, the college and one of the credit cards will be paid off, allowing me to use my incoming money for chipping away at the other credit cards. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:14:30 AM EDT
[#5]
about 7% of the available balance
 debt free, echo6 |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:16:56 AM EDT
[#6]
0
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:18:18 AM EDT
[#7]
$0
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:18:25 AM EDT
[#8]
Zero month to month balance on about $1500/mo activity.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:18:50 AM EDT
[#9]
About $10K worth, including gas cards. Used to be a LOT worse.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:22:52 AM EDT
[#10]
keep the ONE i have a zero but use it for everything and pay it off. I use it for the REWARDS points. hoping for a cruise or my own island
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:23:43 AM EDT
[#11]
in after credit cards are evil folks!
Credit cards are TOOLS! They're not free money! If you can't handle that responsibility leave them alone. I have them. I love them. They are a tool of convenience to me. 
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:25:23 AM EDT
[#12]
We carry no Balance month to month, when the bill comes in, it gets paid. We only use cash if they do not take CC's. Just bought a $16k Volvo for the Wife with Discover. Gotta' love that cash Back they have!
For those who say credit Cards are the Spawn of the Devil, they are just a tool, and like any tool, if used by a fool, it will get you in trouble. 
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:25:35 AM EDT
[#13]
It got up to about four thousand over the course of the last few years (got laid off, wife then got laid off, she went back to school, I started my own business, lots of expenses not so much income). Now that things have stabilized, I finally got the CC debt consolidated and paid off last Fall. Now I'm paying the CC bill off every month religiously.
Aside from mortgage the only debt I've got right now is for the HiDef TV I gave myself for my birthday ... It's on an instore finance plan (12 months, no interest kind of thing), it will be paid off 2 months before the promotion period ends (I could pay it off right now if I wanted to, but I'd rather pay the interest to myself and let the store/finance company take the hit). 
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:26:38 AM EDT
[#14]
None. I have never had any, even when I made less then $10k a year. I can't see ever having any, unless the S totally HTF.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:26:47 AM EDT
[#15]
0
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:27:05 AM EDT
[#16]
Less than 10% of available balances.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:28:39 AM EDT
[#17]
0
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:31:02 AM EDT
[#18]
$0.00
I don’t have a single credit card, The things are bad news and people can get into big financial trouble with them. What happens is you get the card “just for emergencies” then you use it for a needed car repair. Except, if you didn’t have the $350.00 for the car repair saved up, what makes you think you can afford to make payments on a $350.00 loan? So you pay something like $100.00 on the card and run $100.00 short at the end of the month. So you buy groceries on that card. And the balance doesn’t go down but now you are paying an outrageous amount of interest on that $350 loan. Then something else comes up and you put that on the card too. Before long you are a grand in debt. Now, that’s not too bad, the minimum payment is easy to manage. But now you are used to being in debt, so you buy one or two little things you need, or really want, on the card and just deal with the payments. But every month you have to make up for the shortfall caused by that card by charging a little bit more on it. Then you get another card and the snowball continues to grow. During the last year or so things really get out of control with late fees and 21% interest eating up all of your minimum payments. You have to use one card to pay another more than once. The cycle eventually ends in bankruptcy. Once you start down that road it’s very hard to turn around and get out of debt. So don’t get credit cards. If you just like the convenience and pay the credit cards off every month then open a second bank account that will give you a Visa check card. Put enough money in the account to cover necessities but not enough that you are tempted to spend money on impulse buys. And, if someone does steal the card, your checks won’t start bouncing because you are writing them on your main account. You get all of the convenience of a credit card with none of the risks. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:31:41 AM EDT
[#19]
thankfully....0
I have several credit cards, and use them, but pay them off. All my cards are rewards cards, so they actually pay me to use their cards and I don't pay them a single penny Plus, using cards and paying ON TIME helps in raising your credit score which in turn can help you get better rates on mortgages and car loans, etc when you need them.
+1 |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:32:14 AM EDT
[#20]
Zilch.
I went down that road once, to the tune of almost $100K (no, I did not hit zero twice by accident). I'll never do that shit again. EVER. Credit cards are tools of the Devil. __________________________________________________________________________________ how did you recover from that? |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:32:49 AM EDT
[#21]
$4k in credit cards
$6k in student loans Last year at this time it was $18k credit cards $8.5k student loans I should be debt free by this summer. Except for the 5k or so I will still owe on my truck. But once the CC and SL are paid, that will go fast. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:33:49 AM EDT
[#22]
$1000 dollars or so until the due date each month.
$3500 in students loans...but im not outta college yet, although I will start paying on that next month. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:34:05 AM EDT
[#23]
About $1500 soon to be none, down from a high of 12K 2 years ago. Never again.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:39:30 AM EDT
[#24]
Was about $16k 5 years ago. Now im down to $3k. I got smacked down hard by the IRS few years back that set me back over 9 grand. Probably would have had that paid plus a few extra AR's in the safe if it wasnt for the .gov bullshit.
Lesson learned. Sort of. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:41:25 AM EDT
[#25]
1 card in my wallet.
$0 balance. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:42:34 AM EDT
[#26]
$0
My CC company hates me with a passion, because in the 20 years that I had their card, I have never had any debt longer than a month because I missed a payment. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:44:20 AM EDT
[#27]
2 cards
I carry 0 month to month balance but charge approx $5-10K a month between the two cards. Great reward miles come with frequent cc use
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:45:10 AM EDT
[#28]
Generally no month to month balance, but we'll occasionaly carry a partial balance for one month depending on particular cash flow. I don't carry any credit card debt as long term (more than 2 months).
