Average Credit Card Debt College

I have a son who I have put through a private Catholic High School (not cheap!) and he is on to college in 2007. I bought a modest house last year. I receive no child support. I carry a balance on my credit card (low interest rate) and I pay as much as I can every month. I am never late and have an excellent credit rating.

I'm wondering if the balance I carry is high/average compared to rest of US? Of course, I'd love to pay it off, but with the mortgage, tuition, expenses, etc. I cannot.

All things in their proper order.

I am older than you by a good many years I expect. I divorced my husband when my daughters were just 11 and 14 years old, and never received a dime in support from him.

I worked full time at a job I absolutely hated while my daughters were in high school, and then college.

10 years ago my parents needed me to live with them in their home to supervise their daily care. My father's mind was going and my Mom couldn't handle him alone.

I had been saving to put myself through University up to that point. My plan was to do the five years of university to obtain my degree. Then to purchase a house afterwards.

Taking care of my parents shelved those plans. And after five years when my mother died, I had to quit my job as well, because my Dad needed full time care.

I was left my parents house after my Dad died last year, but it sounds better than it is. The place actually needs about 50,000 dollars spent on it (minimum) to bring it up to date.

I have a house. And I have no credit card debt. But I have no job either, and no prospects of one now, since I am getting too old to be considered employable in my former profession.

I guess the point I am trying to make is to keep slogging along. And be thankful for each bit of security you can wrest for yourself. Debt is a b1tch, but it beats having nothing. Just be sure that you get well ahead on paying off your mortgage and other debts before you add anything more to it now.

A personal thought...there seems to be a lot more Superwomen out there in the world then Supermen. You don't see too many of them succeeding with this sort of daily pressure hanging over them. Women just seem to have a greater degree of responsibility and staying power.

2006-12-13 10:47:33 by Marcjc

Sanyika Calloway Boyce's appearance on "In the Loop with iVillage"

Just curious what the 'real' average credit card debt load really is...my wife and I just took out a low interest personal loan to pay off our combined credit card debt of $4500 that we have lingering from college, we haven't made any purchases on the stupid things for over a year...where do you stand?

You did a smart thing. Revolving (credit card) debt is FICO scored as % balance to credit line - and anything over 50% is scored badly.

A installment loan will usually not change the score much one way or another.

My debt - I use the card for business travel, and it's usually paid to zero every month. The card is just for convenience and a bit of float.

2007-07-12 19:43:13 by Matt D

Price: $22.95

I'm 25 yrs old, college graduate, I make approx. $45K gross income between 2 jobs(full-time job and part-time waitressing gig). I always pay my bills on time and I try to keep my Fico score up, but I'm self-conscious of some credit card debt I have.

I owe a total of about $7,000 between two Visa cards(I also have store cards, but they're paid off). It was originally $10,000 a few months ago. The one card has a balance of $3300 and a $11,000 limit. The other card has a balance of $3800 and a $4300 limit. I pay bigger payments on the 1st card because the interest rate is literally 4X higher than the other one. I pay $1300/mo towards these debts & I want to be debt free by next summer.

This debt was racked up during a long period that I was drastically unemployed and not making enough money to cover costs of living(I'm not allowed to live at home). I've never been late w/ the payments though.

Do I owe more debt than the average person? :( Am I in "financial distress"?

I would say you are paying alot towards your debt and that if you keep up the pace you may actually be able to pay off by next summer. I do have some advice though since you have been paying these without any problems for so long you may want to talk to the card company and ask them to lower your interest rate. Also if the other card has a lower rate why not use it to pay off the first one.. Also there are cards out there that give you 0% financing for the first year if you transfer the debt. You may want to look into them if you are planning on paying off the debt anyway. This would give you extra time with no interest and the amount you are paying would increase tyhe chances of being debt free. yes it is a lot of debt but many americans are alot more in debt than you are.. Good luck.


Here are a couple of links that will give you more information.

http://www.creditcards.com/low-interest. php?a_aid=1004&a_cid=1002&a_did= 31600&CMP=KNC-GooglePaid

http://www.creditcardguide.com/balance-t ransfer.html?gclid=CJnfuZHhhI8CFQ8bgQodE DkBvw

2007-10-10 09:22:44 by Phoenix

Hi All. I'm a recent college grad who is fairly new to the workforce and is ready to get rid of her credit card debt!! I was fortunate enought not to borrow much in student loans (a total of about $9,000), however by grad time I owed about 9 thousand in credit card debt. Now I am ready to get rid of this burden. I know that this sounds horrible, but my situation was very different than that of the average student. I am a mother and was raising my daughter the whole time during college. Instead of working full time I focused on my studies and only worked part time. Needless to say this made everything harder but in the end it was worth it. Also, I'm not looking for an overnight solution. It took me six years to accumulate this debt so I know it wont disappera overnight. I'm just looking for the best way to go about it. Please help!

The amount of people throughout the United States who find themselves in debt continues to rise. For you, raising a child while being a college student made your financial a difficult one. For most, however, debt is the result of extraneous spending, poor money management, or both.

Below is a list of ten tips to getting out of debt. Some are easier to follow than others, but all are designed to help alleviate the problem - so take comfort in the fact that you can solve your debt, though it will be a tough process...

