Thread: Are You Good With Money?

I have always saved, and the only debt I have is the mortgage on my house (and I pay extra on the principle whenever I get any spare cash). Yes, I (and my wife) have credit cards, but they are just a convenience. We pay them off in full every month. I'm not sure why, it's just the way I am. My parents were the same way, so maybe that's it.

Originally Posted by Bruno

Yes, I am good with money. I am allergic to the idea of debt. The only thing I owe money for is my mortgage. I save money at the beginning of the month, enough to count yet I leave enough for the foreseen household budget, and then make do with what is left.

If we want something we buy it when we have saved up. This is more efficient than lending money because you'r still missing as much money as when you would have saved, but with added interest as well.

Honestly, is you can't make it to the end of the month without going into your savings on a regular basis, you should probably review your spending patterns. Financial health is all about planning and realism. Living on credit is evil.

+1. I feel fortunate that both me and my wife are good with money. Our only debt currently is our mortgage, student loans, and a new car we bought in December. The student loans have very kind interest rates and repayment terms. We'll overpay on our mortgage occasionally and we're planning to have the 4-year car loan paid off in 3 years. We have a good amount in our savings account right now, plus 401k and a bunch of private stock I received from a previous job.

I hate the idea of spending money I don't have. I did not own a credit card until '06 (I was 29) when I went on a trip to Italy and I'm glad that I waited that long -- the card is seldom used now and we pay off any balance on it immediately. I know many people who are now just recovering from spending they did with credit cards in high school and college. My younger brother filed for bankruptcy before he was 25.

Jim, I'm glad to hear that you found a great partner and are doing well financially now!

My wife and I took a 4 night finance class a numberf of years ago (maybe 10?) and it was an excellent investment unto itself. Ther are so many ways so many people will finagle you out of your money in a slow death sort of way (car loans, credit cards, etc) if you don't know exactly what the loan terms are, and how to look at how money works.

My wife is also good with The Books in our house as well!

Whoever mentioned Dave Ramsey earlier did you a great favor, he is the only one in this country talking any sense about the realities of money!

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

Whoever mentioned Dave Ramsey earlier did you a great favor, he is the only one in this country talking any sense about the realities of money!

Unfortunately I listened to Evel Knievel. He said,"If God had wanted people to save money he would have put handles on it."

Originally Posted by JimmyHAD

Unfortunately I listened to Evel Knievel. He said,"If God had wanted people to save money he would have put handles on it."

Another candidate for the Dave Ramsey course! It does take guts to admit you have a money problem and I commend those who have stepped up and fessed up! Recovery is at hand, there is hope, and yes I do recommend Ramseys Financial Peace and its teachings, he concentrates on the basic principals of money as well as our own human nature, human nature being the thing that needs modification.

Uhh.. I'm going the JimR route. Marry a frugal saver. Once that happens you guys won't see me anymore because your influence to buy stuff is too overwhelming for me.

I've always been very good with money. I know where every penny is. Also, in the past few years I've been turning most of my money into gold and silver. Gold is money. It is the ultimate money. It is the underlying foundation of all the worlds financial systems. Some would have you believe it is nothing more than a mere commodity, a bygone relic, having no modern purpose or benefit. I'll leave it at that.

I think i'm not so bad with money either.
When i left my home at 17 i had much nothing. Never got anything from my home. Maybe that was a good lesson.
Nowadays me and my wife have no loans, and i've paid off our home and cars and anything.
If i want to buy something i save for it first. I have a credit card but do not much use it except when traveling abroad.
With our basic salaries we do not earn much but we've learned to live with what we get. I've had and have a change to earn some good extra from work, but from my experiences it means being away from home for long weeks and months, in places i'm not so interested to be and doing things that sometimes aren't what i want to do.

I'm hesitant to say I'm good with money...because I have so much less than I 'd like to have saved up.

I'm 24.
No Mortgage...(but I have no house either)
2 credit cards that get paid in full. (I actually pay them off a couple times each month electronically)
Debit Card.
A vehicle loan...I'm less than a year into a 3 year note...The principle is less than I have in the various accounts and at this pace I may get it paid off around the 1 year mark.
No savings to speak of though. I have about 2 months earnings in my checking account. (Which is the least that I'm comfortable with)

Trying to start a side-job for extra income as well.
My primary vehicle (paid) has 170,000 miles, so I'm staring down that barrel as well.

Soo....am I good with it? I don't know, but I sure plan to get there someday. I have a B.S. but don't want to move away from home to use it. Been looking for a job around home for a couple months now. For the time being I'm getting by. I can recommend Dave Ramsey, Larry Burkett, and Crown Financial Ministries as great sources.

Basically....credit is just like our razors. Useful tool, but must be handled carefully and CORRECTLY because it can and WILL lay you open and bleed you out. Unfortunately those who are giving credit are usually hoping that is exactly what will happen, and design the programs accordingly. If you can get that into the way you think and handle money you're a step ahead.