Just scheduled another fat payment toward our credit card debt. I remember a time, not too long ago, when I didn’t have ANY CC debt *sigh*. On my card was the honeymoon, bridal gown and a few other wedding-related purchases. Mr. Saver’s credit card was gunked up with his “incidentals” — and now I know why. His ATM card was just that — only for use at the ATM, not as a debit card.
So when he had no cash and wanted to fill up the gas tank or buy ciggies (bad, dirty habit), he’d just whip out the CC and swipe away. Then, his payments on the balances were minimal and didn’t even make a dent after taking into account the insane interest rates on the two credit card accounts he has.
He no longer does that thanks to our brandy-new debit cards. Now I just have to make sure he keeps his receipts so we can track his spending.
Now that we’re married, his debt has become my debt, and vice versa. While it’s what I consider minor, it’s still unsettling to see the statements come every month. So while it has been cutting down on the amount we’ve been able to save this month, I see it as being a worthwhile investment.
We’ve thrown $1500 toward the debt this month, in order to get our debt-to-credit ratio down even further so we can look even better to mortgage lenders. With our four major credit cards combined, we’re using 13.5% of our available credit lines, and I think that stinks. Hopefully, by the end of June, we’ll be closer to 10%, or even below it.