Ten peices of advice from allbusiness.com:
1. Create a realistic monthly budget for your expenses. List all monthly bills and necessities and make sure they are covered by your monthly income. Allow only the money remaining after the bills are paid to be spent elsewhere. Stay within your budget guidelines.
2. Pay off the balance on the credit card with the highest interest rate first (unless the balance on any card exceed 50 percent of your credit limit). First, pay all balances to below 50 percent of the card limit because balances above this level cause your credit score to diminish. Then pay off the balance on the credit card with the highest interest rate. If the account was opened within the past year and you have additional older accounts, close it after it is paid off. Next month do the same with the card that has the next highest interest rates. Continue until you reach the credit card with the most favorable terms (i.e., low interest rates). Use this as your preferred account. You need only four open accounts to establish a positive credit history.
3. Learn to use cash instead of credit cards. Have one primary credit card and use it only for emergencies or major necessities, such as a new refrigerator if the current one stops working. Put your credit card in a safe place, not available for everyday use. Also, do not accept increases on your credit card limit above an amount you can easily pay off in three months.
4. Use direct deposit for your paychecks. Also have a limit on how much you will allow yourself to withdraw each week and month.
5. Cut down on your discretionary expenses. This includes dining out, overusing your cell phone, and other such unnecessary expenses.
6. Evaluate your living situation. Your housing costs should be no more than 33 percent of your household income, including mortgage payments, property tax, and both property and homeowner's insurance. You can shop around for lower insurance rates, refinance your home mortgage, and look for more economical utility plans.
7. Avoid borrowing money to get out of debt, especially consolidation loans. Many people think this is a way of helping them get out of debt. However, consolidation loans are simply a means of combining debt. You could end up losing everything because you’ve tied it all up in one loan. If you must borrow, see if a friend or family member can lend you money, since the interest rates should be low or nonexistent.
8. Contact your creditors and try to work out repayment plans. Many creditors are willing to work with you in a manner that will help them get their money without having to resort to debt collectors.
9. Become a savvy shopper. Look for deals, bargains, and savings. You’d be surprised at how much you can save if you take the time to shop around. Check out the price comparison Web sites such as Shopping.com and BizRate.com.
10. Look for extra ways to make some money. From part-time work to a garage sale to taking in a boarder, there are many ways to bring in some additional income.

If all else fails, seek out help from a debt reduction specialist or counselors [see link below] who can help you formulate a plan for getting out of debt and staying out. Just make sure that you check out the service in advance. Many companies are simply taking advantage of people in debt and charging them high service charges.

For MSN Money's take on credit card debt, follow this link-
http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/Bank ing/creditcardsmarts/P74808.asp

For more advice, these are also helpful allbusiness.com links-
Should I Borrow Money to Get out of Debt: http://www.allbusiness.com/3915481-1.htm l
To Get Matched with a Relief Specialist:
http://www.allbusiness.com/3776688-1.htm l

Good luck in climbing out of debt. Try to modify your personal finance outlook in doing so, and you should be well on your way.

2007-06-05 10:19:01 by true blue

I'm 25 yrs old, college graduate, I make approx. $45K gross income between 2 jobs(full-time job and part-time waitressing gig). I always pay my bills on time and I try to keep my Fico score up, but I'm self-conscious of some credit card debt I have.

I owe a total of about $7,000 between two Visa cards(I also have store cards, but they're paid off). It was originally $10,000 a few months ago. The one card has a balance of $3300 and a $11,000 limit. The other card has a balance of $3800 and a $4300 limit. I pay bigger payments on the 1st card because the interest rate is literally 4X higher than the other one. I've been paying $1300/mo towards these debts & I want to be debt free by next summer.

This debt was racked up during a long period that I was drastically unemployed and not making enough money to cover costs of living(I'm not allowed to live at home). I've never been late w/ the payments though.

Do I owe more debt than the average person? :( Am I in "financial distress"?
I already stated that I haven't been late w/ payments and I'm paying my cards off with $1200 CASH per month, which is waaaay more than the required minimum payments...not using 1 card to pay off the other. I haven't been late yet. You didn't really answer my question, whether it's a lot of debt or not, but the fact that you suggested "bankruptcy" when I'm consciously able to pay more than the minimum, kinda hurts my feelings and shows that you really think I have a lot of debt.

I mostly asked this question to see what the average person's perception of being "saddled with debt" means, and if I fit that :( I hate having credit card debt and I'm trying to pay my way out of it as soon as possible.
jcontrol, the 0% APR thing is a good idea. However, the reason I do not have 0% APR on my 2 cards is because I already had that promotional period when I first got the cards. In fact, my 2nd Visa card(the one I owe more money on) only has a 5% APR, because I asked them what they would be willing to do to keep my business...but the 5% APR is ending in December, and then it's going back up to 13%...but that's still a lot less than my other card's APR.
Oh and the reason I don't want to take out any new cards or loans is because I don't want the hard inquiry and it being a new account to pull down my credit score. I'm trying to avoid applying for new credit until I apply for a mortgage, which I'm probably not ready for until 2yrs from now(or do you think I could handle one now?).
Thanks for all the feedback, everyone! :)

Just for the record, yes I do have a student loan. But it is small compared to most student loans...it is less than $10K and I pay $100 per month(payments would be smaller, but I went ahead and reduced the term of the loan from 20yrs to 10yrs to pay it off quicker). It's probably one of the smallest bills I have.

You have an average amount of credit card debt. It looks as if you have a good plan to pay it off. Keep it up, you can do it!!

2007-10-10 09:23:45 by Phoenix