Tag: Interest Rates

Personal Finance

Reality Check

Penelope (Penny) Winters

I believe the first step, when we are being completely honest with ourselves, is to take a reality check. Where am I exactly? Is it as bad as I think? Is it better – or worse? I won’t know until I crunch some numbers.

Let’s take the plunge:

                                                     Balance               Interest Rate       Minimum Payment

Credit Card A                           $ 8,522.59                     19.99%                        $ 224.00

Credit Card B                           $ 1,435.15                      19.99%                        $   36.00

Credit Card C                           $ 1,968.65                        8.99%                        $   66.50

Overdraft A                              $ 2,519.81                       21.99%                       $   54.75

Overdraft B                              $    481.38                       19.99%                       $   12.51

Loan                                          $ 2,945.00                          0.00%                      $    86.60

TOTALS:                                  $17,872.58                                                          $  480.36

So, that’s the truth of the matter. Needless to say amounts will vary as deposits and purchases are made. On the plus side, I have $51.11 in savings. Now you know the nuts and bolts of my financial situation, as do I.

This income period, which occurs in two days, I will pay off the loan with the exorbitant interest rate. I am always able to meet my minimum payments and often pay more. Credit cards and overdrafts are like lines of credit. I can make a substantial payment, but before you know it I have used my available cash and I am dipping in once more to my overdraft or credit card room to keep me going. Does this sound familiar?

My objective, now that I know exactly where I stand, is to whittle away at this debt. I know how much I can comfortably use each month to draw it down. Next post I’ll explore an excellent tool for figuring out where to go next!

Until next time,

Affectionately,

Penny

 

 

 

 

Personal Finance

A New Adventure!

Penelope (Penny) Winters

This is a new adventure for me. To be travelling along, with unknown companions, on my road to…financial stability!!! I have had much training as a financial consultant. I keep an impeccable set of books. My budget and recorded spending patterns are precise. And yet…I am in debt.

I have had many thousands of dollars pass through my hands, of which I kept very little. These fortunes have been like a waterfall. The waterfall makes a beautiful impression. But it blends with the water of the river and is gone. The light and radiance are over.

My mission is to take you on my journey as we explore not only spending patterns, but also ways to minimize spending and to lower the cost of debt.

Shall I begin?  My total debt at this moment is $17,345, with interest rates ranging all the way from 41% (gasp!) to 0%. The 41% debt will be wiped out this next pay period. Why did I ever get into a situation where I felt I had to take on a 41% debt? Perhaps I was at my bottom dollar, and felt there was nowhere else to turn. Have you ever been there? The downside is, once you are in the situation, it may take a lot longer than you ever thought possible to get back out.

You may think that $17,345 is peanuts compared to what you might owe. It’s all relative to what your income is. I’m a senior who relies on Old Age Security and Canada Pension Plan to get me through. At my stage in life, it would be wonderful to not have any debt at all.

That is why I am taking you on this journey with me. We will go through the steps, understand our thinking and behaviour patterns, and come out the other side free of debt, and free of the oppression that is there. Our aim is peace of mind.

Until next time,

Penny