Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Car A update #01
The lender for Car A acknowledged receipt of $558.15 towards the principal. Remaining principal is now $2,721.74. My goal to pay off this loan is 13 May 2012. However, my wife's hours are being cut back, so the final payoff date may be closer to mid-June.
Friday, February 24, 2012
A credit union (or more) for everyone
As stated in an earlier post, my wife and I set a goal to be debt free by June 2017. To achieve this goal, we reviewed our finances to look for areas eligible for cost reductions. One area was bank fees because our checking and savings accounts were beset by niggling charges. Although individually, a one- or two-dollar fee is minor, a swarm of them can put a sizeable dent in one's wallet. Therefore, we made a business decision to look for and join a credit union.
The field of membership for the one credit union in our small Arkansan town was limited to certain employer groups and communities, most of which were located out-of-state. Thus began my search.
As an employee of the local school district, I learned during a search on the Internet that I was eligible to join Arkansas Employees Federal Credit Union (AEFCU). Just for fun, I searched out other credit unions for which I might be eligible.
The dearth of credit unions in my area yielded a very short list: AEFCU and Arkansas Federal Credit Union (AFCU). However, a cursory review of AFCU's field of membership didn't look hopeful until I noticed that members of Arkansas Bicycle Club were eligible. That's great! But this finding led to another question: What other credit unions include small non-profit organizations such as Arkansas Bicycle Club in their respective fields of membership? See Table 1 for the answer.
Table 1 is not an exhaustive list. If you find a credit union whose field of membership includes similar organizations, please contact me and I'll update the list.
Fees to join any given association range from no cost (ATO, Patriots Federal Credit Union) to $40.00 (The Rye Arts Center, USAlliance Federal Credit Union). See Table 2 below for details.
Disclaimer I am a member of the following credit unions:
The field of membership for the one credit union in our small Arkansan town was limited to certain employer groups and communities, most of which were located out-of-state. Thus began my search.
As an employee of the local school district, I learned during a search on the Internet that I was eligible to join Arkansas Employees Federal Credit Union (AEFCU). Just for fun, I searched out other credit unions for which I might be eligible.
The dearth of credit unions in my area yielded a very short list: AEFCU and Arkansas Federal Credit Union (AFCU). However, a cursory review of AFCU's field of membership didn't look hopeful until I noticed that members of Arkansas Bicycle Club were eligible. That's great! But this finding led to another question: What other credit unions include small non-profit organizations such as Arkansas Bicycle Club in their respective fields of membership? See Table 1 for the answer.
Table 1 is not an exhaustive list. If you find a credit union whose field of membership includes similar organizations, please contact me and I'll update the list.
Fees to join any given association range from no cost (ATO, Patriots Federal Credit Union) to $40.00 (The Rye Arts Center, USAlliance Federal Credit Union). See Table 2 below for details.
| Name | Cost |
|---|---|
| Arkansas Bicycle Club | $15.00 annually |
| Automotive Trade Organization | $25.00 (paid by credit union) |
| Cheyenne Cycling Club | $15.00 annually |
| Consumers United Association | $5.00 annually |
| Council of Community Services | $25.00 annually |
| CUSavers | $10.00 |
| Euclid Boosters | $5.00 annually |
| Financial Fitness Association | $5.00 |
| Friends of the Zoo | $10.00 (individual) annually |
| Peninsula Humane Society | Any amount annually |
| Rye Arts Center | $40.00 annually |
| The Sierra Club | $15.00annually |
- Do your own research. What works for me may not work for you.
- Read all the disclosures! Some credit unions post their disclosures; others do not.
- Read the fee schedule. The variability of fees among credit unions is pretty substantial.
Disclaimer I am a member of the following credit unions:
Friday, February 17, 2012
Repayment update #00, Car A
The table below shows my inaugural acceleration of repayments for Car A. "Begin" refers to the beginning balance, "Pmt" is payment, "Prin" is amount of the payment applied to principal, and "End" is ending balance.
