Debt Dumpers - 2018

[Tygerlilly]

I can't remember all the details of what expenses we had when we bought. We also had long since sold that home, and that process is more fresh on my mind. However, we when we bought we had the downpayment of 20% but not required. We had I think the house inspector, maybe a fee for credit check, utilities start up. Depending on how you plan to move, if a self move or not, covered by company or not, the actual movement of furniture can be a factor. Another is actually furniture. Seems like every place we've lived in we always have a furniture issue, either something breaks, doesn't fit, need this or that. When we bought we had our washer/dryer, though we bought the fridge. Dishwasher, stove, microwave came with the house. We spent a ton in the first six months on hiring a landscaper, getting a sprinkler system put in, and my DH put in a fence himself so we saved money on labor but bought the material. I hated the laundry room so much, it was combined with the pantry and was the main walkthrough from the garage so we didn't notice it until actually living in it that this was an awful setup, got an estimate from the original builder to bump it out and after hearing the quote decided no. Good luck with your move, are you moving to be closer to family?

Yes, moving to be near his family. And our girls older brother and their cousins.


I knew there were some things like inspections, but I couldn't think of the off the wall extra things.

 

[bababear_50]

Hi Tygerlilly
here is a great article on closing costs
https://www.zillow.com/mortgage-learning/closing-costs/

When we bought our first home I know I wish I had paid closer attention to the appliances,,we ended up replacing a few during our first year which threw our budget for a loop. I have learned the hard way that getting a home inspection is super important.
https://www.property24.com/property101/buyers-guide/become-a-first-time-home-owner

Congratulations on your decision and best wishes!
Hugs
Mel

 

[Eureka]

It's been a spendy month. College application fees, senior pictures, CSS profile fees, plus the first full AAA bill we've had with a third driver (we added him when he got his license but it was prorated). Plus we bought tickets to a sporting event and a theater event as our major holiday gifts for the four of us to do together, and I've started some other smaller holiday shopping for the kids already. And we took advantage of the fact that all of us were home the other night and went out for a nice dinner. Can't believe it's almost November and I'll need to order our turkey soon! But no balances on the CC at the moment (well, other than the gutter cleaning I just scheduled bc the card was on file but that will be paid off when it posts).

 

[StacyStrong]

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[StacyStrong]

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[jen7233]

It's been a spendy month. College application fees, senior pictures, CSS profile fees, plus the first full AAA bill we've had with a third driver (we added him when he got his license but it was prorated). Plus we bought tickets to a sporting event and a theater event as our major holiday gifts for the four of us to do together, and I've started some other smaller holiday shopping for the kids already. And we took advantage of the fact that all of us were home the other night and went out for a nice dinner. Can't believe it's almost November and I'll need to order our turkey soon! But no balances on the CC at the moment (well, other than the gutter cleaning I just scheduled bc the card was on file but that will be paid off when it posts).

October was a terrible month here too as far as spending goes. Hoping for a better November. Thanksgiving doesn't really cost us much, we are staying here and family never visits us as we are the ones expected to travel to their homes, and we aren't going anywhere, though I will likely go visit my mom sometime over that weekend as she truly can't travel due to her health condition, and age.

I have done zero holiday shopping. Holiday shopping gets me overwhelmed. But, I have saved all year in my Christmas savings account so I'm ready at least there! We have one mini 2 day trip to a hotel over New Years about two hours away so I'm saving for that, too.

I got the call for the job offer today.

Congrats, hope they were able to renegotiate with you! * I posted right when after yours, sorry they weren't!

 

[imbatman]

October was a bad spending month for us too! But you know what? I just decided that I'm going to put up my house Christmas lights this weekend because 1. it'll be sunny and I hate doing it in the rain and 2. We only have 31 days until our trip-that-almost-wasn't! No spare weekends for me! I did double-check with the housesitter to make sure everything is lined up there. He'll probably be thinking "What?" when he comes in on Nov. 30th and sees the Christmas tree up. I don't want to come home to no tree.

