Did I just do something stupid?

[wyvrn]

Getting rid of your credit card debt can be a big-time relief. It looks like you incurred 20% more debt in the transaction. If you are really concerned, then you still have time to cancel the order. If you really want to be aggressive, sell your computer, get out of debt, and save your pennies in the meantime to buy a new machine in cash. Though, you will be without a computer, you will have learned a valuable lesson. A vicious debt circle can be hard to get out of. Practice delayed gratification, you will be so relieved when that new computer comes and you do not feel any guilt!

I personally have just eliminated all of my cc debt and use a bank card with visa logo for purchases. That way, if I ain't got the money, I don't spend it. There is nothing like the feeling of owning vs renting with interest.

[skywalker[TSG]]

i know the feeling

a week ago i bought some stuff for hmmm 900$
i then sold some stuff for 1100$ so i WAS in the clear

but now it seems that the bank have lost track of my money
my account is empty !
but noone has made a withdraw from the account
so there has been no stealing


im like totaly lost now
since i dont have money to pay for what i ordered http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif

[Dave2]

The problem is I need my computer for college work. I can't be without a computer. I can still gain around $370 if I sell all the stuff for what I'm asking.

By the way I almost bought an Ultra SCSI 160 card and a HP 8x4x32 SCSI CDRW at Fry's with my credit card but I managed to restrain myself. It's hard.

[wyvrn]

Tough situation. Hate to say it, but if it is just for school work, you could get away with a slower machine. Or maybe get a part-time job and pay for it? Lots of good ways to get money. If you know a lot about computers, you can charge people to fix them. Your not stupid, we all have done it before. I was like 5000 in cc debt when I got out of college, and that is not counting student loans which I am still paying off. Cost of college for me, but it eventually paid off.

[Prospero]

I cut mine up years ago, now I only use a debit card so I don't spend money I don't have. I may have to get one just to order online stuff since it's getting dangerous to use a debit card online, you have liability for fraud you don't have with a revolving charge card. My suggestion is get rid of the credit cards, they are to easy to use!
Prospero

[Ed_S]

I'd strongly recommend canceling the order, sell the non-vital parts parts, then shop for less expensive board/cpu using as little of that money as possible. Then sell off that 700 & send THAT money as payment on the CC.


Credit can bury you for years to come. I'm in my 40's, as are most of my friends. I avoided CC's all along & still do, but my best friend didn't. The result, 20+ years later - I'm debt-free, he's still digging out.
If you once get buried in debt, it's REALLY tough to get out. Those "minimum payments" they require barely cover the interest! And once you get the balance high enough, it's tough to pay MORE than than regularly.

Get out from under as fast as you can, it's just a computer, and with credit cards you COULD still be paying for it long after it's obsolete & worthless!!!



[This message has been edited by Ed_S (edited 04-03-2000).]

[Biff]

I hear ya Dave2. I've been there and I am still paying for some computer parts that have been long gone, plus 18% or so interest. Its my experience that I need to pay cash for my pc purchases, and I do when I got mad money. Or I save surplus amount till I got enough, waiting whilst saving has the benefit of getting it at a lower price down the road. When I talk myself into needing it badly I gotta hold back till I got the cash.
It could be quite easy to be sitting with athlon 600 which will be way too slow in a year from now and say, I need a faster machine BUT!!!
Good luck with your decision Biff

[This message has been edited by Biff (edited 04-03-2000).]

[plucky duck]

I definitly know how it feels.

IN FACT, I'm feelin' it right now.
I just bought a oem P3-600e off of this place, and now I feel terrible.

I'm asking myself "why didn't anyone stop me!" 'Cause I was too deep already and thought another inch wouldn't make a difference. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/frown.gif

if you just make minimum payments on those things, and spend more than you pay back, you'll be over your head in no time.

Plucky

[barry glisson]

recently read that if you only make the minimum payment it will take 30 years to pay off a 5,000$ credit card. at 18% you pay the total amount of the principal in intrest every 4 years.[divide the intrest into 72 the answer is time to pay 100% in years] always pay cash because the takeback man is amean mutha. barry

[Dave2]

If this works out and I don't use while I pay it off I can be out of the hole in about 1 year.

[Dave2]

I want to get out of credit card debt as quickly as possible but still have a descent computer for games. I just ordered an Athlon 600 with Soyo K7AIA motherboard and a G400 Max video card from mwave.com. I'm selling my PIII 700 retail slot 1, Erazor X2 video card, 2 V2 1000 video cards, 10x Aopen DVD (I already have a 4x4x32 CDRW), and my Asus P3B-F motherboard for around %80 of the new cost. I was buying more than I can afford. I'm too far in debt from buying computer parts and I don't want to pay high interest every month.

[welsh wizard]

Best way to get out of debt is put the credit card in the microwave and nuke it, and when you have paid it off don't ask for another one to replace it,
It's the hard option but in then end it works, just think how much you will have to spend on your computer if you are not paying 20+ % interest on your card.
WW

[LED]

WW is correct...get rid of the CC and then pay off the debt before starting all over again. Then the next card only use the CC on purchases that can be paid off at the end of the month!

[jad1097]

This is how I got out of dept. http://www.daveramsey.com/ Buy his book or just listen to him on the radio, there is a link on his site so you could listen to his show on the net. Dan over a Tweakit also got out of dept the same way. Being dept free is awesome, everyone should do it.
The guy Dave Ramsey my sound nuts but his program works.
The idea is first cut up everyone of your credit cards. Second cancel all of them. third put a $500-1000 in the bank for a emergancy. Fourth start to pay of your depts. YOu do this with what he calls a snoball effect, you pay off the smallest depts first while still making min payments on the rest. As this goes on you take the amount you were paying to the smaller depts and apply it to the larger depts. This way you don't give up hope since you see some progress as you do it.

Here are some facts.
"nearly 70% of all consumers live paycheck to paycheck", from the wall street jounal
"Over 62% of americans retire on annual incomes below" $10,000, US census burea
"Consumer dept has tripled since 1980"
http://financialpeace.com/ramseyshow.cfm

[narayan]

Credit card debt is the devil's work.