Ok, we just established our emergency fund of $1000.
Well low and behold, emergency came up(imagine that!)
Our transmission went out on our truck and it is costing us $2200 to fix it.
This will drain our emergency fund and then some.
My hubby wants to dump some stock we have invested in through his company(which I think is a bad idea).
I say we put the remaining balance on credit(which I dont like either because we are paying down the credit card as well. We have a balance of $5700 on this credit card right now), and then we are vigalant about being VERY frugal to pay down this portion of the credit card and then rebuild our emergency fund.

Has anyone had a similar situation? And I will take any thoughts on ideas of how to get around either one or which way to go with the remaining balance.

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Jenifer M

Can you pay the $1K in cash and ask for 60 days same as cash on the balanace? Do they have finacning in the store like this? If you can pay that off in that time without incurring fiance charges it's somethign to consider.

As for the stock - Is it getting a better return % wise than what you are paying interest wise on the creidt card?

We had the same thing happen - we got the $1000 emergency fund and then we needed a $5300 heat pump. We put in on the credit card, but we are going to pay our balance in full using our savings and DH's line of credit that has a much lower rate than our cc.

I would only keep the stock if it is getting a better rate of return than your interest rates. If it is lower, it is costing you to keep your money in the stock instead of paying off your debt. However, it is really what is most comfortable to you. I personally get intensly stressed when I keep a balance on the credit card, so I can't do that, however it doesn't bother DH that much. Just talk through it with DH and see what kind of plan you can make.

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Mom to Kaylee (10/2006)
Waiting on our second bundle of joy to arrive January 2009!

It sounds bad, but if you can get a credit card, or financing from the place with 0 interest for so man months, maybe tha would be the way to go. We've done that a few times and always paid off the item before the last payment, just o mae sure we don't have to pay the interest, but it also hlps keep the money into the savings account for as long as possible.

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"And the state of his bathroom -- I'm not one to gossip, but there are things crusted on his sink that have not simply developed intelligent life but have in all probability by now evolved their own political systems." Cain describes Abel in in SANDMAN #70

We had a $2000 bill that we owed and had no extra money for. Yes we were able to open a credit card with 0% intro for 12 months so we had time to pay it off. Just don't make our mistake and start using the card for other things.

What would happen if you had another emergency. I would like to keep the cushion and make payments on this new debt.

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Kimberly Proud Mommy to Bethany Rose April 2006

I'm with your husband on this one. I like the way he thinks! He doesn't want to add to a cc that you're trying to pay off. I agree.

Apart of paying off the cc is to refuse to charge to it again - for ANYTHING! You won't turn your situation around unless you live like you can't borrow from anyone for anything - even if it is at 0% interest. Just don't go there.

If you don't want to dump the stock, start thinking about other options. Is there something else you can sell? Can you delay the repair on the truck until you have the money? Can you get a part-time job to save up the money faster? Can you re-arrange some of your expenses to eek-out the extra cash in a shorter amount of time? Can you tell the repair shop that you need to look for a less expensive repair?

I have a girlfriend who made an agreement with her husband that they wouldn't charge up their credit cards for any reason. If something had to be paid with a cc (like going on a trip), then they'd pay off the cc within a month. Well, stuff happened and one credit card started to have a month-to-month balance. She took a part-time job to get the card paid off sooner. That was a year ago! She is still going sleep deprived because she's trying to work late at night or early mornings so she can 'be there' for her young kids during the day. She has gotten herself into a vicious cycle. I'm honestly trying to spare you from getting to that place. Please make a decision that doesn't put you further into debt.

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"I've been rich and I've been poor but independently wealthy is where it is at."

Our credit card has 7.9% interest on it. I know our stock just went up 3.5% this morning due to a rumored merger. If the merger goes through, Johnson & Johnson will be buying out my hubby's company and they stock will go up more. I totally get the "dont go further into debt" theory and I am almost with you on it. I just hate to pull money out and I hate to go further in debt! Rock and a hard place is where I am stuck.

Are you saying keep the $1000 in savings for cushion and take the total $2200 out of stock?

Ohhh I just hate this stuff!

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Jenifer M