Among the many reasons Hawaii would be a pleasant place to live, people there are pretty content with their financial situations. Living on the Hawaiian islands is by no means cheap — it costs a lot to import all the essentials — but in spite of that, Hawaiian residents feel the best about their ability to manage their finances to ... Read More »

Money, Credit and Debt Advice – Get Out of Debt Guy Question: My Student Loans Leave Me Hopeless Dear Steve, I can’t believe how much student loan debt I have. It feels like I can barely get by each month and there is no way for me to ever get out from under these loans. I have both federal and ... Read More »

By Jan Bruce The APA’s 2015 Stress in America survey was released this month, and I’m curious if you recognize yourself in their findings. First, if you’re female, you’re probably significantly stressed. If you have money worries, you’re likely very stressed. If you’re a woman who has money worries, boy do you have it bad. The fact is, there’s no ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I really need your advice, I just came from your website and just reading about debt makes me sick to my stomach. I am in debt with credit cards about 15,000. I had great credit before hand hence why I could get the cards at a young age ( at 20/21) but now I got returned payments and ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I had my first child in 1990 and have been an at home mother ever since. I left my good paying job to raise my now 4 children and would do it all over again. I have accumulated over $170,000 in credit card debt and need to find a way to pay this off quicker to get some ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I have 6 credit cards. One of which I am over the limit by about $500 because I didn’t read the fine print and ended up with a $900 interest fee. Between all six cards I am currently in over $20k in debt. I make $46k a year and still going to school which I use student loans ... Read More »

I spend so much time thinking and living in the world of debt that I’ve realized it is equally important to talk about life after debt. When you are in debt it is an intense and immediate feeling. Some say they feel as if they are drowning. Some say they feel like they are covered by a dark cold veil. ... Read More »

Chapter 2 – What Your Money is Trying to Tell You The truth about money is that money is a thing. The leaves left in your gutters could have more value and worth if we all agreed they do. Money is just paper, metal or virtual credit in a computer. The truth about money is that if you think you ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, — 30 Years old, unmarried, live with partner. — Sold car last year to pay off debts, but ended up having to use the extra cash for emergency expenses. — About $22,000 in unsecured credit card debt. Have been working on it about 10 years, but it has only grown. — Approximately $43,000 in student loans (Federal, not ... Read More »

Debt Guru, I have close to $25,000 of unsecured debt that is causing me a great deal of worry. When my husband was working fulltime and making a good living the payments weren’t a problem. As he is now disabled and suffering from leukemia, I am not sure what to do. My income is half of what it was and ... Read More »

I was out of work for almost a year and I also had an online smoking accessory company. Mostly lighters, ashtrays and cigar/cigarette cases but that went out of business this summer. My credit card debt went pretty high because of the trying to maintain the smal business and living day to day while I was looking for work. I’m ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I am a single person who has no help. Not only do I not have financial help in my life….but I go through the worry and stress alone trying to figure out how to pay all my debt. Its hard and emotionally draining by yourself. I have always wanted to do the right thing and pay my debts ... Read More »

“Dear Lewis, Have spoke with a local reliable debt relief service. They sent me papers on all my credit, debt/income ratio. Even though it’s grim, they did not say bankruptcy, but left it up to me. My credit score is 750, but my income does not outway the credit card debt, $24,000. Many medical bills & drug co-pays even with ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I have a lot of debt, well I think it’s a lot anyways. I think it’s somewhere along the lines of 15K in unsecured debt. I am not late on anything and haven’t been in a very long time. I have a bankruptcy that was disharged 12/2002. The amount of debt is kind of freaking me out and ... Read More »

Conclusion – Listen to Your Heart When you realize that you are experiencing pain and grief, and this pain and grief is coming from financial problems, your first thought might be to look for a magic solution with a dream ending. The most common dreams I hear people mention are loans, lottery and bankruptcy. They are all short-term fixes, not ... Read More »