What is your TOTAL credit card debt?

[prolesunited]

Poll question: What is your TOTAL credit card debt?

I was reading this article on the Net this morning and was curious to see how DUers stack up.

At the end of 2002, among households with at least one credit card, the average balance was $8,940, according to CardWeb.com.

That's pricey debt. Despite record lows in interest rates, credit cards haven't yielded much on the rate front. In fact, credit card interest rates have been averaging around 16.2 percent lately.
http://money.cnn.com/2003/09/25/pf/millionaire/q_debtstackup/index.htm

So, what is your household's TOTAL credit card debt — just credit cards so don't count other debt here?

Don't worry. The poll is anonymous, so you're secret is safe here, unless you want to comment.

[Champion Jack]

1. Zero

0 !!

[GOPisEvil]

2. I've been paying mine down.

At $250/month, I'm under $500 on each of two old credit cards that I no longer use. I've got two more that I use, but pay off every month.

I plan to be debt-free by this spring at the latest. :-)

[CPschem]

3. zero credit card debt..

but almost zero savings too. lucky to have a job though.

[CanuckAmok]

4. Had to live on them last year...

...because there was very little work for me.

Racked up $20,000 fastern than you can say "hired goons". It'll be nearly paid off just in time for Christmas spending :eyes:

[meegbear]

5. How about NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS!

Anything else you'd like to know, feel free to ask.

[prolesunited]

9. Sheesh!

It's an anonymous poll based on a current news item. Don't answer. :shrug:

[Susang]

29. "How about DON'T ANSWER!"

Nobody put a gun to your head and said you had to participate. Your response was really rude, do you realize that?

[NicoleM]

6. A tip from NicoleM's mom.

She's a loan officer. She says to pay down the card with the smallest balance first, not the one with the highest interest rate (unless it's really really high). She says that most people will get discouraged by the slow progress they see if they start with the highest balance, but if you start with the low balance you get results faster and you're more motivated to continue to pay off the rest of your debt.

It worked for me. I had about $5,000 in credit card debt a few years ago, and now I have $0.

[Drifter]

12. That's bullshit.

I have had CC debts over $40,000.

I did not attack them based on balence. You get rid of the balences that are costing you the most (in interest).

Your progress in paying down credit cards should be measured by totalling your debt, not counting how many cards you have that debt on.

ALWAYS ALWAYS ALWAYS - pay down (or transfer) the card with the highest rate.

Cheers
Drifter

[NicoleM]

16. Not necessarily.

$40,000 is a lot of credit card debt. If your balances are lower and there isn't a substantially higher interest rate on the card with the highest balance, it works. Most people are motivated by progress. How many people quit diets because they aren't seeing results?

Besides, it doesn't make much sense to rack up the highest balance on your highest-rate card, anyway.

[Drifter]

26. Do the math ...

How could you possibly argue that putting $X a card that has less debt on it will get you out of debt faster than putting the same amount on one that has higher percentage rate.

Your argument about progress is bullshit. If you can not realize that your progress is measured on your total debt, and not the number of cards, then you will be hopelessly mired in debt.

I reduced $40,000 of debt in less than 4 years. This was done by paying off (or transferring balences) the highest cards, and paying minimums on the lowest cards.

Cheers
Drifter

[NicoleM]

27. Chill out.

Obviously you are a very special person with more discipline with the rest of us.

[GOPFighter]

7. Gulp!

My monthly balance is ugly...luckily the interest rate is 8.9%

[Drifter]

8. I voted no credit card debt ...

But less than 3 years ago we had over $40,000.

Thanks to AWOL trashing the economy, and interest rates going through the floor, I was able to refinance the haouse and roll in all of my CC debt.

Cheers
Drifter

[onehandle]

13. I rolled debt into a refinance as well...

The only good thing I've gotten out of Bush. Too bad he had to f*ck up the economy to do this. Now perpetual war is rasing all interest rates, making him a Total F*uck Up.

[manderley]

10. Credit cards are evil!!!!

Okay, I know were not forced to use them, but as a recent college grad who lived off of them while in school... VISA owns my first born. I no longer use them but am working to pay them off.
Still.. I cringe when I get my VISA bill

[NashVegas]

22. Credit Cards are the ONE RING

Don't you feel all-powerful when you use one for a huge purchase you otherwise couldn't afford?


Don't you hate the way that balance keeps you from telling a crappy boss to take a hike, out of fear of losing that job?

[MSchreader]

11. No credit card debt

But I do have about $77,000 in medical bills outstanding. Ah! The joys of being uninsured for a while. :puke:

Martin

[prolesunited]

19. I'm very sorry to hear that

Is bankruptcy an option in your case. I think outstanding medical bills are the leading cause of bankruptcy.

[WoodrowFan]

14. Virginity poll

any relationship between this poll and the poll on losing your virginity??

[prolesunited]

20. Not that I'm aware of

Is there a connection in your mind?

[On the Road]

15. A Month Ago, I Had About $80,000

Most of it was used to buy a couple of small investment houses, however. I ran into trouble trying to get a mortgage on houses that were not fully repaired and said "screw it, I'll put them both on credit cards." Strange system we live in.

