[quote=outtamojo]Are they still offering those 0% 18 month balance transfer
credit cards? When we had a revolving debt/car loan we rolled everything over into 2 or 3 of those and paid things off without paying any interest at all – just be sure to roll it over to another 0% card or pay it off 2 months or so before introductory period is over.[/quote]
——–NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO NO————-
These balance transfer offers only work for
1) People who have demonstrated they can exercise financial restraint
and
2) People who can pay attention to details and make payments on time every single time.
With all due respect to the OP (which given his new info he revealed…and kudos for him to offering data about it, since as someone has already mentioned he’s/she’s already more than 1/2 way to solving his problem by acknoledging their could be one), if I were the financial planner for this couple, I would say until he/she can prove otherwise, let’s error on the side of doing the least complicated thing possible, because that’s just one more thing this couple would need to juggle on top of whatever else stress he is already juggling. Two jobs, 3 kids (one with special needs) and 3 dogs. That’s a LOT of distractions.
No 0% balance transfer option,no jiggle credit card games (which someone at works does to pay his kid’s college tuition_, no other game some of you more seasoned people who can beat the credit card company at their own game can manage to do. You are probably 10% of the population that can win at this game, the remaining 90% of the population will lose and pay a pretty big price for trying to play. If that’s not how the 0% transfer offers work, credit card companies wouldn’t play this game to lose money. So the last thing this person needs is an overly complicated strategy.
The first thing I would do is eliminate this $5000 credit card debt. The easiest thing I would do first is go through ones entire house and put everything you don’t need on ebay/craiglist/garage sale for sale. I’d say the average person has more than 50%+ of useless crap bought at some point just sitting their at home doing nothing.
My crap is probably closer to 60%-70%. That garage sale nets $1000, use that $1000 and make that $5000 to $4000 outstanding balance.
BTW, while your realizing earning that $1000 take a hell of a lot of work to be forking it over to a credit card company, you might as well get a nice par of shears and cut up your credit card, or at least stick them in a nice bottle of water and freeze it in the fridge. So you can’t use it…For a long long time. Or at least if you want to use it, you’re going to have to wait for it to thaw from that really big block of ice, giving you plenty of time to think whether you really need to make a purchase. Pay with your debit card or pay cash. Don’t have money to pay, too damn bad…You ain’t buying it.
Take every bill off of autopay off of your credit card.. Speaking of which. If you have landline phone and a cell phone, now would be a time to cut either or out of your budget…Your cellphone is a $150/month expense that most likely you can live without. Or get a prepaid one just in case for emergencies. Got cable TV? Goodbye for now. Most of the 200+channels on directtv you don’t watch anyway. There’s only so many episodes of storage wars, or duck dynasty, or hardcore pawn you can possibly watch or other quality programming. Cut the tv out, go outside and to the park and spend time with the family. It’s probably better entertainment anyway.
That $150-200/month, you stick into your nice retirement account. Like starting next month… Get your cable and/or cell phone back after you’re done with your minivan lease payment.
