You shouldn't be comfortable with debt. I was raised and still firmly believe that you only borrow for three things -- a house, an education, and a car. I don't even do the car thing, and I hope to have enough saved up for my son that we won't have to borrow for that.

If you can't pay for the fancy vacation, don't take it. If you don't have enough to pay for a fancy vacation, it also means you don't have enough in savings either.

OP, I don't know what to tell you except that you are right and your friends are wrong. Is that what you wanted to hear? Well it's true.
Take a fancy vacation when you can afford one.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm the same way and my parents also grossly mismanage their money. I don't think I could ever be comfortable with debt, but I would love to not have these anxieties over money. Is this more about your anxiety or more about actually wanting consumer debt?

OP here. Anxiety is more of the issue. My friends book $3,000 vacations on their cards on a whim or go spend $1000 at the mall like it's nothing and I know from conversations with them that many of them are in the $10-15k range for their CC debt. I just need the anxiety of having anything on my cards to not be there. I don't pay things early like someone mentioned, I just have it all automated so on the 11th of the month the card is automatically paid off. I do have an emergency fund and everything I need. I just wish I could do the extras without the panic setting in.

I do that, we probably have 20K in debt right now. However all of it is on no-interest cards. We keep it there until it is close to the interest free card offer expiring. We have savings, so we can pay it off with one stroke of a check. I'd rather have CC debt and significant savings if one of us were to get laid off, that is why we run the cards as long as we can on the 0%. We have done this for years and luckily we have never had to face a lay off.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm the same way and my parents also grossly mismanage their money. I don't think I could ever be comfortable with debt, but I would love to not have these anxieties over money. Is this more about your anxiety or more about actually wanting consumer debt?

OP here. Anxiety is more of the issue. My friends book $3,000 vacations on their cards on a whim or go spend $1000 at the mall like it's nothing and I know from conversations with them that many of them are in the $10-15k range for their CC debt. I just need the anxiety of having anything on my cards to not be there. I don't pay things early like someone mentioned, I just have it all automated so on the 11th of the month the card is automatically paid off. I do have an emergency fund and everything I need. I just wish I could do the extras without the panic setting in.

Those extras are a slippery slope. Don't get comfortable with debt.

This would be a problem if you insist on paying cash for a house, but it's not a problem for vacations, or even a car.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:From the CC thread it appear some of you have no problem with some debt following you. I grew up with a father who severely mismanaged money, making me obsessive about it. I'm very careful to pay off balances, don't take out loans, etc because I don't want to be like him. I even paid off my student loan before it came due for this reason. I use my credit card for everything for the rewards, but it is paid off completely each month. I'd love to just book a vacation on a card and worry about paying it off later. How it is now, I can't even handle something small like $100 hovering on the card.

How can I get comfortable with a modest amount of debt following me around?

Unless you are talking about a mortgage loan, I don't know why you would want to get comfortable with debt. You are right to be uncomfortable with it.

+1

Using a credit card to finance a vacation is a horrible idea. You are doing the right thing.

Credit Card debt is terrible for three reasons:

1. It is very high interest.
2. The low monthly minimum allows it to balloon out of control. it lacks the discipline of a monthly car or mortgage payment.
3. Once you start using it, you will soon find that you are financing non-necessities. Like vacations or clothes.

I owe about $7K on my credit cards and certainly don't lose any sleep over it. we make about $350K or so, so I know I will pay if off with bonus or tax refund or something.

Anonymous wrote:OP, I'm the same way and my parents also grossly mismanage their money. I don't think I could ever be comfortable with debt, but I would love to not have these anxieties over money. Is this more about your anxiety or more about actually wanting consumer debt?

OP here. Anxiety is more of the issue. My friends book $3,000 vacations on their cards on a whim or go spend $1000 at the mall like it's nothing and I know from conversations with them that many of them are in the $10-15k range for their CC debt. I just need the anxiety of having anything on my cards to not be there. I don't pay things early like someone mentioned, I just have it all automated so on the 11th of the month the card is automatically paid off. I do have an emergency fund and everything I need. I just wish I could do the extras without the panic setting in.

OP, I'm the same way and my parents also grossly mismanage their money. I don't think I could ever be comfortable with debt, but I would love to not have these anxieties over money. Is this more about your anxiety or more about actually wanting consumer debt?

Don't try to get comfortable with a bad habit! Instead, develop the good habits of saving up in advance for what you want to buy. Then, when you book your vacation, you know you can pay it off right away.

Anonymous wrote:From the CC thread it appear some of you have no problem with some debt following you. I grew up with a father who severely mismanaged money, making me obsessive about it. I'm very careful to pay off balances, don't take out loans, etc because I don't want to be like him. I even paid off my student loan before it came due for this reason. I use my credit card for everything for the rewards, but it is paid off completely each month. I'd love to just book a vacation on a card and worry about paying it off later. How it is now, I can't even handle something small like $100 hovering on the card.

How can I get comfortable with a modest amount of debt following me around?

Unless you are talking about a mortgage loan, I don't know why you would want to get comfortable with debt. You are right to be uncomfortable with it.

Why should you get comfortable with it? Sounds like you're doing well for yourself. I WISH I was like you, but I grew up the opposite way- my mom never paid a bill on time in her life. She racked up every single credit card she ever got. I knew not to answer the phones during the day because it was usually bill collectors. Into adulthood, I found it hard to pay bills. Not because I didn't have the money but... I don't know, almost a FEAR of paying the bills. Which sounds weird, I know, but I don't entirely get it either. It's almost as if I'm afraid as soon as I pay bills, I'm going to desperately need the money and won't have it in my account. Who knows why I'm like that, but I'm pretty much the opposite of you- bills freak me out to the point where I wait until the absolute last day to pay them. (I.E. if the power bill is due on the 22nd, I do NOT pay a day before the 22nd.)

I don't think you want to be comfortable with any amount of credit card debt. The exception is if you need to take out debt to pay for an investment (education, home, etc) or an emergency (medical bills, etc). Otherwise, it's not worth the interest rate.

I don't think paying off debt on time is something you have to practice forgetting about. Rather, it's do you have any money set aside for paying it off? do you have an emergency fund?

It's ok to use credit cards, in general, as long as you are paying them in full each month, or else you are managing your money incorrectly. If you are worried about paying them even before the bill comes, then what is driving that? That I would say is irrational.

From the CC thread it appear some of you have no problem with some debt following you. I grew up with a father who severely mismanaged money, making me obsessive about it. I'm very careful to pay off balances, don't take out loans, etc because I don't want to be like him. I even paid off my student loan before it came due for this reason. I use my credit card for everything for the rewards, but it is paid off completely each month. I'd love to just book a vacation on a card and worry about paying it off later. How it is now, I can't even handle something small like $100 hovering on the card.

How can I get comfortable with a modest amount of debt following me around?