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:45:58 AM EDT
[#29]
+1 (two cards) |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:47:39 AM EDT
[#30]
Paid off mine, 2600. Feels great, Just owe about 7500. on my truck , then total 0....
Bank loan for the truck. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:48:20 AM EDT
[#31]
Zero.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:53:21 AM EDT
[#32]
About 6k at the moment. That is all on a no interest and no payments card until November. I could pay it off now, but I will probably just wait until November and write the check. No since in paying it if they aren't charging me to hold it.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 8:54:08 AM EDT
[#33]
+2 |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:19:09 AM EDT
[#34]
$0
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:26:10 AM EDT
[#35]
Those of you who paid off considerable debt, please share with the others how you managed to do so in a relatively short period of time.
Folks who are swimming in debt could use some good news from those of you who killed the monster that is CC debt. Credit cards are legal slavery if you don't handle them right. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:29:56 AM EDT
[#36]
I have a pretty good amount. Much more than I want, but hell, I needed to live while only bringing home 900 bucks a month. Now I make more. I put all of my cards in a drawer. I make the minimum payments + about 50 bucks on each, save a little out of each paycheck, and once a month pay a card $300 more. Hopefully I will be debt free by the end of the summer, maybe november.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:37:39 AM EDT
[#37]
A few tips from Clark Howard ( a syndicated radio show host on finances ) : here are several steps you should take to get out of credit card debt. Paying off several thousand dollars or more in credit card debt takes time, so you must discipline yourself. 1) If you have several cards, your first goal is to pay off the card with the highest interest rate. This process is called laddering. 2) Pay more money toward that credit card and slightly less toward the other cards, and eventually you can rip it up. Then you move onto the next card, and so on, and so on... 3) One proven way to pay more toward the most expensive card - and to get rid of it faster - is to make a separate payment every 14 days to the credit card company. Mark your calendar every 14 days and write that check or send your online payment that day. Making a payment every 14 days equals one extra month's payment you've made at the end of the year. Work these payments around your statement cycle to avoid paying lates fees. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:38:56 AM EDT
[#38]
Blaming credit cards for debt is no different that blaming guns for violence. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:45:05 AM EDT
[#39]
ZERO
I don't use credit cards. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:47:11 AM EDT
[#40]
just paid off a card today, and have ~$350 left on my 0%APR card that (the 0% expires in july). As a college student, I have to manage buying books every semester, it is an expense on top of tuition. Plus I have to eat and drive. Credit cards are the only way I can survive, and I am smart about managing my debt. I can't complain about the points either.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:47:34 AM EDT
[#41]
Ditto.............
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:53:57 AM EDT
[#42]
Zero (other than what I'm using until the next statement comes in).
I was up to $59k worth until last September when I sold my house. Seeing all that money fly out of my checking account hurt when I wrote the final payments, but not seeing anymore 4 and 5 figure statements come in afterwords made the pain go away rather quickly. Never again. I have a house free and clear, enough in the bank to get by for a while until I figure out what I want to do next with my life and OPTIONS IN MY LIFE for the first time in a long time. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 9:58:55 AM EDT
[#43]
No balance. But I do use my Cabelas card for as much as I can, so I get that 1% back. Of course, I have to spend that 1% at Cabelas, but aint nothin wrong with that!
I had about $7k on one card, and was trying to pay it off as fast as possible. I'd write a big check towards it, then at the end of the month I wouldn't have any money left and have to use it again. If you continue to use the credit card, it's nearly impossible to pay it off. So for 2-3 months, I only made the minimum payment, which allowed me to build a small buffer into my checking account so I would know I had money for everyday things and would never have to use the card again. Then I started to pay it off in larger amounts. But the key is to do whatever it takes to eliminate use of the card. I also had the huge advantage being sent on a 4 month trip by my employer, where I didn't have to pay for any food or gasoline, and even had some cash left-over from the meal allowance. ETA: After I paid that off, they raised my rate! |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:00:40 AM EDT
[#44]
How am I going to pay off 19 fucking thousand dollars of CC debt incurred by my wife and me over the last nine years? Here's how: No money in the retirement accts for several months until it's ALL paid off. NO trips anywhere, no toys, no nothing. I'm back at work after raising these kids at home from infancy, and want this thing gone ASAP. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:05:04 AM EDT
[#45]
nicely put. Same here, im 22, had a credit card since 18, never had a late fee nor finance charge. I welcome the 0% apr challenge. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:06:54 AM EDT
[#46]
$24 more dollars in debt with a team membership....
money well spent |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:08:40 AM EDT
[#47]
Well, in fairness, Colt doesn't send me a 1911 in the mail every month.....Most credit card companies send me an offer at least twice a month. Someone who is less disciplined can end up in a hole....and that is exactly where the banks want you. |
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:14:24 AM EDT
[#48]
I agree that the temptation certainly is greater, but so is the temptation to eat fast food - not only are there McDonald's and KFC's and Burger King's everywhere, but they even have convnient drive-throughs so I don't even have to get out of my car. But for the fast food to actually get into my stomach, I still have to make the CHOICE to do it, and I have to deliberately engage in BEHAVIOR to that end. My point is that none of my credit cards have EVER charged anything by themselves, and none of those credit card applications have filled themselves out and mailed themselves back. Nor have any of my guns ever fired themselves. Don't question the king of bad analogies!!! 
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:15:15 AM EDT
[#49]
$0, i probably have 10 or more cards, some of which I've never used.
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Posted: 2/23/2006 10:26:49 AM EDT
[#50]
AMEN, Zilch here also. |
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