If the goal is debt reduction, paying off debts in order of the smallest amount due to the largest amount due—gaining momentum as each balance is paid off—can make sense for some people. Once the smallest debt is paid in full, apply the amount that was being paid on that to the next largest debt, …
I love it when smart college professors do research that helps to break incorrect assumptions. And that’s what Alexander Brown and Joanna Lacey did in their paper “Small Victories: Creating Intrinsic Motivation in Task Completion and Debt Repayment.” Since 1994 I’ve been going on-and-on about the prevailing logic of the debt snowball or payment reduction …
“Dear Steve, I am 58, my husband 61. We presently have about $20000.00 in credit card debt. We are never late and have excellent credit so using a credit counseling agency is not a option. We are no longer using our credit card and are paying cash. That has been hard but we know what …
“Dear Steve, We owe 172,000.00 on our house and live in CA. We are in our late 4o’s with a net worth of 200,000.00 not including my pension. We both have another 20 or so years to retire. My husband is self employed as a painter therefore we have to put away extra retirement for …
In 2006 ,I went to work for a guy that wound up being a con artistTo make a long story short at the beginning of 2007,Ilooked up and found myself with $230 K in debt and no income.everything in 2007 went wrong and it wasnt until 2008 that I began reestablishing an income. I have …
“Dear Steve, We started our own business about 6 years ago. We had just finished building a new house and the business was one that takes a few years to build up. Not enough income coming in, lots of new expenses for the business led us to the perfect storm of debt. Now our business …
Teresa “Dear Steve, I have too many credit cards. Where do I start to get rid of them? Teresa” Dear Teresa, Credit cards don’t magically appear in our wallets or purses. They appear because we have done something or participated in some process to agree to these credit instruments. The first step to get rid …
“Dear Steve, My husband and I thankfully are still employed. We make about 175K combined per year. We have 52K in credit card debt, and our home has no equity (took out equity to pay off debt about 5 years back…big mistake.) I used to get large bonuses (and we would pay down debt) however …
Ben “Dear Steve, I am about to turn 30 years old and my financial picture is basically in the dumps. I have a B.S. in accounting and for the moment a good job that pays me less than 95% of the rest of the world makes (less than $30k/yr and not a single benefit). I …
“Dear Steve, About a 1 1/2 years ago I had been laid off of work and I spent much time without work and had no income coming for a good 6 months so most of my accounts went from delinquent to being discharged and I had many collection agencies calling me I started paying off …