April was another good month for us. There were several reasons for this. The way our paychecks fell, Hubs working extra hours, and very few additional bills that came due. You know how it goes, you take those months and run with them! Now for the numbers:
1-1-2017 $55,749.69
1-1-2018 $46,408.39
April 1-2018 April 15-2018 April 30-2018 Interest Rate
cc #1 $2,100 Paid in full! Woohoo! ditto Was 0 %
cc #2 $7,000 $7,000 $6,895 0% (exp 6/19)
car $7,031.40 $6,740.98 $6,740.98 1.99% (fixed)
cc #3 $9,747.57 $9,599.24 $9,599.24 5.99% (fixed)
cc #4 $11,950 $11,950 $11,200 0% (exp 11/18)
Total $37,828.97 $35,290.22 $34,435.22
To spare you the math, we paid off $3,393.75 in April! This brings our 2018 debt pay off to $11,973.17 with an overall total (since starting the journey) of $21,314.47.
Going forward, what our debt and rearranged snowball looks like:
May 1-2018 Interest Rate
Discover $11,200 0% (exp 11/18)
car $6,740.98 1.99% (fixed)
Citi $6,895 0% (exp 6/19)
Visa $9,599.24 5.99% (fixed)
Total $34,435.22
With the rearranging I tend to do with the snowball, I figured it might be easier if I identified our debts a little differently. Once Discover (aka The Beast) is paid off, the order may change again. I want to keep paying off the debts with expiring interest rates as high priorities.
My goal for May is to get Discover below 10K. The other three debts only get the minimum-rounded up to the next $5. We may have a weird month ahead as I likely will need to take a trip to handle some issues with my father. Hubs also took some much needed time off which tends to throw our already irregular income off. In spite of the potential challenges, I still like to set a goal. As the saying goes, if you aim for nothing, you will hit it every time!
How did you do in April? Did you accomplish your goals and have you set any new ones for May? Keep fighting the good fight. We can do this, A Dime at a Time!
Look at your numbers dropping! That’s wonderful.:-)
Because you challenged us at the beginning of April to tackle something big, we aimed for an extra 1000 dollars toward student loan debt, and made it, yay!
For May we’ll have a major purchase, a lawnmower for our 1.5 acre lot. (It’s a bigger lot because we live sorta in the country.) So our goal is to STAY WITHIN the lawnmower budget!
It sure feels good to dump all this debt! I am thrilled you succeeded in paying off an extra $1000. That is huge! A mower is a major purchase. Setting a budget was smart and I’m sure you will do well with staying within it!
Way to go! You are doing so good with paying down your debt.
OneFamily recently posted…Bad blood
Thank you! I cannot wait until it is ALL gone!
You are doing FANTASTIC!!! We actually did pretty well and stayed on track without accruing any new debt but that IRS bill is going DOWN!!! It is amazing how motivated you get when you “talk” to other people in the same situation that aren’t judging you at every turn! May we ALL have a fabulous May paying off big chunks of debt!!!!
Talking (even via blogs!) really does help. I’ve long felt there were many others out there also battling debt in their 50s+. Just because we started later, doesn’t mean we won’t finish. We CAN do this! I’m cheering you on as you pay off your IRS debt. What a relief that will be!
You are doing so well. I am constantly rearranging my debts. I went with the largest payment. Now it will be the smallest balances.
Thanks, Kim! There are times it does make sense to rearrange the sequence. Important thing is that in doing so, we keep the focus, which I believe we all have. You are getting so close to being finished. I’m excited for you!
Keep rockin’ this plan and you will be there in no time!
Thanks, Patti!
Now just look at you!!! IMPRESSIVE!!! Just keep at it! We will get there!
Thank you! It is so exciting to see this debt go down. I have no doubt that all of us traveling this journey will get there! I cannot wait!
You are making such awesome progress with this! Hoping that you surpass your May goal as well. April was a bit rough at our house so not as much saved as we would have liked. You asked about new goals: I have always wanted to go to Europe and a tour came across my path for April 2020, so that is a new saving goal added. This would be a first for my husband and I, an exciting possibility.
Hoping that your visit with your Father goes well and all that needs to be done falls easily into place for you.
Thank you for your encouraging words! Sorry about the rough month you had. What an exciting goal. A trip to Europe will be unforgettable! As for my father, things are heating up. Thankfully he is financially solvent but there are some huge obstacles that need to be taken care of.
Here’s wishing you wisdom as you navigate life ahead with your father. Taking care/dealing with elderly parents takes lots of patience.
And well done on taking down $3.3K+ worth of debt in April! That’s a crazy good amount. lolz
I don’t you didn’t ask me but….lolz….I’d bump that car payment to the bottom of your list. I know having a paid off car is a big motivator to some people but in the face of two 0% interest loans and a 5.99% fixed loan the 1.99% car would not be high on my priorities. 😉
But again…..well done on the debt bomb you exploded last month! 😉
sluggy recently posted…2018 Income & Spending Report…..April Edition
Thank you, Sluggy. I wish there were a manual for how to deal with aging parents. Lol Yes, April was a very good month for us, at least for paying off debt!
The car may likely get bumped down to the bottom. I don’t feel we need the “win” of paying off debt as we are as motivated as ever to get this done. If it weren’t for the expiring interest rates, I’d be far more focused on the Visa with its 5.99%.
Lucy, thanks! And thanks for sharing your great posts every week!
Thank you!
April was a slow for us in the debt repayment category. Because we’re still digging through medical bills from my son’s recent surgery, we’ve decided to put any “extra” money into savings for now. That means we’re paying paying just a little over the minimum on debt. Once we’ve settled on a payment plan for the medical bills (I’m hoping to depend entirely on my HSA for this) and built the emergency fund to $3000, we’ll go back to more intensive repayment.
The 76K Project recently posted…Doing More Of What I Love
Sorry about the rough month you had and hope your son is doing better. On the bright side, even with only paying the minimums, the debt is still going down. That is a good thing!