OT: Debt-How do you begin??

I 2nd Dave Ramsey. We are in the middle of the program. We had ZERO debt until my husband valiantly fought for his 3 bio children in a custody case (ok...a BATTLE!). If you only knew the bill!!! We were able to keep up with that AND the adoption until the case starting heating up this past Feb. I kid you not...in 5 months 48K was accrued. I was dismayed and so saddened because we truly don't believe in debt and I SOOOO wanted to stay home. BUT, I had an attitude check and realized that we fought (which was the right thing to do) and now we needed to ATTACK the debt with everything we have. No more eating out, no more a lot of stuff. If you get a single-minded focus, you will be amazed. And I agree...sell!!!!

I 3rd the Dave Ramsey suggestion. We did Financial Peace University at our church and we managed to get out of almost 10,000 dollars of debt in just a little over a year. We are now working on paying off our car and then we will have the house as our only debt. A lot of the stuff he says is common sense, only I never thought of it. Number one rule is to have an emergency fund for all those little "whoops" things that pop up all the time. That helped us get out of debt more than anything. Good luck!

Dave Ramsey all the way. Besides an emergency fund, he also teaches to use a budget. We have gone through three adoptions. We are in the "debt snowball"and are hoping to get out of debt in three years, cars and everything (but the house). Check out his web--just google Dave Ramsey. He also has a daily radio talk show. It is encouraging to hear other in the same situation. It is more encouraging to her people yell.."I"M DEBT FREE!!!!"

one.....thing....at.....a.....time. lol.....but really. start small, celebrate the little changes you can make. don't eat out. cut coupons. don't get frustrated that you can't knock it out all at once. don't give up. sell your house....ok, not really, but that did help us. :) lol.

I've found the best way to approach debt is in an objective way. Where are the debts, what is the interest rate, where do you want to be two, five, ten years from now? I set up spreadsheets and track my 'success' at reducing what I owe. Take one 'debt' at a time and wipe it out. Then take on the next one and so on. It's not necessarily fun but chipping away at debt is very satisfying. I've been budgeting for the last 10 years or so and am a fastidious user of coupons, sales etc. and no, I don't need a 37" tv, a new car etc. I hardly ever go out but that's okay - it's not about me anymore - I haven't forgotten about me but for the present and foreseeable future it is ALL about DS and I could not be happier.

We refinanced our house, paid all credit cards bills, pay for the adoption and use one credit card that its paid in full when the statement is received. Got a great refinancing rate 4 +3/8

Dave Ramsey! PLEASE get yourself a copy of his Total Money Makeover. Then listen to his radio show or watch him on the Fox Business Channel. If you're into message boards like me, read the boards at [url=http://www.llnoe.com]Living Like No One Else - There's hope in your financial life![/url]. I swear he will change your life.We are in very much the same position you're in. We just completed our third adoption, and we are in a world of debt. But our family is complete, and now we can focus on our babies and our money. This is our third month on a real budget, and I already feel so much better knowing where my money is going instead of looking at the bills in despair at the end of every month. Thanks to Dave Ramsey, we have a game plan and are working toward our goal. Yes, it'll take a long time to get to the end, but I already feel like a weight is off my shoulders. Let me know if you have any questions about his program.

We have done Dave Ramsey now for 4 years. We now have NO debt(and that does include No mortage)!! Go to his website. Several places do Financial Peace University classes. You might want to check in your area for a place near you. Usually it's the cost of materials.

We have not had adoption debt but have had our share of debt raising two children and having several major moves during the course of our marriage. We have also used the Dave Ramsey plan and even attended a class on it at a local church. The name of the plan is Financial Peace. It isnt a plan that is an instant fix but it walks you through gettting out of debt a step at a time and if you follow the plan to a T eventually it gets you to the point of only having a mortgage payment starting first by getting rid of stort term debt and then moving through to the long term debt. It is worth checking into. When our children were younger we even used the plan with them to teach them how to have savings and spending money with the allowance they were given at the time. Dave also has books on the topic and live seminars all over the country. It happened that we were able to see him where we live after attending the classes. It is something I dont regret spending our time doing.

I have to agree with all the other people that mentioned Dave Ramsey. I have been doing the "baby steps" since April and it is amazing how far the money goes when you plan and know exactly where it goes. I have my "emergency fund" and have been chipping away at the adoption debt pretty steadily now. I should have all of the debt paid off in 11 months. I had never lived on a budget before and thought I was doing OK. I wasn't. There is a lot less eating out and a lot more cooking and I feel so little stress about money now. It can be done! Good luck!

Do you guys mind if I ask: are you talking about credit debt, or home debt(still paying a mortgage and paying back from home equity line of credit)? We have no credit card debt, but still have a home debt. Thanks, Amy K, NJ

When Dave Ramsey talks debt, he means ALL debt. Credit cards, car loans (he REALLY hates these!), student loans, medical bills, and - yes - mortgages. Granted, in his system the mortgage is paid in baby step 6, which comes after paying off all consumer debt, building a fully funded emergency fund, and setting up retirement and college funds. If you don't have any consumer debt, you can still very much follow his program, because his focus isn't just about getting out of debt. It's about setting up your finances so that you're building wealth so you will never have to rely on loans of any type again. He does say that a home mortgage is the only loan he is ok with, but with the recommendation that the loan be for no more than 25% of your income and that it be a 15-year fixed rate loan.

Jecca..... very well explained!!!

Can you consolidate also? Not sure how many credit cards you have out there, but maybe a home equity loan with consolidated debt?

Thank you for your explanation Jecca. Amy K, NJ