At the current accelerated rate, I should have the debt paid off in full by 14 May 2012, which would be about 16 months earlier than scheduled.
| Date | Begin | Pmt | Prin | End |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 Feb 12 | $3,896 | $250 | $250 | $3,646 |
| 15 Feb 12 | 3,646 | 102 | 102 | 3,544 |
| 15 Feb 12 | 3,544 | 194 | 178 | 3,366 |
At the current accelerated rate, I should have the debt paid off in full by 14 May 2012, which would be about 16 months earlier than scheduled.
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
My repayment plan
Some time in 2011, my wife and I formulated a plan to hopefully pay off our outstanding debts. The table below displays my debt load as of 14 Feb 12.
Currently about 52% of my net income is used to repay loans. That's way too much!
We are now in a position to begin accelerated payments on principal. After almost 12 years as a stay-at-home mom, my wife has re-entered the public workplace. Her income will be used to pay down principal, one lender at a time.
Our first target is the lesser of the two car loans. As we pay off a loan, we plan to roll the previous monthly payment into the next loan. The next table shows our repayment priority.
If all goes well, we should be 100% debt-free by June 2017. My plan is to submit a post after each payment on principal.
Comments and encouragement are welcome.
| Loan | Balance | Interest | Scheduled payoff | Current payment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Car A | $3,661 | 4.69% | 15 Oct 13 | $194 |
| Car B | 10,417 | 3.14 | 9 Jan 2016 | 236 |
| Student loan A | 25,631 | 2.88 | 14 Jun 25 | 200 |
| Student loan B | 6,217 | 5.00 | 25 Dec 16 | 135 |
| 1st mortgage | 91,018 | 6.25 | 1 Jul 34 | 774 |
| 2nd mortgage | 18,203 | 8.38 | 29 Apr 17 | 316 |
| Credit card | 7,622 | 6.00 | 15 Feb 15 | 306 |
Currently about 52% of my net income is used to repay loans. That's way too much!
We are now in a position to begin accelerated payments on principal. After almost 12 years as a stay-at-home mom, my wife has re-entered the public workplace. Her income will be used to pay down principal, one lender at a time.
Our first target is the lesser of the two car loans. As we pay off a loan, we plan to roll the previous monthly payment into the next loan. The next table shows our repayment priority.
| Priority | Loan |
|---|---|
| 1 | Car A |
| 2 | Student loan B |
| 3 | Credit card |
| 4 | Car B |
| 5 | 2nd mortgage |
| 6 | Student loan A |
| 7 | 1st mortgage |
If all goes well, we should be 100% debt-free by June 2017. My plan is to submit a post after each payment on principal.
Comments and encouragement are welcome.
How did I get here?
Well, here I am, 51 years old with almost $163,000 in accumulated debt. How did I get here?
I accumulated this debt almost single-handedly. My wife did not force me to acquire the debt; in fact, my domineering personality was instrumental in our current financial position. Less than 10% of our debt is directly attributable to her; the rest is attributable to me.
The bulk of our debts is associated with a mortgage ($91,000), my student loan ($25,600), and a home equity loan ($18,200). Like many other homeowners, we owe more on our house than it is worth. The balance of the debt is a hodge-podge of credit cards, auto loans, etc.
My wife and I cannot pay all our debts off at once. It took several years to get to this point, and it will take several years to extract ourselves from the mess I created. Fortunately, we have a plan to pay off our debts, which I will cover later.
I accumulated this debt almost single-handedly. My wife did not force me to acquire the debt; in fact, my domineering personality was instrumental in our current financial position. Less than 10% of our debt is directly attributable to her; the rest is attributable to me.
The bulk of our debts is associated with a mortgage ($91,000), my student loan ($25,600), and a home equity loan ($18,200). Like many other homeowners, we owe more on our house than it is worth. The balance of the debt is a hodge-podge of credit cards, auto loans, etc.
My wife and I cannot pay all our debts off at once. It took several years to get to this point, and it will take several years to extract ourselves from the mess I created. Fortunately, we have a plan to pay off our debts, which I will cover later.
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