Reply to Earning Well but Drowning in Debt...how to dig out?

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[quote=Anonymous]I am glad to see this thread has mostly moved out of OP bashing mode.

That said, I personally would be panic stricken if I were in OP's place.  Moving does not seem practical, and it is unclear if selling a car is worth it.

So what we are left with as the first step as many have said is paying of a big chunk of the credit card debt with the emergency fund.  As I recall they are paying into their TSPs--if they are contributing in excess of employer max match (can't recall) they could cut back on the excess for a while (not too long--that is their retirement) and put that towards the rest of the CC debt. I personally would scrap all summer camps and any summer day care and use a combination of parental leave and a college student.

OP has said she feels obliged to give her DS music lessons once a week.  I am with her on that.  But apart from that, she needs to cut way back and find places to economize.  She should go through her house and see what she could sell on Craig's List.  I am betting she could come up with at least $1000 to put towards that CC debt and it will make her house feel more spacious.

She needs to see if she can get a better deal on car and home insurance.  She should look into her cell plan to see if there is a better deal.  Or scrap it altogether since she and DH can possibly use their work Blackberries.  There is some clever alternative to cable I've seen here that she should look into (I didn't understand it, but the posters swore by it).  Same with internet providers--all this media stuff adds up fast.

Apart from these things, all the basics of frugal living:  no eating out or take out--lunches get taken to work and school, no clothing except for kids--try Goodwill, no purchases for just about anything else except food and gas (oh, right--the darned child birthday gifts--find a cheap source), no vacations except driving to family, no dry cleaners unless you really can't wash on delicate or wool cycle, etc.

All of these things add up and I am guessing that OP by being very mindful about what she spends could reduce monthly expenditures by $1000 to $2000 to finish off the CC debt and start in on the student debt.[/quote]

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