Am I the only one who does not think that all debt is terrible? I don't think I will ever not have a credit card bill. I would like my balances to be lower right now, but I don't see anything wrong with carrying a balance. I finance my cars. That is jut the way it is. I really do not plan on paying my mortgage off before 30 years. As long as the payments are at a managable level for your family, what is wrong with it? I know that people will say that you pay extra with all the intrest and such, but that does not really bother me, that is the price for using the service. Please tell me I am not the only one that feels this way.

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I don't think there are many financial decisions that all of us agree on. As long as we can respect other people's decisions, then I wouldn't worry about it. I think we all find what is comfortable for our families. What others do (or don't do) really shouldn't affect us, since we know what works in our own families. If it works for you, I say go for it.

There ya go. . some advice from someone in financial stress. Take it for what it's worth!

The reason I don't like to use my CC too much and pay it off each month is because I got myself into BIG trouble with CC debt a few years ago and I don't want to fall into that again - that is why it's important to me. I want to be debt free so I can stay at home with my girls and that is the only way my DH will consider it. Just my reasons - not saying it's a bad thing for all - just a bad thing for me LOL

I admit I don't pay any extra on my mortgage and I don't lose sleep over it.

My dh had cc issues when we were first married that I didnt even know about, so thats why I dont like cc debt. It was hard to get out of. I have carried a balance but nothing else will be added to it until the balance is paid in full and we have stuck to that for the most part. It works for us.

I think it depends on your tolerance and goals. Too much debt is really the issue, IMO. We use newer cars, so we will probably have at least one car payment going on - we did without any car payments and it was great! But we are realistic. It would be nice to pay our home off, but I don't see that happening, and it does help a bit tax-wise. As far as credit cards, and any loan for that matter, if you are OK with giving your money to the banks and loan companies, that is up to you. It really is an individual choice. What did those credit cards, that you have a balance on and are paying add'l monies in interest, possibly fees, buy? Was it worthwhile? Could it have been avoided? When all is said and done, is the object that was purchased worth the TOTAL cost? Those are things we look at.

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I hear ya! I feel exactly the same!! I will have a car payment the rest of my life and I am fine with that! That means that I will never have a car more than 4 years old and never worry about maintenance. I have a credit card with a low balance so I can build up my credit. You never know when you will need money. I have my independance, I have a job and my own money. I don't mind at all that I have will be paying mortage for many years. I will have a house that is all mine and building equity every day.
Alana

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We most likely will ALWAYS finance our cars someway - it's just the reality of it. We will most likely carry our mortgage for 30 yrs - again just the reality of it. The only reason that we would LIKE to be debt free is so DH can also stay home. It would be great to only have to make the money you need for everyday bills (utilities, food, etc...) - have a job because you wanted to have it, not cause you needed the money.

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I don't consider a mortgage a bad debt because of the tax advantage and the appreciating value of your home (normally).

I do think car financing is a necessary evil because cars are expensive, but necessary in our society. However, I try to have as little as possible because cars don't appreciate in value unless you have a rare, antique type car, but who has that?

Credit card debt I do consider bad because, well, you are financing at usually a high, high, high rate of interest on just things. Sometimes it is necessities, but a lot of the time it is just desires. I think that is where it depends on the family and their situation. If you have to have credit card debt, I would hope your goal would be to have it on the lowest rate card possible and to have as little as possible. It is a slippery slope for so many people. JMO

I think you are still a true mommysaver I am not all that obsessed with my debt either... but I would like to have less. My mortgage will take me another 28 years to pay off and I am okay with that as well. I think it is important to do what is right for YOU and YOUR family, and to be able to live comfortably.. with or without debt

Ditto on this. I think people just have to have mortgages and car loans for the most part, but people don't have to carry credit card debt. The few times we didn't pay our credit card bill off all the way and had any interest it almost made me physically ill because I kept thinking of what I could have done with that interest money. But it doesn't really matter what we think. If you're financially comfortable and satisfied with where your finances are, then that's really all that should matter to you.

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