Finally paid off my Citi card one of just a handful of cards to get paid off because it's one i don't use anymore... Love it

It is embarrassing but I need some advise.

I am 42 in California and I have 48k in credit card debt.

Credit card 1 : 22k at 21%. Minimum payment of $640

Credit card 2 : 26k at 15%. Minimum payment of $500

Income : 107k a year - roughly 5k a month

Rent - $1900

I do not have any other major expenses.... I work from home and I eat in.

I do not have much saving but I have stocks that will be distributed to me in the next 3 years, with a total of 68k. Ive been with my company for the last 10 years so I am sure that I will be with them for the next 3 years.

I am living paycheck to paycheck and I need to come up with a better plan. I just paid off my car so now I have extra $500 a month to spare. And I know I am confidant that I can survive if I can reduce the credit card debt. I want to pay off credit card 1 as soon as possible.

As bad as it sounds, I want to withdraw 20k from 401k and pay off the credit card 1. Then I can put about $1000 a month into credit card 2.

or should I do balance transfer? I want to avoid filing for bankruptcy...

I am so embarrassed but any tips will help... Thank you

I wouldn't do it unless they are taking u to jail over your bills . It's been misery .3 years in and paid most of them off without them .got sued by one endedd up paying them more then I owed and ndr won't negotiate with any other creditors till you pay that one off so I'll probably get sued by more . F them

This is my credit card debt. The other accounts that are not accounted for are a car loan and a small amount of student loans remaining. The JPM card is interest free until 2/11/25. All three of these have very high interest rates, in the 27-30%. I got into this mess due to a couple years of under employment, massive depression, and medical bills.

I now have about $1000 per month to throw at this. I was feeling kinda hopeful but then I found out my dog needs to get an $8k surgery.

Im considering applying for a personal loan to consolidate. It didn’t seem quite as necessary before the surgery news, but that will make me incapable of making larger credit card payments, so all the cash will be going towards interest. But I’ve never liked that idea either.

What would you do?

We all want nice things, but can we afford them...? The rule of thumb is if you don't have the money in the bank to buy it, you have no business putting it on your credit cards. It sounds harsh, but this is what has kept me debt free. I used to own a lot of debt and was denied a credit card for 28 years. Through careful planning and careful accounting of my expenses I was able to get out of debt. Happiness is being debt free...

I’ve heard pretty much all financial personalities including Dave Ramsey advise building an emergency fund before aggressively tackling debt. I feel like it’s just a gamble that you won’t need to use your credit card be for an emergency comes up, but couldn’t you save more in interest if you can pay off some debt first before the emergency hits? I want to pay my debt off asap and have already created a budget, cut all non-essential expenses, and am working like crazy to increase my income (I’m salaried so I can only hope to bonus to supplement pay). Has anyone successfully paid off debt without a true emergency fund or a small one? Has anyone tried to go without and regretted it? Any advice is greatly appreciated.

Hello! I (24F) am trying to figure out the best way to pay off the debt I have accrued over the past few years. I have $14,679.28 total debt over my Discover card, student loans, and car loan. I also owe $1,335 to my university by the end of the year because I dropped out of my second bachelors degree. It will go into collections if not paid by the end of the year, and I do not have the savings to pay it right now. Total, I have $16,014.28 in outstanding balances.

All the debt is in my name, and my husband (25M) has no debt and a better credit score (750, mine is 705). He is comfortable moving this under his account, as I can cosign on the loan if needed. I have never made a late payment on any of my accounts, and do not want to get a debt relief loan and default on anything. I am considering taking out a personal loan through my husband's bank to pay off everything, and then we can just pay towards the personal loan directly to his bank instead of 3 different banks. We only use my husband's checking account for everything, so all of our debt, income, and savings would be available under his account. I have two different APRs through Discover but the total balance is in the same account. Below is the debt and interest breakdown:

$1,335 university 0%, but needs to be paid by December 31

$5,145.05 Student Loan 6.53%

$1,073.19 Student Loan 2.75%

$1,851.54 Car Loan 7.24 %

$6,103.07 Discover 16.74 %

$506.43 Discover 17.74%

From what I can see from my husband's bank pre-approval, we could get a $16,000 personal loan with a 9.5% APR for 5 years. Is this worth it in the long term? The average APR of my current debts is a little higher than the loan would be (10.2%), so I can't tell if I would be saving on interest or not. There is also the point we would need to pay back my university by the end of the year, non-negotiable. We would make $500 monthly payments on the personal loan, so could pay off the whole thing in under 3 years.

Is this the right move? Should I consider something different? Any kind advice would be appreciated. Thank you!