 

[fifthdimensiondweller]

October was a bad spending month for us too! But you know what? I just decided that I'm going to put up my house Christmas lights this weekend because 1. it'll be sunny and I hate doing it in the rain and 2. We only have 31 days until our trip-that-almost-wasn't! No spare weekends for me! I did double-check with the housesitter to make sure everything is lined up there. He'll probably be thinking "What?" when he comes in on Nov. 30th and sees the Christmas tree up. I don't want to come home to no tree.

Hahaha no worries, you're not the only one preparing for Christmas! We'll probably be putting our tree and decorations up within the next week or two! We travel out of state for Thanksgiving (and celebrate DS's birthday party while we're there, so lots to prepare) then come back and go to Orlando and won't be back until the 8th or so of December, so pretty much it's within the next few weeks or trying to do a mad dash between birthday planning, Thanksgiving festivities, and travel arrangements for both trips!

I went through my holiday gift list and realized I need less gifts than I thought, so that was a pleasant surprise. My friend visited this month and while it was great, it was definitely a budget buster so DH and I are figuring out how to get that taken care of and weather the storm of two out of state trips, DS's birthday celebrations with both sides of the family, and the last few holiday gifts we need to get.

The thing this year has taught me is that I have to start saying no to traveling to our hometown sometimes, especially when it comes to doing something that will bust our budget. It's just hard to decide who to say no to, because a lot of people in my life feel equally important to me, ya know? This year we traveled 6 hours each way to visit family in April, 2 hours each way to visit family in May, 14 hours each way for me to be in my friend's wedding, 11 hours each way to attend another friend's wedding, and we will travel 11 hours each way again for Thanksgiving, and 7ish hours each way to visit family in Florida in December. It's been a real budget buster, and next year we've limited our traveling to 2 weddings (one of which will combo as an extended family visit trip in lieu of Thanksgiving), our family vacation Disney Cruise and that's it. We just can't afford the gas, food, petsitting, hotels halfway, etc. This year we easily spent $2-3k doing these trips. We love our family and friends so, so much but our budget just doesn't allow for so much traveling.

We're also thinking about scaling back on holiday gift giving. I have a large extended family and with so many kids (and now one of our own) we simply can't afford the Christmas gift giving we used to do. I used to give each of my cousins on one side who are younger a $10 gift card for target. (Ended up being well over $100). I think starting this year we're going to make them each a homemade hot cocoa mix for Christmas Eve and their favorite candy bar. I'm a little nervous about it because my family is very much one where the "love language" so to speak is gift giving, and I don't want anyone to think we're trying to be cheap, but if we want to meet the goals we have for ourselves, like home ownership, having a second child, and upgrading our vehicle we need to think seriously about what we can afford to be doing for others. It's tough, though, because my family has done a lot for me (and now DS) over the years and I wish I could give back to them at the same level they've given to me. Hopefully one day!

 

[Dentam]

I love to decorate for Christmas! I always have my tree and decorations up before Thanksgiving. I don't have travel as an excuse, I just love them. I leave them up until the end of January also. It helps me with the gloomy winter months and the short days.

Also, I watched my first Christmas movie already the other night.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Does anyone here use an online savings account? If so, which one? I am debating between opening one at either Ally or Amex. Both offer 1.9% APY with no fees, minimums, or direct deposit requirements. Is one better than the other in terms of user friendliness? Ease/speed of transferring? App use?

I do NOT want an account at a bank that has an upper limit on your balance in order to get the advertised rate. I will be racking up between $50-75k in this particular account in a relatively short period of time (2-3 years).

I love Ally! Easy to use and their app is great. No fees. No minimums. We have around 8 savings accounts which I can assign nicknames to keep me organized. This is after 10+ years with Capital One 360, formerly ING, which I also loved but their interest rate is only 1%. I gave Ally a trial run and shortly after made the move.

 

[crazycatstacy]

We are less than 3 weeks out from our daughter's wedding and although it is costing more than I initially thought, it is a manageable amount. I am excited for it but ready for it to be over too so we can focus back on debt payoff. I am ready for Christmas and excited to do some black Friday shopping. We have a Christmas account set up every year and it has all the money in it for Christmas gifts, black Friday shopping, holiday baking, and this year I was smart and added in the cost to mail packages because that adds up really quick!

