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Selling my condo. Will profit close to 70k. I have 30k in unsecured debt. Should I pay down half my debt? Will I save on long term interest

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How long have you had the unsecured debt? What do you have of value to show for it - pictures, property, things, vacations, lifestyle, education, etc? What is the annual interest of the debt? Does it keep you up at night? If you paid it off would you accumulate it again in short order or do you have a plan to manage your spending? How much could you earn conservatively on the $70k without risk of the principal ? 4-5% perhaps. With these answered you are prepared to outline if its better to pay off the debt.
Remember the rule of 72. Take the annual interest you earn or are paying and divide it into the number 72. This shows how long it will take for your money or your debt to double. Make a plan iwith the numbers you evaluated and decide to payoff overtime or all at once. You got this!!
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Here's a financial forum for that question: bogleheads.org
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AlvaDeer May 2024
Ah, I had thought Barb would beat you to that, Geaton, because she loves their Forums.
I find with so much financial advice it really so depends on you, yourself, your area of the country, you lifestyle. I agree bogleheads.org is the place for our OP to explore!
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You need to see a person who helps people with their Credit. There maybe a way to get down your debt without using that 100k. Some people consolidate their debt. This way they have one payment and interest rate is much lower. But, you have to pretty much stop using credit cards. Only spend what you can afford to pay monthly. I only ran a balance once in my life. Back in the 70s for a $75 coat.

Its credit cards that put us in debt. If you pay the minimum, you will never get out of debt. You must throw a lot more on that card monthly to see a dent. And stop spending. Do you realize that finance charges are taken before your payment is applied. I missed a payment by 1 day. I was charged $35 in finance charges and $35 in a late fee. I was able to get the finance charges dropped but had to pay the late fee. If I had carried a balance, that would have been $70 that would have finance charges every month tacked on. Lets say you had been a good pay and were only charged 18% a year. That one late fee would take you back up to the highest % they are allowed to charge, lets say 25%. Taking out cash advances, 29%.

Since selling your condo, sell what you don't need. Throw the money u get against your debt. Every little bit helps. Maybe you can find a p/t job, throw the money u earn against your debt. There are things on the internet u can get paid for, throw the money against your debt. To get you debt down though, you have to stop spending on what you don't need. That Starbucks coffee you buy for $5 or more, throw that $5 towards your debt. Eat in not out. Just think the money you will save in tips.
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AND just adding on to this, AA.

In Chicago, as a young LPN working my slow way to RN I worked with a respiratory therapist named Galen. Will NEVER forget him for the one discussion we had in which we spoke about our lifestyles, and why it was important for people to hook up with like-minded folk.
As a young mom I worked like a beast, struggled to educate myself further, watched every penny and made it work double time, clipped coupons, soaks and washed my own diapers (sorry, my kid's diapers) and so on and so on.
I had no bills.

Galen, he worked like a beast, loved to gamble and was deeply in debt.
And after much discussion he finally looked at me and he said "Al, you are gonna die with leaving your kids a bit of cash. And I am gonna die deeply in debt. But, yah know, we will have lived like we chose to live, and in the end, what's the difference."

I have to tell you I think about Galen. I bet he's retired somewhere and going gambling and is deeply in debt. But I suspect, now at 81, he might have been RIGHT after all.
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I remember the day when DH and I met up with our financial planner and he totaled up all our investments with him, and our IRA's and our savings, and he looked at us and said "Well, how does it feel to be millionaires?"

Not as good as I thought. Partly b/c that was the goal from 1990, and a million dollars seemed pretty sweet.

Don't get me wrong, I am very, very grateful for the money and the PEACE it brings my heart to know that we're OK and going to be OK. We didn't plan that SS would be working by 2022, and surprise, surprise, it was. But it's not our biggest source of income, now we're retired.

Really? Depending on so many factors, what would seem like a fortune to one person would be loose change to another.

We saved and saved and lived frugally. Raised 5 kids--all of them are married and very comfortably off b/c they pattern their finances after us. We've traveled some, and are looking forward to more. Our home is paid for. Our investments are secure. We don't do crazy things with the money and we sure as heck don't blow it on acquiring stuff just because we can.

On the flip side--My SIL (DH's sister) and her DH live so close to the bone..I don't know how they can sleep at night. She commented to me that they can't ever retire b/c they didn't plan for the future. They keep refinancing their home so they can afford the 'fun stuff' of life. At 67 and 70, they shouldn't still have 15 years left on a 30 year mortgage!

DH is in the slow process of liquidating his mother's estate. He's moving very slowly and his Sis is champing at the bit to get her hands on her third. He is not interested in moving this along at a faster pace, b/c WE don't need the $$ it doesn't occur to him that his SISTER really, really, does.

I'd get to a financial planner ASAP and set up a plan for the future and present. Smartest thing we ever did was go with a private planner.

If you're single and healthy and don't want a lot of 'stuff' in your life, I'm sure you can plan to live frugally and still have a great life.
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AlvaDeer May 2024
I can SOOOOO identify with your "not as good as you might think" because it is absolutely true. AND I identify with your "don't get me wrong I am GRATEFUL".

Please do copy paste your GREAT answer to this question below in discussions, Midkid. She calls it something like "ducks in a row".
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If it was me I would pay that whole puppy off.
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Talk to a financial advisor. They can better help you than a forum for caregivers.
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AlvaDeer May 2024
Right, just, like I said, be certain it isn't one who is a financial INVESTOR, because they don't always guide you to products good for you (annuities and etc) but that are good for THEM.
Also would say this is so dependent on what your plans are for the future.
70,000 is a nice little chunk of change, but if you are 68, as our OP is, it isn't going to fund your lounged about on your yacht for the remaining decades of your life.
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Welcome to the Forum, Tom. I personally don't see a whole lot of financial advice given on this Forum. Remember, we are just a bunch of folks out here from all around the world who are facing that same questions ourselves. When you need expert advice for something you truly can't make a mistake on, I would go to an expert. I advise against a financial manager if that is their job as they often steer people to vehicles that earn them a living. I would see instead a CPA and buy an hour of his time, discuss all of your assets, liabilites, information such as are you still working and do you intend still to work and save.
Meanwhile tuck that money away into a good CD which can get you as much as 5.50 interest until you make final plans. You will have expenses coming up with your move, so remember to keep assets liquid for a while and not locked up in long term CD.

I wish you best luck.
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