Credit Card Debt: Finally Below $5K
Wow. Today my credit card debt is under $5,000.
I’ve been racking up credit card debt since college, when I needed to study abroad in order to graduate with a degree in German, over 11 years ago. Student loans paid for all of the basic expenses, but I didn’t have a dime to my name to pay for weekend travel, food outside of my host family’s house, or souvenirs.
A few years later, I had debt totaling $40,000+, from student loans, a brand new car purchase and the day-to-day reliance on credit for splurges. Not all of my credit card debt was frivolous, though. I paid for some of my younger sister’s college tuition, I bought furniture and art, and there was a short period of time that I relied on credit cards while getting my consulting work off the ground. I wish I could have paid cash for those things, but I’ve made peace with those debts over the years.