PD, you hit the nail on the head. Looking at monthly payment amount only. I think someone posted here a while back how in Lowes the cost of a washer and dryer aren’t posted, just the monthly payment amount (figured by the minimum payment on your Lowe’s card I guess). When my wife and I decided some years back to pay everything off and stop using credit, it was a huge eye opener. It took us a while to get down to zero debt, but it has been worth it. What we know now is that we were constantly juggling payments. When we wanted something, the main questions we asked ourselves were 1. Can we fit the payment into our ‘budget’ (I quote that, because the fact we had a budget back then was a joke) and 2. what time of the month did we want the payment (middle or 1st of the month)?. And at some point, you get to a point where you can’t fit in another payment, you are slave to the lender, and you are years away from actually owning anything. Imagine on the other hand if the only bills you recieved in the mail were phone, electric, insurance and taxes. Imagine what you can do with the remainder of your paycheck. I have to tell you, it is nice.
