This is the Broken Pieces of my financial life/future.
I started college in 2004 and signed whatever I was told to so I could get in...included tens of thousands of dollars worth of loans. My parents signed most of the same papers because they are financially illiterate so we were on this sinking ship together. Jump ahead 10 years and I had taken a long break from school, gone back and finished, gone to South Korea for a year, and eventually found myself at a job where they provide housing (dorm style) provide almost all my meals BUT I don't get paid 6 weeks a year.
Having just started the job last spring I decided the smartest move was to get a credit card with 0% intro financing to cover these 6 weeks. Now that in itself wasn't a bad idea, all my bills were paid on time and life was lovely, the problem came when I didn't stop using it after my first paycheck came in and I slowly added an extra $1,500 or so onto the credit card. OH and when I got the job I was driving a 1994 Honda Civic, the thing still runs and passes inspection but it wouldn't survive regular trips between by job and my family/friends 2 hours away: add on a car loan.
So I'm fighting my way out of Credit Cards, a car loan, and student loans. My family is completely financially illiterate, and the only one not drowning in debt is my brother who just happens to make enough to live comfortably without needing to worry about debt (but he also rarely splurges on things...but also makes like triple what I make)
I stumbled onto YNAB at the end of December 2014 (so about a month ago from when I wrote this) So far it has really changed the way I look at my money and I already feel like I've broken the credit card cycle and I'm on my way to a little more freedom.
I started college in 2004 and signed whatever I was told to so I could get in...included tens of thousands of dollars worth of loans. My parents signed most of the same papers because they are financially illiterate so we were on this sinking ship together. Jump ahead 10 years and I had taken a long break from school, gone back and finished, gone to South Korea for a year, and eventually found myself at a job where they provide housing (dorm style) provide almost all my meals BUT I don't get paid 6 weeks a year.
Having just started the job last spring I decided the smartest move was to get a credit card with 0% intro financing to cover these 6 weeks. Now that in itself wasn't a bad idea, all my bills were paid on time and life was lovely, the problem came when I didn't stop using it after my first paycheck came in and I slowly added an extra $1,500 or so onto the credit card. OH and when I got the job I was driving a 1994 Honda Civic, the thing still runs and passes inspection but it wouldn't survive regular trips between by job and my family/friends 2 hours away: add on a car loan.
So I'm fighting my way out of Credit Cards, a car loan, and student loans. My family is completely financially illiterate, and the only one not drowning in debt is my brother who just happens to make enough to live comfortably without needing to worry about debt (but he also rarely splurges on things...but also makes like triple what I make)
I stumbled onto YNAB at the end of December 2014 (so about a month ago from when I wrote this) So far it has really changed the way I look at my money and I already feel like I've broken the credit card cycle and I'm on my way to a little more freedom.
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