We've all had it at some point, I'm sure. What are your tricks/advice for dealing with it, say, even if it's not THAT much, but you don't want your fiance to have to deal with it once you're married?

Come on, there's a little Clark Howard (not, like, a Clark Howard mini-me) in all of us. Share your advice!

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

Answers

As for the legal ramifications of keeping it in your name only, I'm not sure. But I know it's fairly easy to get a lower interest rate -- just shop around, or tell the company you're planning to move to a card with a lower rate.

Also, you want cards that calculate the interest off an Average Daily Balance, not a 2-day cycle.

The Motley Fool usually says to choose to pay debt over keeping savings -- i.e., if you get 5% interest on a CD, and your credit card charges you 8% interest, then it makes more sense to take the CD (when you can without penalties) and use that money to pay off the debt. But at some point personal choice figures in.

I also personally use the Last Card Paid Rotation System: I have three cards, and in deciding which one to use, I usually go for the one whose bill I paid most recently.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

May I start by stating the obvious? PAY IT OFF!

Ahem, having said that, you could leave the account in your name only until you pay it off. I'm not really sure of the legalities, but it should limit his liability once your married. And any good financial advisor (never heard of Mr. Howard myself) will tell you to pay off your credit card debt first. And cut the cards up if you have a problem. Don't take a second mortgage on your house, or a consolidation loan to pay off the cards, and then rack up the cards again. I mean, what's up with that? Double the debt, double the fun?

'Kay, nuff said. I have issues.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

I am by no means a Clark Howard, but unless you pay the debt off before the wedding, I think your fiance is going to have to deal with your credit card debt whether you want him to or not. But if it's not THAT much, I wouldn't worry about it. We are not talking about relationship-breaking debt, I'm sure. So once you're married, you guys can work on it together. It'll be fun! Right? ;)

Our strategy for our five-figure credit card debt is refinancing our mortgage. Interest rates are such right now that we are knocking 5 years and $150 a month off our mortgage while paying off our credit card in its big fat nasty entirety. Recession -- it's a beautiful thing.

I would be wary of carrying too much debt and also having too MANY lines of credit on your credit report if you are thinking of buying a house in the near future, though. In this state at least, your credit score is penalized if you have too many inquiries into your credit. And of course, more debt means you are eligible for less mortgage.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

Well, yes, duh, pay it off. That's not a problem I have - I threw out the situaiton as an example.

I know a lot of people who don't really need to call the CCCS, but they're looking for ways to pay off their dept without sacrificing their savings. What have y'all dome that's worked for you?

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

Yes, and refinancing at ridiculously low interest rates is also a good way to get cheap money for renovations. Bob Brinker says paying down your mortgage is a waste when you have a low interest rate. Wheee! More money in my pocket! Off-topic. Shoot me.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

What worked for me was budgeting. Budgeting, budgeting. Figure out your expenses, cut out everything unnecessary and what's left over goes to the credit cards. It ain't easy. But I paid it off, and haven't had credit card debt in like, 8 years.

And don't charge anything. On topic. Don't shoot me.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

If they own property, for God's sake, RUN TO THE NEAREST BANK! This is an awesome time to refinance. If you and your home qualify, they will be ASKING you if you have anything else you need to pay off.

If your credit card debt is overwhelming and costing you big bucks and unpayable in the near future, and you qualify for a second mortgage, you should BY ALL MEANS take out that second mortgage. That shit is tax deductible, yo. Of course, Melissa has a point -- don't go out running up your cards immediately after you do so. This is a bail-out for a large amount of debt, not a freakin lifestyle. Chances are your home is not going to appreciate enough each year to cover all the CDs you can buy and all the sushi you can eat.

For those that do not own property: rotate the debt amongst different cards to get intro rates, and pay as much as you comfortably can each month. Sacrifice, and make a commitment to paying it off. I think adopting good spending habits is really the only way to cure the problem long-term. Cut up your damn card if you have to.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

The basic knowledge that I understand is that if you can invest in something with interest larger than the credit. Invest. If not, pay off the credit card debt.

Most credit cards have high interest. Pay them off.

The combination of my credit card debt and student loans make people who read my credit report look at me funny. Don't be a joke around the office, pay off the credit cards.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

Amen, Aidan.

And I didn't mean don't charge anything at all. I still use credit cards, but I pay them off every month. (I've learned good spending habits. Yay!) I just meant don't charge anything else until the balance is back to zero.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

C and I are lucky, in three ways:

1) C closed on the house a year ago eysterday, so we can FINALLY refinance.

2) I belong to a credit union, which makes for sweeter-than-normal interest rates when we refinance - AND they absorb most of the closing costs.

3) My father is on the board of said credit union, which makes for an even sweeter interest rate.

So, when we refinance, we'll be able to have a little extra ciz-ash to, let's say, buy dining room furniture.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

What's tricky for me is that I have a not-too-large about of debt, but I'm making smaller payments than normal because I'm saving a lot of cash for the wedding. I'm torn, though - should I use that cash to pay off my credut card debt, or shoudl I hoard it for the wedding, when I'll be writing a rather large check to my photographer?

Is it okay to save cash for an expense I know I'll have, or should I put the cash I'm hoarding for the wedding into a CD? Is it okay to hoard cash if I'm paying off my credit debt at the same time?

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

I must say here that the MOC has the right idea: it truly is possibly to wrap yourself in spreadsheet comfort.

I'm doing this whole wedding budgeting (yes, folks, it's wise to budget before you hire a caterer, but whatever), and I was starting to freak out a little bit, but then I sat down tonight and put all my finances out on a spreadsheet. As it turns out, I'll be just fine. In fact, I can save even more than I have been and still be just fine, so long as I follow the Spreadsheet's Golden Way.

Now, please excuse me while I roll around in the glory and confort that is my spreadsheet.

-- Anonymous, October 31, 2001

As far as the legal liabilities go, your fiance will not be in any way responsible for your credit card debt in less he actually signed the contract. Married or not.

If I were you I would look into putting my money into a money market or other interest bearing account. CD's are a nice idea, and the interest rate is higher, but I don't think it's what you're looking for if you are wanting to add a little money each money. With CDs you can't add anything, and if you want to take anything out before the term is over (usually 6 months or a year), you will pay huge penalties. Money market accounts are nice because they give you a higher interest rate than a savings account, but you have the flexability of a checking account.

-- Anonymous, November 01, 2001

Did any of y'all see the MTV show Vice: Compulsive Spending this weekend? While I could relate somewhat (just somewhat) I was aghast at the one girl who amassed $10,000 in debt in ONE YEAR. One year! I may have debt, but I always pay my bills and have never had a creditor call me. This one guy would get like 20 calls a day.

How does it get that bad?

-- Anonymous, April 29, 2002