Newbie with a question about debt...

**Ashlncle** · 01-25-2006, 08:27 AM

Hi! First off, My name is Ashley and I am 23 years old. I have been married to my dh for 4 years. We have 2 daughters....Caitlyn who is almost 2 and Lexi who is 4 months.
We have been living way above our means but are determined to get out of credit card debt.

We have about $23,000 in credit card debt...some of those have 0% interest while others have high interest. Is 2 years a reasonable goal to make or am I setting myself up for failure?
We are working now on getting our $1000 in savings. We are at $350....We will be able to do this within a month.

Thanks in advance and I hope to join in here real soon for a support group. This is going to be tough to stop spending.
Also, is there a list of abbreviations?
Thanks!

**Sara Noel** · 01-25-2006, 08:37 AM

Here's a list of some of the commonly used acronyms here at FV:
http://www.frugalvillage.com/modules..._content&eid=2

**alabamagirl** · 01-25-2006, 08:56 AM

It's hard to know if it's realistic without knowing more specifics - income in, how much you can dedicate each month, other debts, etc. BUT . . . just do the best you can and make it a game.
Good luck!

**FrugalMomof3** · 01-25-2006, 09:01 AM

Just do the best you can, if you really want to save then it will happen but it does depend on your income. Take a look at all your expenses and what's left over, you will then see if it's a reality for 2 years or possibly longer.

~Tracy~

**UKMum** · 01-25-2006, 09:05 AM

Welcome!!!
I recently joined the village and I have to say it is a wonderfull site.
Everyone is friendly and the advice offered is fantastic.
Someone will be able to give you advice soon, Im just starting out with our battle against debt...Good luck

**homesteadmamma** · 01-25-2006, 09:54 AM

Personally I never think any goal is too unrealistic. I always think that if I don't make it, I have at least tried. You can always change it down the road. Also I'm a firm believer in baby steps. That way you don't become overwhelmed.

I would say the very first thing that needs to be done is learning to live below your income. It isn't easy and it's hard work. Once you've learned that, you'll find that you have extra cash to put towards your EF account and towards debt. While your doing that, you need to freeze those cc so that you aren't putting anymore on them.

Good luck in paying down debt. It can be done, even if it takes longer than 2 years. We are all here cheering you on.

**Valerie in WA** · 01-25-2006, 03:23 PM

You said that you (as a couple) are determined to do this, so you will.

How long it takes depends on how much money you can put toward the debts.

Do you have a plan as to which bills you'll make minimum payments and which ones you'll pay extra? There are two different philosophies in this area.

One is to pay off the bill with the highest interest rate first - because the finance charges are expensive. This is probably the fastest way to get out of debt.

The other is to pay of the bill with the smallest balance first. Then you can take the amount you were paying to it and pay that amount to the bill with the next smallest balance. This is called snowballing because that payment builds up as you pay off many small bills. This is a good way to go if you need the extra encouragement, and/or if you're having trouble making the minimum payments. It might not get you out of debt quite as fast, but it's still MUCH more rapid than making minimum payments on everything until you're 40 years old.

I'm not kidding about 40 years old, BTW. Minimum payments will keep you in debt for a loooong time.

You are probably right that it will be hard to change your spending habits, but it CAN BE DONE!! We've all done it (except the few people here who were born frugal). We'll all cheer you on!

Find ways to make a game out of not spending. For example, I enjoy being a homebody. I will sometimes make it a mini-challenge to myself to see how many days I can stay home (and not spend money or gasoline). Usually, it's 3 or 4 days, because then I have a necessary errand. But it helps.

Remember to: make your changes in manageable steps (baby steps). And grow as you are able.

Find ways to have fun for no money - oh yeah, you have small children - you probably already know how to do this.

Feel free to ask lots of questions!