Debt can really weigh us down. Ready to stop paying interest and start paying yourself in savings? Share your debt dilemmas, questions, and tips here.
A few years ago, I was very much in debt. I was working, but had depended too much on credit cards, which eventually got out of hand. Even though I always paid my bills on time, the debt became too large for me to handle. One day, I realized that I was never going to be able to pay my debt off with the income from my job. Out of desperation, I decided to file for bankruptcy, and I was extremely happy I did. I should have done it earlier. I had a wonderful bankruptcy attorney, although I did have to pay him a fair amount. It was a long process from start to finish, but today I am debt-free. I have a number of good credit cards again, but I only use them to build my credit. I use no more than 15% of my credit each month and I have them on auto pay so that there is never a balance carried over to the next month. There are tricks I have learned to rebuild credit and it has worked well for me. Yes, the bankruptcy takes years to come off your record, but using those credit cards wisely and having possibly a car payment each month can help you to rebuild quickly. My credit level is already back to very good. I never want to be in debt again—it’s just not a good place to be. Get help if you need it and set up a plan to stay out of debt forever.