My nephew is going to be with my brother over Christmas so I have decided to pool the money I would spend on him and my brother and his wife and her teenage son and buy them a family gift of various gift certificates for places they can go and have fun while he is there over Christmas break.

 

[jen7233]

We are less than 3 weeks out from our daughter's wedding and although it is costing more than I initially thought, it is a manageable amount. I am excited for it but ready for it to be over too so we can focus back on debt payoff. I am ready for Christmas and excited to do some black Friday shopping. We have a Christmas account set up every year and it has all the money in it for Christmas gifts, black Friday shopping, holiday baking, and this year I was smart and added in the cost to mail packages because that adds up really quick!

I use a Christmas saving account, too, and love it. I just use a savings account that has a no minimum, no fees, and start funding in January anywhere from $50-200 each month as the year goes and depending on how that month is going with other expenses is what I put in. I don't like putting money in it throughout the year, but come November Christmas doesn't look so overwhelming to me. It is a little hard for me though in January to decide what my target savings goal is for 12 months later and wondering what will be on Christmas lists.

 

[crazycatstacy]

I use a Christmas saving account, too, and love it. I just use a savings account that has a no minimum, no fees, and start funding in January anywhere from $50-200 each month as the year goes and depending on how that month is going with other expenses is what I put in. I don't like putting money in it throughout the year, but come November Christmas doesn't look so overwhelming to me. It is a little hard for me though in January to decide what my target savings goal is for 12 months later and wondering what will be on Christmas lists.

We love it. Typically we put a set amount in each month but this year we fully funded it when we sold our house. Although I dislike the monthly "payment" to it, it is so nice not to have to worry about where the money is coming from. We don't have a lot of people we buy for so we typically do the same amount every year (we have a certain dollar figure for each person) but we adjust it if we were short in one area. I always try to pad it a little because I would rather have too much than too little for sure!

 

[imbatman]

We are less than 3 weeks out from our daughter's wedding and although it is costing more than I initially thought, it is a manageable amount. I am excited for it but ready for it to be over too so we can focus back on debt payoff. I am ready for Christmas and excited to do some black Friday shopping. We have a Christmas account set up every year and it has all the money in it for Christmas gifts, black Friday shopping, holiday baking, and this year I was smart and added in the cost to mail packages because that adds up really quick!

I think this is a habit I should get back into. Setting aside $50 a month is absolutely doable. We have evolved gift giving over the years. The girls know that this year, our WDW trip is their gift, other than two small gifts on Christmas Eve (yes, we open the night before). My siblings and I stopped exchanging gifts years ago, although my sister likes to knit a pair of socks for me. My MIL is the overboard queen and I've felt awkward for 25 years because of it. But I know that I give my gifts with thought, so I hold tight to that.

Okay board, I have an offer that came in the mail yesterday. It's a zero percent interest offer until 2020, including transfers, with a 3% fee. I won't pay off the BIG CC until July of next year. The fee cost is equal to two months of interest, so I will still come out ahead and maybe pay off the debt sooner. Anyone have any experience with balance transfers? Phrases I should look for?

 

[StacyStrong]

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[pblack]

I think this is a habit I should get back into. Setting aside $50 a month is absolutely doable. We have evolved gift giving over the years. The girls know that this year, our WDW trip is their gift, other than two small gifts on Christmas Eve (yes, we open the night before). My siblings and I stopped exchanging gifts years ago, although my sister likes to knit a pair of socks for me. My MIL is the overboard queen and I've felt awkward for 25 years because of it. But I know that I give my gifts with thought, so I hold tight to that.

Okay board, I have an offer that came in the mail yesterday. It's a zero percent interest offer until 2020, including transfers, with a 3% fee. I won't pay off the BIG CC until July of next year. The fee cost is equal to two months of interest, so I will still come out ahead and maybe pay off the debt sooner. Anyone have any experience with balance transfers? Phrases I should look for?

I do balance transfer offers a lot and i've never had any issues with them. If you're switching from a card with interest than it's definitely worthwhile.

 

[imbatman]

I do balance transfer offers a lot and i've never had any issues with them. If you're switching from a card with interest than it's definitely worthwhile.

