If you have been following my blog, you know that I was trying to purchase an additional investment property. I found a property, put in an offer and had the home inspection completed only to find out that there are huge problems with the homeowners association. I did not want to buy someone else's problems so I rescinded my offer. I was really bummed last night and today so to make myself feel better, I PAID OFF ALL MY CREDIT CARD DEBT. That's right guys. I finally pulled the trigger and paid off the debt. It was all at a low interest rate but I was still paying interest that I could be saving and investing.


One card had a balance of $3,150.00 and the other had a balance of $7,566.48 for a total payoff of $10,716.48.

Here is how paying off this debt will affect my future finances:
  • Cash on hand - $31,498.28. Still alot of cash but as I have posted before, I have a mental need to have alot of cash on hand because I am scared of a major financial emergency.

  • Extra cash - I will have roughly $400 left in my budget that I'm not paying out to the credit card company. I plan to add an additional $100/month to my freedom account, $100/month to my rental property acct , $100/month in additional principal on my mortgage loan and $100/month additional payment to my car loan.

  • Non-Mortgage Debt - As of December 31, 2006, my non-mortgage debt decreased from $66178.97 to 47,816.38 for a change of 27.75%.

  • Credit Scores - My credit scores currently are 707 TU, 706 Experian, 694 Equifax. I think my scores should rise at least 10-15 points. I will keep you guys updated.

I am headed over to NCN Network right now to update my debt totals. If you haven't visited the NCN Network, it is a site started by No Credit Needed to help everyone track their debt reduction progress. If you need inspiration to pay off your debt, be sure to visit and read everyone's progress.

18 comments

  1. Anonymous // November 13, 2007 at 4:13 PM  

    Congratulations.

  2. Chitown // November 13, 2007 at 5:16 PM  

    Yeah!!! Congratulations!!!

  3. SingleGuyMoney // November 13, 2007 at 5:41 PM  

    Thanks Guys!

  4. Anonymous // November 13, 2007 at 6:02 PM  

    Hey! That's awesome!!! Great job... and I'll work super hard to have your chart up and linked to in the next few hours!
    You rock!
    NCN

  5. Anonymous // November 13, 2007 at 7:04 PM  

    Congratulations! :)

    It's a bummer you lost out on the rental property, but it seems like it was a great decision not to go through with it! Now your extra cash flow should help give you more options in the future.

  6. SingleGuyMoney // November 13, 2007 at 8:53 PM  

    *ncn - Thanks so much for the inspiration. I listen to your podcasts on my way to work.

    *patrick - I agree, having extra money opens up extra options.

  7. Anonymous // November 14, 2007 at 2:09 AM  

    Congratulations! What a fantastic way to cheer yourself up after the investment property not working out. You'll be in a much better position when the right one comes along now. :-)

  8. Anonymous // November 14, 2007 at 12:15 PM  

    congratulations! that's a HUGE deal!

  9. Anonymous // November 15, 2007 at 8:25 AM  

    That's a heck on an accomplishment. Congratulations.

    But now you've got me curious on the HOA. What were the problems?

  10. SingleGuyMoney // November 15, 2007 at 8:18 PM  

    *Mike - Please see the "Investment Property:Deal or No Deal" post for all the details on the HOA problems.

  11. Anonymous // November 15, 2007 at 10:55 PM  

    Ooops! How'd I miss that one?

  12. Anonymous // November 17, 2007 at 2:29 PM  

    Bronx Chica...Congrats!!

  13. Dimples // November 19, 2007 at 10:00 PM  

    I am soo late. Congrats!!! I am so proud of you.

    Question: You wanna be my sugar daddy?? :-P

    JK

    LMAO

  14. Catherine Saliman // November 20, 2007 at 2:36 AM  

    Congratulations

  15. SingleGuyMoney // November 20, 2007 at 7:24 AM  

    *Dimples - Sure, I'll be your sugar daddy...just let me pay off the car first! LOL

  16. Free From Broke // November 20, 2007 at 2:03 PM  

    Congrats paying off your credit card debt. Bet it feels great! There was a huge burden lifted off of me when I was finally able to pay mine off.

  17. SingleGuyMoney // November 20, 2007 at 6:48 PM  

    *free from broke - It feels great...and yeah, it is like a huge burden has been lifted.

  18. Anonymous // November 22, 2007 at 10:36 AM  

    Yes! I love these stories :)