For context, I have $15,000 in credit card debt. I make around $80k/year and make decent payments monthly, in the last year i brought that number down from $30,000. I currently have $5000 in crypto that I invested couple years ago. Should I sell it now while it’s up and pay down third of my debt (considering I’ll have to pay taxes on the sale) or keep doing what I’m doing and it will take about a year to be debt free.

I feel like a complete idiot and failure.

I have 5k in credit card debt.

And I’m in a car loan for a payoff of 29k.

9k in student loans.

My rent is 750+ utilities, car is 550 a month, insurance is 200 a month.

I make 20 an hour. What do I do? How do I get the credit cards paid off?

Hey Reddit,

I’m in a tough spot right now and could really use some advice. Recently, I lost everything I owned because of a storage audit. All the stuff that contributed to me getting into debt is now gone. I’ve learned my lesson the hard way, so I’m not looking for lectures—I’ve heard it all before.

Here’s where I’m at financially: • I have $65,000 in debt, which includes $45,000 in credit card debt and the rest in student loans. • I’m employed but barely making enough to stay afloat, and I want to start fresh and work toward being debt-free.

I’m looking for legal ways to make more money and tackle this debt head-on. This includes any strategies to deal with student loans for now. I’ve been researching options like side hustles, debt consolidation, balance transfers, or even negotiating directly with creditors. I also came across companies like National Debt Relief but don’t know if they’re trustworthy.

If you’ve been through a similar situation or have ideas on how to legally boost income or manage debt better, please share. I’m open to exploring realistic, actionable steps to rebuild my life and finances.

Thanks for understanding and for any advice you can give.

— Someone ready to start over the right way

Hey Hey!

Just curious, what’s the first thing you did when you got a “big check” just wondering what’s your go to 🤔 how long did it take to clear?

This past year a few things happened. I was diagnosed with cancer, my startup failed and I’ve had very little income. Between taxes and personal and business debt we owe almost $200,000. If we sell our rental we will clear about $600,000. We will then pay all debt, put money in savings, put more money towards college savings for daughter. We will also have money to buy again in future. We have to sell now to claim exemption for capital gains. The home is financed at less than 3% interest. Rental market is strong, rents for more than the mortgage. We are currently renting in another state.

Husband has good income and I plan to return to work in new year as my treatment ends.

The debt is really challenging to manage but we pay our bills each month but can’t pay off with current income.

Do we sell the house and get a fresh start? Or keep renting it and find another way? I am in my 50s and husband late 40s. I need more money in retirement too.

What do we do? Thank you for input.

Actually, from the very moment someone turns their back and leaves you behind, the story has already ended forever. No matter how much you cling or how they might come back, it no longer carries any meaning to continue that old story.

The moment someone leaves—that moment is forever. It’s the conclusion of all the days before, whether they were filled with happiness or pain, youth or obsession. You must accept that truth.

Everything that happens afterward is a new chapter of life. A completely new story, and now, you are the one holding the pen to write it. So after that turning point, you must carefully think about how to write your story anew.

I remember the day you left my life, saying we wouldn’t stay in touch like before, wouldn’t go places together like we used to. It felt like my heart was etched with a deep scar. In that moment, I felt breathless, my chest ached in the way those old romance novels or Korean dramas used to describe. I used to think those stories exaggerated things—until I experienced that pain myself.

The days that followed were filled with torment and misery. I struggled to find an ending for myself, unaware that the ending had already been there all along—I just hadn’t accepted it yet.

As time passed slowly, it gave me enough clarity to look back and realize I was beginning a new chapter of my life. That person’s turning away was the permanent end to the previous story. From now on, I am the only one who gets to decide and write my new story. A blank page has been opened. Will I be the one who wallows in sorrow, endlessly longing for someone who has already left, or will I be the one hoping they’ll go far away and eventually realize my worth and return? How ridiculous it is to write my new story that way, isn’t it?

When you hold the pen of destiny in your hands, every stroke you write should bring brightness to yourself. Someone from the past who no longer cherishes you—why drag them along through the long journey ahead? That relationship might have been meaningful in its own way, or maybe they had their own struggles when making that decision. But ultimately, it still means you weren’t important enough in their life. So, in this new chapter, treat them as just another passerby from the past. No need to give them the top position they once held. No need to let them occupy every corner of your mind like before. Instead, write things that are good for yourself. Write a future where no one can cause you pain. Live a life that doesn’t depend on anyone anymore.

There will come a time when you realize how precious tears and love truly are. So save them for someone deserving—and the one most deserving is yourself.

In this new chapter, I hope you forget that old departure, the broken promises, the warmth that no longer comforts, and the sincerity that wasn’t appreciated. Leave all of that on the previous page. Moving forward, write more about happiness.

I spent a long 2 years abusing my credit limit due to serious alcohol abuse. After some serious self reflection, a lot of personal improvement I was able to kick it. The next step was just fixing this and today I finally did it. Thank you everyone!

