Are my Resolutions Realistic for 2008

As the new year comes upon us, it is time once again to consider one's New Years Resolutions, and to look back at the past year's. As a personal finance blogger, perhaps I should take a better look at my financial situation for 2008. Will I really be able to reach my goals or am I being overly optimistic?
Our first stop is to see how I did with the resolutions that I made last year.

Officially pay-off and eliminate the credit card.
Since I still had charges being charged to this card for part of 2007, I didn't make this goal. I did make significant inroads on this debt in the last 6 months, having eliminated 3/4 of the debt. I expect this debt to be gone no later then Feb. 29, 2008.

Eliminate the remaining Home Improvement Loan. - While I didn't finish getting this debt paid off, I did make significant inroads to reducing the debt. It may be optimistic, but I am hopeful that I can get the last $950 paid off by the end of July, so that I can focus on the my bigger debts. Of course to do that I will have to figure out whee I am going to come up with the additional $100 over my current minimum payments.

The Chevy. - When I did my resolutions at this time last year, I wanted to figure out how to get out from being upside down in this loan. I was hopping to either get a significant amount of this debt paid, or to sell the car and get a cheaper car to drive around in. At this point, I still have the car, and the Credit Union is withdrawing $100/week from my account to keep this loan current.

Education. - While I looked at taking some classes in finances, none of the schools I looked at worked out. They wanted me to go into debt and said they had no grant money whatsoever to help finance my further education. Since, I refuse to go into deeper debt, I am continuing to look.

Love. - Last year my resolve was to be in a better place financially, so that I could once again date and find my soul mate. While, I did go on one date this past year, it did not develop into anything more after that one date. Besides, I am not financially able to date at this time anyway.


So now that we have looked at last year, my goals for 2008 are:

Get everything except the car paid off - I feel more confident then I did this time last year that I will be able to get all of my debts, excluding the auto loan, paid off by the end of this year. I will finally see an end to several of these bills that I have spent nearly the last 2-years working on. (You can see my position by looking at the chart below).

Home Improvement - Once my home improvement loan is paid off (by March 31), I would like to get insulation installed in the walls of my house, finally get central air-conditioning and repair parking in the back. I want to do this without taking on additional debt, which means I will have to save up first. I am not sure I will actually be able to do this in 2008, but I certainly would like to see it happen.

Love - Waiting for God's timing is what I keep telling myself, but that is hard to do sometimes, especially when one desires a helpmate. It is my hope that I will be able get more financial stable in 2008, so that I can feel comfortable dating again.

Account	Outstanding Balance	Monthly Minimum Payment	Payments This Month
Providian Credit Card	$395	$25	$200
Amerifirst Mortgage	$990	$75	$35
FingerHut	$1,000	$50	$10
Car Loan	$10,745	$400	$405
IRS	$3,796	$0	$0

Would love to hear your thoughts.

"Strange things happen when you're in debt. Two weeks ago my car broke down and my phone got disconnected. I was one electric bill away from being Amish."
- Comedian Tom Ryan

Sir! What Debt? Sir!

Have you seen that commercial for the tide stain stick? In case you have missed it. Here is the jest of the commercial. A group of soldiers fall into line, for an inspection. As the Sargent goes down the line, he notices a ketchup stain on one of the soldiers shirts. As the Sargent begins to holler about the stain, the soldier is secretly handed a tide stain stick. He then quickly treats the stain. The commercial ends with the Sargent walking back to the soldier and asking what he has to say for himself. The young private responds, "Sir! What stain? Sir!" The Sargent shocked, looks down, and not seeing the stain anymore asks, "OH, what did they send me? A Houdini?"

So what does this have to do with personal finance? Wouldn't it be nice, if there was a product on the market, that made getting rid of debt as easy as the stain stick gets rid of a stain?

There is a reason it isn't that easy. Actually several reasons. One is the lenders don't want it to be that easy. As the Bible says, "The borrower is SLAVE to the lender." The other and more important reason, is if it was that easy to just eliminate our debt, we would not learn good money management skills.

That is what we must learn, and it is not an easy lesson to learn. As I have mentioned often in this blog, I struggle with this. The principle is so basic and so simple, yet so hard for our society to grasp. I may not be rich yet, but I understand this basic principle to become rich, I need to spend less then I make.

Obviously, to do this, one of the things I MUST do is stop borrowing and stop paying interest. You cannot borrow your way out of debt. No! As Dave Ramsey's grandma is so famous for saying, "There is only one place to go, when you're broke. To work!" So if you're looking for a simple way to get out of debt. It is simple, in theory, but it isn't going to be quick. It is going to be a lot of hard work!


And that's my view, what do you think?

2007: Resolutions, Plans & A look Ahead

I don't usually make resolutions, in fact the last time I did, I was a teenager in high school, some 20+ years ago. Well this year, as the year comes to a close. I would not be the Prince of thrift if I did not at least take a look at what I plan to do in 2007 about the nasty debt that I have spent the last 9 months actively fighting.
So without further ado, here are my 2007 resolutions (aka goals)

Officially pay-off and eliminate the credit card. While the credit card has been cut up, auto payments continue to hit it and my balance continues to fluctuate between $800 and $1000.

Eliminate the remaining Home Improvement Loan. I still owe approximately $1400. I have been paying this down and in 2007 I will escalate my payments and get this debt paid off.

The Chevy. - In January of 2006 I took out a loan for a car that I should not have bought. Yep it was a stupid tax. I reasoned that I needed a new car because my old truck had been totaled twice by hit and run drivers and was dangerous to drive. While the reasoning may have been true, I did not need a 2004 nor did I need to spend $14,000 for a $11,000 car. I could have bought a $3,000 car to get around as I saved for a nicer car. In 2007 I resolve to find a way to either get out from the upside down loan or to find a way to escalate my payments and get the loan paid off quickly.

Education - I want to look more in depth to seeking CPA or other financial certification.

Love - I want to get to a position financially so that I can again consider meeting a special girl and dating.