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OT: what is your credit card debt?

Started by dam60,

How much credit card debt do you have?  

348 members have voted

  1. 1. How much credit card debt do you have?

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57 posts in this topic

dam60

dam60

Posted
Posted

I just read a great article about the ballooning credit card debt and it had me wondering how much money people have in credit card debt and if the purchases(debt) have been used to finance the hobby.

 

Please don't feel pressured to put anything on here that you wouldn't feel comfortable with - I am doing this as a poll because it protects people's privacy.

 

 

 

continued . . .

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dam60

dam60

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Personally, right now I am in "0" but in 2002 had $5K in CC debt to finance a Hulk 181 cgc 9.6 and a GS 1 cgc 9.6. I ended up selling those though and was able to do okay for myself. Rather than pay the cc charges, I ended up opening a new credit card and transfered the balance over to the new card under a plan where I would have to pay 2% of the total outstanding a month with absolutely no interest for a year. That helped me keep my head above water and I am on solid ground now, albeit will only buy something if I have the cash in hand.

 

Personally, I don't see anything all that wrong with debt, as long as it is manageable, as it is a double edged sword. Specifically, in the example above the two books appreciated at a greater rate than the interest charges. I did well taking on debt in that deal. Had the books depreciated I would be stuck with the devalued assets AND the interest payments.

 

DAM

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delekkerste

delekkerste

Posted
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Here's the link to the aforementioned credit card debt article.

 

http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/10006

 

And here's another good one.

 

http://www.cornerstoneri.com/comments/check-up.htm

 

Personally, I charge everything I can to my credit card to earn mileage points, but then I pay it off in full every month (obviously, never charging more than I can pay). The very thought of carrying a balance on my card makes me cringe like this ==> 893whatthe.gif

 

Gene

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davidking623

davidking623

Posted
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I was at a little over 20000 in debt a little over a year and a couple months with credit card debt and whatever Im at a little over 5 k right now but was at 4 k just a couple days ago! I bought myself my little hot rod 74 Nova SS that I paid with my comic books and have paid off most of my debt. For just a Baker with 7 children I have done pretty well considering I started out with little and was working day and night and had 3 jobs to survive now I work one job and flip and buy comic books.I am sure hoping there is no comic book crash because my life has rocked from it and to think it all started out with Origin Wolverine 1 for me but that is another story!

 

Davidking623

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dam60

dam60

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I "artifically" fell into the highest tier as I bought a house on my CC. Can't beat that 4.99 balance transfer rate wink.gif

 

Brian

 

Wow!!! Either your house must have been cheap or you were able to get one hell of a credit limit!!!

 

4.99 is good only for a limited time though, no? Won't it jump to something like 15% after 12 months?

 

DAM

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Murph

Murph

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Unfortunately for the CC, no. I had a huge limit on this card originally and decided to balance transfer what I had on there off of it onto a couple of cards to see if I could entice this company to send me one of those balance transfer checks they send when they lose a lot of "business". And, to what eventually will be their dismay, they sent me 4. One was a 1.99 offer for 1 year, the other 3? 4.99 for the remaining life of the balance. Bam.. transfered it all back in and am paying a 4.99 percent loan rate wink.gif

 

Brian

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dam60

dam60

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So I take it you just wrote those checks over to the person who you bought the house from? 893scratchchin-thumb.gif

 

The only thing that I would ask now - is since this is viewed as unsecured debt to the credit card company and not a secured mortgage can you deduct the interest payments from your taxes?

 

DAM

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Murph

Murph

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No the balance was originally on there at 6.75 percent fixed. Which is not too bad a rate at that time. Then I thought about it and thought I'd give it a shot. Since I kept getting all these pre-qualified card offers. I took up 3 of them. Moved the debt to those 3 cards, and awaited the coupons. They came and I just transfered it back to the original card for 4.99. The original cost of the house was 80,000 and I've had it for 2 years. It's rented so my payment to the credit card company is directly debited out of the acc my renter payment goes into. I get 875 on this house, and usually give the CC company about 700 of it. Continuing at this rate, I should have the house paid off in 27 years barring I don't just pay it off before hand (which would be dumb).

I don't file my own taxes so I don't know how to answer your second question.

 

Brian

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dam60

dam60

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No the balance was originally on there at 6.75 percent fixed. Which is not too bad a rate at that time. Then I thought about it and thought I'd give it a shot. Since I kept getting all these pre-qualified card offers. I took up 3 of them. Moved the debt to those 3 cards, and awaited the coupons. They came and I just transfered it back to the original card for 4.99. The original cost of the house was 80,000 and I've had it for 2 years. It's rented so my payment to the credit card company is directly debited out of the acc my renter payment goes into. I get 875 on this house, and usually give the CC company about 700 of it. Continuing at this rate, I should have the house paid off in 27 years barring I don't just pay it off before hand (which would be dumb).

I don't file my own taxes so I don't know how to answer your second question.

 

Brian

 

That's a great deal. I would love to be able to get a house for $80K and rent it for $875 a month with your interest rate situation. That's positive leverage at work for ya! thumbsup2.gif

 

In reference to my other question, if you have a residence for investment you can't deduct the mortgage anyway (but you should be able to deduct the DEPRECIATION) but if you have a primary residence for yourself the mortgage is tax deductable (but then I don't think you can depreciate it? although on that matte I am unsure).

 

DAM

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shadroch

shadroch

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I've been trying to keep my CC debt in the low hundreds but between an ebay win and my plane tickets to Nevada I've most likely exceeded my self-imposed 1,000 limit.

It will remain there only for this cycle.

I used to rack up some serious charges so i'd get my flights free with the CC program but found that road too filled with landmines.Now I just surf for the cheapest flights and don't worry bout getting them for "free".

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Galactus

Galactus

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Simply put:-

It's having 20 credit cards and knowing the credit limits and the statement dates without having to look at the statement.

Waking up avery morning and receiving a statement in the post.

Thinking Wow they just increased my Limit and then immediately using the extra amount.

And finally it's realising that the credit card companies own you body & soul

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