I need help!!

[c2afwife]

I am new here!!!
My DH is active duty Air Force, we have a one year old daughter, and we live in ND for the time being! I am getting really stressed about our financial state!! We have two credit cards that I just found out are MAXED! We also have a new truck and DH's student loans, oh an and we owe my mom a bunch of money!!! We have the payments for the truck, student loans, and my mom under control....what we are most worried about is the CC bills!! We are thinking of doing a balance transfer to another card so that we can get the 0% APR until next October (that is the current offer we have right now). Is this worth it? Is it a good idea? Maybe that way we can get on top of things!
We are going to go see a financial councelar here on base.....hopefully that will help us get on a GOOD budget that will last!!!
Any suggestions for us????

[Drgnfly423]

Hi and

I did the balance transfer to consolidate my cc bills. It works if you pay more than the minimum. Make sure to see if they charge a percentage of the amount that you transfer. Also what will the interest rate be after the introductory period.
On the other hand, most financial "experts" say to never payoff debt with debt. It really comes down to what you feel most comfortable with, and what you can handle financially.
One of the ways that I got my finances under control was to track every penny that I spent. I created a spreadsheed that would calculate my totals in each category, food, clothes, etc. I still use it to keep things under control.
Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.

[AirForceWife]

I don't really know about balance transfers, I've never done that so I've never checked it out to much. There are a lot of people here, though, that can give you the ins-and-outs and pros-and-cons of that. You will get some great advice here on that...

As another Air Force wife, I just wanted to let you know that you can do it. We have access to some great resources and support. Are you Grand Forks or Minot? Make sure you check out the Family Support Center at whatever base you are at. They have all kinds of programs to help with financial management. They can also point you to all of the programs and such that will help with cutting expenses. Paying off maxed out cc's can seem overwhelming, and cutting expenses to throw more money at them feels very rewarding.

Keep us updated.... You can do this!!

[c2afwife]

I don't really know about balance transfers, I've never done that so I've never checked it out to much. There are a lot of people here, though, that can give you the ins-and-outs and pros-and-cons of that. You will get some great advice here on that...

As another Air Force wife, I just wanted to let you know that you can do it. We have access to some great resources and support. Are you Grand Forks or Minot? Make sure you check out the Family Support Center at whatever base you are at. They have all kinds of programs to help with financial management. They can also point you to all of the programs and such that will help with cutting expenses. Paying off maxed out cc's can seem overwhelming, and cutting expenses to throw more money at them feels very rewarding.

Keep us updated.... You can do this!!

We're at Minot!!! We are planning on meeting with someone here on base to help us out! We gotta get these things straight!!

[babetteq]

Good luck, you'll get lots of helpful hints and support here.

I don't know much about cc's because I've never actually owned one, however if you 'just found out' that your credit cards are maxed, perhaps you need to have a conversation with hubby about that.

take care!
Babs

[Early Bird]

Don't panic yet. There are some steps to get this under control:

• See what the counselor advises.
• Visit Frugal Village frequently. You'll get tips ... and you'll get inspired.
• Study your benefits. The military might have low salaries, but they have great benefits!
  
  1. Did you know that a lot of bases have thrift stores?
  2. And doesn't MWR have low-cost rental equipment? So, for example, if you want a camping weekend, you don't have to BUY (and store) a tent; you can rent it from MWR.
  3. How about base housing?
  4. Is there anything you can do to help your DH get promoted? If it takes you spit-shining his shoes and pressing his uniforms, would it be worth it? If it takes drilling him on study questions, isn't that more productive than letting the opportunity slide?
  5. etc.

With, or without, hubby's support, start learning about more frugal ways to manage your household. You probably already shop at the commissary, but making ziplock omelets (Ziploc Omelets ) instead of grilling steaks can save you $$. You'll get lots of frugal ideas here.

And IMMEDIATELY, start thinking about the benefits of shopping the used market!

Especially for winter clothes, which you'll need 6 months/yr in Minot!
And children's clothes, which you should find plenty of!