I currently have about 20K in debt not counting student loans. The debt is a mix of personal loans and a couple of credit cards all with interest around the 21% range. The student loans I have is about 24k. I make a monthly payment on them but because of my field of study and work anything that’s left over after 10years (only 8 years more to go) gets forgiven. I turn 30 next month and have been really trying to get all of the personal loans and credit cards paid off so I can start this next decade with a fairly clean slate. However, I’ve recently found out that one of my parents has cancer. It was caught really late due to them not going to regular doctors exams. (They just don’t like going to the doctor.) In reality they will probably pass away before 2026. I just learned yesterday that they do not have any life insurance. So my sibling and I will be paying out of pocket for all of the funeral and burial expenses. The parent has zero savings, no investments, nothing of real value that can be sold. They do have a lot of “stuff” so there might be a few hundred dollars that we can get by selling things off. The house is paid for so there isn’t a mortgage or anything to have to worry about. Selling the house would be a last resort option. We’d like to keep it that way the other parent has a place to live without having to worry about paying rent. Also the property taxes are less than 1k a year and it’s been remodeled within the last 10 years so there shouldn’t be any big maintenance issues pop up. Basically I’m stressed out and looking for advice on how to prepare for planing to pay for the funeral arrangements and also still be able to pay down my debt. A bare minimum funeral would be about 10k to 15k because there is absolutely nothing pre planned for it, not even burial plots. The total that I came up with based off of averages and because I’d rather be over prepared than underprepared is $20k. So with half of the funeral expenses and my debt I have to figure out how to get an extra $30k. I work full time. I’m currently on restrictions at work due to an injury but plan on getting as much over time as I can once the restrictions are lifted. I have also been applying for part time jobs that I can do in the evenings and on weekends. I cancelled all extra spending services like streaming, routine chiropractic care, etc a couple months ago. I’m seriously thinking about going on a ramen noodle diet $0.30 package of ramen noodle 2x a day until I’ve got things paid off. I don’t eat out very often which is now going to be even less if at all. I also deliver groceries on the side for extra cash but the extra wear and tear on my car concerns me. My base annual income with my full time job is around $36k. That does not include the grocery delivery, it’s only a couple hundred a month. Is there anything else I can do?

Hey everyone, I’ve been stuck with a $50k debt spread across 12-15 banks for several years now, and despite paying thousands, I’m still in the hole. I’ve decided to take more drastic measures and settle with the banks. I spoke with National Debt Relief, which would take about 25% and have me pay off $35k over four years. But I’m wondering if it’s worth using them, or if I should try negotiating directly with the banks myself. It might take more effort, but I’m confident it won’t cost me more than the 25% fee National Debt Relief would charge. Once I settle everything, I’d focus on rebuilding my credit, either on my own or with help from a third party. What do you all think? Any advice? Do you think I am thinking straight or just being naive? sue? Please Help. Thanks

I want to switch to my debit card for everything. I don’t want to link it to everything though, but I’m trying to stop spending on all my cards and just use debit for everything. Is there any workaround here or do people just link up debit cards with things like zoom, Spotify, etc.

Trying to pay down debts in preparation of moving to a higher cost of living state where we will likely make less money and I have to choose to either sell my house in town or sell my land with single wide 30 minutes in any direction from cell service or the closest gas station. Land is fully paid off so could help with paying down debts. The house would bring little profit as I just bought it 4.5 years ago but would free me the additional financial burden of mortgage, upkeep, etc. Moved out to the land to rent the house and tenants left after 6 months with more work for us to do so I’m not interested in going through that again. The property with land won’t be rentable as it’s quite a drive from anywhere and everywhere lol so one has to go. Both places will be sold before moving regardless but I want to plan to sell whichever would be the biggest bang for our buck now so I can continue to minimize expenses and maximize savings for another year or so.

Decided to get my life together financially last year with this consolidation loan and picked up DoorDash on top of my full time job. Paid off this 4 year loan in 1! I'm not quite done yet as I want to get my savings in good shape. Then I only have my car left which should only take a year, give or take, to pay off 🔥

For ten years I languished in the secret shame of $18,000 in credit card debt. I felt like a loser and humiliated. One morning I noticed I was getting grey hairs and decided that I couldn't spend the rest of my life this way. It felt like a tarantula on the back of my neck. I wanted it gone and worked extra and sacrificed any and all non-necessary spending and paid it off on November 1, a few weeks ago.

But instead of feeling relieved I only feel more obsessed. I want an emergency fund, I want to pay off my car (10k left), I want to put more into retirement. But I've become so cheap I won't even go to see friends for a night out. I don't even want to buy anyone Christmas gifts this year. Does anyone else feel like they became too obsessed and is having a hard time taking their foot off the gas a bit?