Thank you! I'll give them a call later this evening and get it started. Cutting the debt, one transaction at a time!

By this time next year, I should only have mortgage and student loan payments. I'm beyond excited at that prospect, after limping in here nearly 11 months ago. You guys/gals have come alongside of me, given me opinions and cheered me on. Thank you!

 

[Tygerlilly]

After today we have 1 more payment for DF's truck and 2 payments for one if his loans! Hoping to get those both gone by the end of the month. Then I can banana dance my way to a less stressful Christmas shopping expierence.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Hi Everyone!
I've been absent for so long but now finally catching up. We did our 11 nt trek out west to Vegas, GC, DLR & Sedona. What a great time. So nice to see "Walt's park" and where it all began. We were utterly spoiled staying at the GCH and just loved the convenience. We had 2nd row seats to Terry Fator in Vegas which was awesome. Just to hear dh and our boys laugh SO HARD was pure joy for me.

I'm still chugging away at my goal to put my entire snowball into my retirement account for Oct-Dec to lower our tax obligation to the IRS. Looking on my pay stub, my taxable income is generally half of what it used to be. When dh gets paid, I take what would be the snowball amount and just hold it in savings, then when I get paid less than my usual amount, I add in the savings from dh's pay. So far this has worked out well 3x. I used a payroll calculator website to estimate how much pretax I should elect to contribute, so that it's the equivalent of my after tax snowball. This varies because the 2nd pay of the month is mortgage/escrow time so that is much less. Also Nov is a 3 paycheck month so there's another twist and turn to navigate. Every 2 weeks, my election amount changes. I have around $5500 in my new car fund that I can lean on if my calculations should be way off at some point.
My Vanguard fund earnings are way down so I'm not really "seeing" any addition to my total but dh says not to worry because it's like "buying low" and we will see it eventually when the market improves. All together, this is around $10k for the 3 month period.

In other news, both of our boys started working full time at Amazon!
They are hiring something like 9000 employees in our little state of NJ for their warehouse/fulfillment and it was a really easy process for them. It's pays $15+/hr which is way better than min wage ($8.xx/hr) and the water ice scooping job ds21 was in. They also get full medical/dental/vision ins, matching 401k, stock options and Mommy's favorite: employee discount!! woo hoo!

They work dinner time to wee morning hours so I barely see them but the other great part is that they share the same hours so even though ds18 won't get his driver's license til March, he can carpool with ds21 and share the cost of gas. Ds18 is so drooling to buy a truck that he set up direct deposit to all go into savings. This is my child who could never just hold onto money, a total spender. Such a pleasure to see him so motivated.

I am thinking of giving him cash for Christmas instead of the usual stuff for Christmas: Flannel PJ pants, video games, BMX bike parts, skateboard parts, etc. Having a truck with 4wd would also work out well for snowy weather that they can get to work more easily.

I'm not sure if we can put ds18 as co-owner while he only has a learner's permit but we'll find out. It does list on his permit what his future DL number will be.

In travel news, we booked a trip to Aruba with our close friends & 2 other couples for next spring. We had so many vouchers from SW for our June & Sept flights being delayed several hours due to weather. I only had to book dh's one way seat with points and the rest was covered by vouchers. Well, except the taxes which are much higher than domestic flights.

Still churning bank bonuses. Lately, I've completed Santander, Valley National Bank, BB&T, M&T, and Citizens Bank. They will all 1099 me in Jan so this is why I want to lower my taxable income as much as possible.

So my next goal after Jan 1 is to power save for a car, enough that we don't need a loan. I don't ever want a car payment again. Our last few vehicles were brand new but we both have agreed to save the money from now on by getting something 3 yrs old or so and let some one else take the loss for all that depreciation.

Hope everyone is doing well. It will take me a while to read up on everyone's progress for the last month. I used to read this thread every day on the train but lately got hooked on a puzzle game on my phone. Terribly addicting...

 

[Eureka]

We got a check for almost $800 back from when DS had his wisdom teeth out during the summer. I guess the office grossly underestimated what the insurance would pay. Good time of year for it!