I recently bought a down jacket similar to this one: http://www.jcpenney.com/jcp/Products...ItemId=0ec8607 ... for $1 on the 2nd-hand market. No signs of wear, and a good color for me.

[If you have problems thinking about used stuff, just think of the water cycle. Nature recyles water. As Bill Nye the Science Guy says, "We are drinking dinosaur spit."]

Hang out here for a couple of months, and you'll feel as if you can handle the credit cards -- even with one hand tied behind your back!

[PrairieRose]

You've gotten great advice so far, here's my 2 cents worth.

Track every penny you spend for the next month. Every single penny. Then decide what you can cut out. Do you eat out? Well you can cut that out. Do you have cable? That can go. What about cell phones? Ditto. I mean there are lots of ways to cut things down to a more manageable balance. You can learn to shop more effectively for food and clothing and supplies. You can do this, don't be pushed into bankruptcy or even credit counseling when you can do this yourself if you are very determined.

[frugalfarmwife]

You've gotten a lot of great advice so far, deep breath now and start with baby steps, one at a time and you'll be on top of it before you know it. Look at all the ways to save around the house too, hang out laundry if you can, coupon and/or bulk shopping, sell on ebay if you have anything to get rid of.

Hope to see you around a lot and keep us updated on your progress!

kj

[Amanda W]

C2afwife, you have a beautiful baby!! I want to reach out through the computer and kiss those cheeks!!

[pammy]

It can be terribly overwhelming and terrifying. Take heart, the first step is realizing there is a problem. Now that you got your eyes open....

I read many books after my eyes were open. In my experience, the ones that really stood out were The Complete Tightwad Gazette by Amy Dacyczyn, have you read it? Absolutely fabulous! Will give you tons of info and ways at looking at things, will help tons by helping you cut your living costs.

Another was The Total Money Makeover by Dave Ramsey. Inspirational and easy to understand. It's a plan, plain and simple. I had so much more peace about the finances reading this. Just knowing I had a plan took tons of worry from my mind. It will give you step by step what you can do to get out of debt completely, thousands have done it, you can, too.

There's many other great books out there, these are just two that impressed me the most. Check them out from a library. Check here often, there's tons of knowledgeable people here, all wanting to help. Chin up, you can do this!

[Early Bird]

I just thought of something else, although it's a long-term solution:

Your husband has some college, correct?

If he is enlisted, you can have him examine what it would take to get a commission. I knew a gal who got selected for the AECP (Airman's Education and Commissioning Program), back in the '80s. It was great for her; last I saw, she was a Lieutenant.

Here's a link:
http://usmilitary.about.com/cs/airforcetrng/a/aecp.htm

Even if he had to spend money on tuition to get qualified, that can be cheaper than spending $$ souping up his car, or whatever else he wants to spend $$ on!

[FarmerSue]

Hey there!!!!
I live just north of Minot up in Canada!!!!! I LOOOOOOOVVVVVEEEE MINOT!
My girlfriends and I come down and just love your city!!!!!
Get to the library and get your hands on anything from Dave Ramsey, and especially Ellie Kay.....she is great and an Air Force wife. Dave Ramsey has a radio show every day you should be able to get......sometimes it makes me laugh and cry but I am always inspired. When you are trying to pay down debt, save some money and your sanity a little inspiration goes a long way. Oh yah...........as much as I LOVE your mall......it can get kind of expensive. As far as the CC go I've never rolled mine over but I have 2 friends that did and both were very happy with the results.
Give that baby a little snuggle!!!! CUTE CUTE CUTE!!!!!!!!

[Lumbele]

C2, can you get a loan from your bank to pay off all those credit cards? They will give you a considerably better interest rate.

FarmerSue, hiya neighbour! I'm in Manitoba.

[Mamaw]

You are getting all the right advice here. I just want to add my encouragement. You can do this!!! Hang in there and hugs to you!

[Dsunny1]

Hey c2, Great to see you here. It is so cool when I come accross friends in different forums! I just started my debt reduction plan and am trying to save while Zach is deployed. There is tons of great info here. Good to see you and have a great night!