Financial Thread... How many of you have zero debt?
 

Most of my friends live a lifestyle they can't afford on their salary and go into debt to support it. Maxing out credit cards, taking out leases etc etc. I was wondering how many GFyers live the same way.

So how many of you (mortgages not included) have zero debt?

I have 0 debt :)

thankfully i never got into the whole credit card thing

0 debt here for sure

I have very little, a couple of cc's thats it. Learned my lesson yrs ago:2 cents:

LOL I have 0 debt, but I have plenty of payments :P

not including mortgage?

i am almost done paying off my student loans...not a bad debt to have though i still feel

That wording is too confusing.
which one is debt and which one is no debt?

Not at zero yet, but I'm working on it. I followed the advice of a book I read, built up a small emergency fund, then started attacking debt.

If it all pans out as it should, I can have everything, including the mortgage and $20K in student load debt paid off in under 9 years.

I'm just now in the 2nd year of a 30 year mortgage, so 9 years isn't bad. :)

I have alot of banker friends and they all tell me the average balance owed on american CCs is absolutely shocking. I believe the average is $8000. Is that sick or what? That is per CC not including how many CCs people have.

only my study loan and starting in october my mortgage

LOL 8k?!?!? Thats nothing spent spent spent (through freeones.com that is)!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I dont have zero debt, but I have the ability to pay it all off in a short amount of time.

I messed up my credit so bad that I cant even get into debt if I wanted to.

thats what Im always saying

thread titles on GFY should be not more complicated than the language used by the American president

if you make it more complicated then even the elite GFY'ers have problems understanding it

LOL too much coffee this morning.
I meant 1 yes i have debt LOL

90% of Americans live off of credit and beyond their means. It's the new American way. Look around you, very few people, including teenagers, have crappy old cars, old clothes and eat home every day. True poverty doesn't exist in the US, only denial does.

We pay cash for everything, mainly because we don't have extensive credit lines and it truly sucks, because we have to pay more for everything, just because we don't have that addictive luxury.

No debt whatsoever... Fool me once shame on them, fool me twice? :321GFY

I use my CC alot but I always make sure I pay the full ammount at the end of the month (before they charge any interests).

Does your question include mortgage as debt?

Is so I guess I'm in debt but I have an asset (the house) that is worth significantly more than the debt.

In today's society you can purchase nearly anything with credit? Want to buy a car for $50k? No problem, get a loan.

For the most part I don't do credit. I own two houses, one I rent, and one I live in. I have a motorcycle that's paid for, and a truck that I just paid off a few weeks ago (two years ahead of time), and I just purchased a car and own $10k on that (which will be paid off in two or three months).

I also have an account with Kay Jewelers, but that's only because when I buy stuff for my wife I spend more than my ATM card allows me to spend in one day (which is $1k). This account is always paid off monthly.

just a small car note and student loans

I paid off my mortgage when I was 30...nice sized house on Long Island :)

I wouldn't say I have 0 debt, but it's pretty close to 0...I firmly believe in investing in myself though and if I see an opportunity that I feel is right for me, I will get a loan, because I know I'm a hard worker and know that it'll payoff for me.

i have zero debt for about 7 years now.


its awesome. i keep one credit card for emergencies. all i have each month is my internet, electricity, and rent oh and my 200 dollar cable tv bill.

:Oh crap :Oh crap

Unexpected things happen.
People get sick and fall behind in enormous medical bills that are impossible to pay and lose their homes because of it. People lose their jobs. Someone dies and now the family is left with no provider. Insurance goes up, taxes go up, day care is expensive, home prices trippled in the past 8 years in some places,
Everything is crazy expensive.

Its not because everyone is running to Neiman Marcus and blowing thousands on clothes, some people use their cc's just to get by and pay bills they need to pay.

Got no debts at all.

debt is for suckers... unless you use for investments...

I was debt free up until about 4 months ago and had to get a loan for my new house.

I still have a car loan but paid of my 6 credit cards in the last year and have no more of that :)

Getting yourself into debt because something unexpected comes up 95% of the time is only due to poor planning... most people think for example -> "why pay $XXX per month on insurance, when I can put that towards a new car instead..."

ditto. I keep a credit card with high limit which i take when i travel. That way if i ever get my wallet stolen I have the spare card in my safe place, to turn to if needed. I can always pay for whatever needs i have and can sustain myself for weeks if need be.

I was a partner in a business that fucked up before I got into this industry so I have debt from that which I am paying off slowly. I could pay it off a hell of a lot quicker but I choose not.

If I dont include that then I am pretty much debt free excluding the mortgage which Ive just reduced from a 23 year term to 11 years although I will pay it off in 5 or 6. I dont really use credit anymore and only have one credit card that has a tiny limit on it and is paid off each month.

more like $X,XXX per month for insurance for a family

I'm not sure I agree it's that much per month for a family, but either way, you can pay for it now, or later when something comes up... you can't really cheat the system... and it's probably easier to come up with $x,xxx now than later come up with $xx,xxx+ when something comes up...

For the people who brag about paying off a mortgage in record time. As long as you have a decent to good rate, a mortgage is considered good debt.
You're borrowing money, but you're getting a tax advantage and can write off the interest. Since its an asset that's appreciating over time. Much better off to use the funds you are paying off the mortgage with on other investments.

Zero debt

CC's are fully paid monthly.
No mortgage.


I'm just paying for my life insurance quarterly.

My credit card gets paid off every month, for the most part I only pay for my hosting accts with it. And I owe about 8k on my truck still. Other than that I am debt free

debt free :)

I have zero debt, but not that many assets so I'm not boasting.