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

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]DH and I earn decent money (not a huge amount by DC standards, but comfortable) $285k HHI.  But we are so drowning in debt, we don't know how or where to begin to dig out. $200k in student loans. $50k in credit card debt (a lot from grad school and also while I was on maternity LWOP). We basically live check to check because of mortgage payments, student loan payments, credit card payments, and daycare expenses for two kids. We have very little savings, despite trying to participate in our respective 401(k) and federal tsp.

How do we start to tackle this? Do we see a credit or debt counselor? I have no idea how to find someone legitimate who isn't out to rip us off or destroy our credit even further. We need a game plan, as we are in our mid-to-late 30s, and cannot sustain this. We take one vacation per year, not luxurious, but nevessary for two fulltime working parents of three kids. We do have our kids in a lot of activities. We do drive two newish cars we had to get for space when the kids came along (three car seats).

Can anyone recommend a legitimate accountant or debt advisor/credit counselor, who could meet with us and help us sort this out and come up with a plan? [/quote]

Oh dear, OP, there are so many mean and petty responders here.  Just ignore them.  Remember the rule of karma.

I can relate.  We've got 3 kids and are mired in debt as well.  I posted here just about a year ago with similar circumstances, and many people responded very helpfully.  Granted, I outlined my budget and that was very informative, which led, in turn, to some very insightful and helpful recommendations.  Last year, at this time, we were about $210K in debt. Mortgage (primary and secondary), two cars, credit card debt, and student loans.  The first step was creating a detailed budget - daily expenses, regular bills, debt, investments, etc.  And tracking it like a hawk.  The second step was ridding ourselves of unnecessary expenses - no more cleaning lady, no more cable/phone, no more piano lessons, no more dance lessons, no more tae kwon do lessons.  That alone freed up around $600 a month. The third step was stopping our TSP investments, painful as it's been (but a great motivator to get ourselves out of debt); that freed up a good $1000 a month (again, painful, knowing the long-term investment losses).

Dave Ramsey has been a godsend for us. I listen to him every day. He keeps me motivated and on track.

We paid off our credit card bills first - around $7500. We are due to pay off our second mortgage in March - around $60,000. We are slated to pay off one car and one loan later this year. And then the other car, a family debt, and the second loan next year. The student loan will be paid off in early 2018.  We will be debt-free at that point.

You live in a rowhouse and are paying $3400 a month.  That is very high.
You have two car payments.   Again, very high.
You pay for people to walk your dogs. Necessary? We have two dogs, they are crate-trained.
Restaurant/eat-out? We cut that out of our budget as well. Our grocery budget is about $400 a month.  Not easy with three kids.  But we became frugal and creative with our food.

Develop a budget, and stick to it.  Create goals, and stick to them.  Your kids are young enough that they won't remember these tight times coming ahead, but they'll appreciate the sacrifices you made on their behalf.

Good luck![/quote]

You are losing quite a bit by not making that TSP contribution. Plenty of people do that and carry mortgages and student loans. [/quote]

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