In a few weeks, I should have mortgages or loans on all three and have my consumer debt down to zero. But I learned something from having those high balances. It got very scary for a month or so. And all of a sudden, my interest rates on some of the cards skyrocketed, from, 8.9% to 23.9% in one case. I breifly entered the land of credit problems. Never want to go there again.

But before that:

I got divorced seven years ago, and quickly acquired about $10,000 on cards which I had difficulty paying down. A lot of it was due to the fact that rent a private school increased a lot faster than my salary. About a year ago, the balance grew to almost $20,000, and I decided I needed another source of income. Hence the investment houses.

[supernova]

17. Debt free

I don't owe any credit card debt at all. Getting out of debt was the first priority I had after my ex and I separated. And I made good on it.

I now live with debit cards. That's all. I might, MIGHT get a new credit card at some point just to have, but I would only use it in emergencies and pay it completely off every month. I never want this frustration and humiliation in my life again. NEVER! I will go to great lengths to avoid it.

[trof]

18. Learned a hard lesson in the 70s.

Got laid off with very little notice with fairly high credit card debt and a mortgage. Almost lost the house. Since then we pay off the outstanding balance every month. My checking account earns a little interest (about infintesimal% right now) but at least I get the monthly float on all charges.

And don't say "WOW! They had credit cards in the 70s?".
It was in its infancy.
;-)

[KCDem]

21. our CC debt is high

but that's primarily because we had to buy a car last December and our CC was offering a great transfer rate--better than the car dealership was offering, so we paid for the car with our CC rather than financing through the dealer.

[arcane1]

23. ZERO! Never had a credit card

and never will

[Art_from_Ark]

40. I had planned at one time to never get a card

But then I tried to rent a car without a card, and was treated like an alien from another planet. No card, no car. So I reluctantly answered one of the ads that came in my mailbox, and got a card with the lowest annual fee. The 21% interest rate didn't concern me, because I swore I'd always pay off the balance each month. That meant that the card collected dust in the sock drawer most of the time.

Cards can come in handy in a pinch, like if you're stranded somewhere and don't have any cash. But it's best not to use them for everyday purchases, because the debt can skyrocket before you realize what hit you.

[deaniebopper]

24. No cards

[Skittles]

25. one credit card; ALWAYS pay it off every month

I've never paid interest on it, ever

[jburton]

28. Not any more

Paid mine off a few years ago and keep it that way. It's amazing the offers I still get though -- increases in limits and balance tranfers in amounts that are twice my annual salary.

It's a legalized racket.

[Susang]

30. I'm a bad bad girl!

Not really, it just sounded funny. :silly:

I do have a lot of credit card debt. Unemployment (my husband's and now my own) necessitated it. Life sucks sometimes. :-(

[prolesunited]

31. Yes it does, unfortunately.

I'm sure things will turn around soon. There's a difference between eating and splurging on a new blouse.

[Maeve]

32. Credit cards kept us afloat

Went thru a bad couple of years of minimal income and we used the cards to keep going...and yes, I played the "balance transfer game" for all it was worth! When Hubby changed jobs, we were able to pay everything off and now pay the total each month.

I also charge groceries on the card that gives me money back, then write one check per month instead of several. And some of those cards let you get "gift cards" from their "partners" worth double the cash-back option (a $40 card from Barnes & Noble for $20, for example). So now the credit companies work for ME.

[kayleybeth]

33. "average balance was $8,940"

Amateurs ;-)

[Ratty]

34. No cards. I rue.

I haven't had a credit card for years. I do have a debit card but that doesn't count. They're just so much more convenient. I never have to remember to pay the bill and I can use it just like a credit card. I haven't had a credit card for many years.

Big Mistake!

I now have no credit. I haven't borrowed money in many, many years. I just always paid for everything with cash (though as a student I had to use my Macy's card to buy food for awhile when things were REALLY tight). Do you know how hard it is to buy a house with No Credit, good or bad?

[Shanty Oilish]

35. AVERAGE $9K??? Jeez....

How do people sleep with debt like that?
I haven't had or used cc's in years---due to a stalker problem that got very serious. Besides, at this age, it's hard to find something I need or don't have, that would call for a credit line.
Young people should get credit though, it's important to have a good credit rating and cards are a quick way to get it.
Running up $9k is a good way to lose it!

[Xithras]

36. Nah

I'm right at that "average" with about 9k. The trick is simply to make sure you've got cards with good rates. My minimums are currently around $150 a month, and I typically pay $100 or so on top of that towards the principal. In the meantime I've got a phenomenal credit rating (FICO 790-ish) in case I need to finance something in an emergency.

I have a simple rule: Make sure that, nomatter what, you can always pay AT LEAST the minimum payment X 1.5 every month, and make sure that the combined payment never exceeds 5% of your monthly take home pay. When you hit that limit, DON'T SPEND ANY MORE. Works for me :-)

[HEyHEY]

37. there's no over $100,000 option

[prolesunited]

38. Did you NEED that option?!?!?

Feel free to write in your total.

[Catherine Vincent]

39. I voted.

But I don't want to talk about it. Sigh!