stuben

I'm still relatively young at 39 (compared to a "normal" retirement age), so I'd be worried about medical insurance coverage when deciding how much money I would need to ditch my job. I'm assuming the headline is referring to never "working" again, so I'd pin my number at around another $500K in addition to what I have now.

OMG!

We paid off our mortgage early in about 6 years. We have no regrets, but there is one factor that I never really considered. Having a mortgage payment is a form of "forced savings", now that our mortgage payment is going and we have an extra $2500 per month, we find ourselves spending more frivolously. In other words, we haven't been contributing $2500 in to other investments or assets.

Hello All, Please make sure you read the posts on this board regarding the advantages and disadvantages of using any Goodwill Letter!!! I just wanted to share this new Goodwill Letter Sample I wrote targeted at credit card companies (namely Capital One). I approached it from the standpoint of a loyal customer who is looking to improve his credit file as part of an upcoming job search. Please feel free to use and edit for your particular situation! You can also download a MS Word version if you'd like on my blog here. Good luck!!! Your Name Your Address Date Company’s Name Company’s Address Late payment removal request regarding account # XXXXXXX To Whom It May Concern: I have been a loyal card member of Capital One for 7 (change to the # of years you’ve been a card member) years and couldn’t be happier with my decision to join the Capital One Family. You’ve always offered some of the most competitive rates and rewards programs, and even beat a competitor’s lowest interest rate when I inquired about transferring my balance to their card (replace this sentence with a description of a time the company went “above and beyond’ to help you). Unfortunately, in December of 2010 (replace this with the date of your late payment(s) here) I took advantage of our relationship and failed to submit my monthly payment on time. It was an exceptionally busy time and my life as I was balancing the birth of our first child while taking night classes to fulfill one of my long standing career goals (replace this sentence with a POSITIVE life event that may have contributed to you missing the payment). Now that I have found a prosperous balance in my life I honestly cannot associate with the person that let this payment obligation go unattended to. I fully respect my obligations with Capital One and have worked diligently to amend my relationship with you by regaining your trust. A brief look at my account will reveal I have successfully made 12 on time payments since my unfortunate lapse of judgment. Recently, I have begun search for a more financially rewarding career in business and it has come to my attention that my late payment(s) with Capital One may negatively affect my chances of obtaining a career in the field I am pursing. As you may know, FICO scores are being used more and more in the selection of prospective job applicants. In light of my renewed focus and demonstrated commitment to rebuilding my trust with your company, I am requesting that you give me a second chance at a positive credit rating by revising the late payment(s) as reported on my three major credit bureau files (Experian, Transunion, and Equifax). I sincerely hope Capital Ones believes in their customers and I humbly request your consideration to allow me to pursue the career of my dreams. I appreciate your time and look forward to receiving a favorable decision from you department soon. Regards, Your Name Here

Thanks! For those of you how are looking for my budget spread sheet, you can find it here... http://www.treesfullofmoney.com/?p=1456

SlickCredit I apologize. Thank you very much for pointing out the ambiguity of my story. Please allow me to clarify... All told we ended up saving about $150 per month in utility bills using the techniques quoted above, not $2000. The remaining $1850 was "squezed" out of our budget by no longer eating out 3 or 4 times per week (as others already mentioned); partying ( hey, I was young!); buying the latest gizmos, gadgets, and widgets; going on vacations; buying "fancy" clothes in the mall, etc. Prior to getting on a budget I spend more each month than I made (hence all the debt). Once I tightened things up and watched what I spent on things, I was able to "freed up" roughly $2000 per month that I could use to attack our debt with. Sorry for the confusion, and thank you for the opportunity to clarify my story!

It doesn't kill you. You're just poorer than you should be when you're done. word. especially for people who pay to access his snake oil message boards and buy his books and energy drinks. Mmm...Mmm...Dave Ramsey sells energy drinks too? HA! Anyway, we deviated from Ramsey's gospel after we paid off the first few loans and instead focused on paying off the loans with the higher interest rates. Thanks for all the comments! Wow, congratulations. 90K in 2 Years is huge. Your blog made for a good read. I still marvel at your good luck in dodging the housing bullet. I don't know the prices in Maine, but most likely if you had purchased the house all your gains in paying down your debt would have been wiped out by now. They say hard work brings it's own good luck and it looks the saying is true in your case. we dodged a bullet indeed!

It doesn't kill you. You're just poorer than you should be when you're done. word. especially for people who pay to access his snake oil message boards and buy his books and energy drinks. Mmm...Mmm...Dave Ramsey sells energy drinks too? HA! Anyway, we deviated from Ramsey's gospel after we paid off the first few loans and instead focused on paying off the loans with the higher interest rates. Thanks for all the comments!

My wife and I find ourselves in a similar situation with our DD's (ages 1 and 3). The 1 year old is too young, but for the 3 year old we have introduced the concept of doing "chores" around the house in return for a little spending money at the end of the week ( a few dollars). So far the tantrums have been less severe when she flips out because we don't buy her something she sees in a store. We ask her if she has enough money for it (of course she doesn't know) and then we count the money in her purse and tell her how many more days it will be before she can afford the toy. We also tell her that if she still wants the toy then, then she can buy it with her own money. It doesn't work everytime, but it is better than just saying "NO" and then not being to anwer the ensuing "Why,why, why" questions.

For those of you who might be interested, I've written a series of articles on my blog explaining exactly how my family and paid off over $90,000 worth of debt in less than two years using the debt snowball method! I hope some of you find it motivating (or at least entertaining)!

I just released a revised version of my debt snowball calculator. Enjoy! http://www.treesfullofmoney.com/?p=837

In my experience, the price to maintain an older vehicle will almost always be cheaper than buying a newer one. If you don’t believe me, just look at all of the vehicles on the road that are older than yours, then ask yourself this question: “If it is cheaper to drive a new car, then why aren’t all of those owners trading in their older cars too?†Answer: Because it is not cheaper! When you go to trade in your older car its not going to sit idle, someone else is going to buy it, and chances are it will be on the road for a few more years.

The article may be helpful to you. Which Loan Should You Pay Off First? Lower Interest Rate or Lower Balance

Has anyone seen changes to their credit card rewards programs since the passing of the CC Bill? I remember hearing that credit card companies can now make "subtle" changes to their rewards programs including wiping out a customers account balance for missing a single payment! I currently have USAA and I would hope they wouldn't do something this slimey, but you never know...

Absolutely, it was nice to have a "one stop shop" for all three credit scores, but you should still check them every year or so (checking your actual credit report even more frequently).