Comments on: November – Living our First Dave Ramsey Cash Flow Plan

By: Fletch

Fletch — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 13:37:17 +0000

One of the best things about not using credit cards is that you have one less bill to worry about. You don’t have to take the time to pay that bill, nor do you have to worry about missing the dreaded due date and getting slammed with a late fee. I hate credit cards, they have been the worst thing in my life. Why use them?

By: Michael Weber

Michael Weber — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 21:24:14 +0000

We still use the debit cards for bigger purchases (and in some cases smaller puchases). I used the debit card for the tires. However, I found that I’m much more sloppy using a debit card as opposed to cash.

A couple dollars here and a couple dollars there and I find myself spending a lot of time trying to balance the budget with the checkbook. Cash gets rid of all that. The only downside is actually having to go to the bank to get the cash.

The good news is that when I’m using the debit card, I’m actually spending money have as opposed to using credit. It’s a win-win. Just a little sloppy.

My wife and I decided to use cash for Christmas this year. We’re putting the money in an envelope, so that we can both keep track of how much we have left.

By: John

John — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 17:12:06 +0000

@Michael – Thanks for the comment. It is very encouraging to hear about the good results you’ve had (especially the part about the budget becoming much easier after you stopped using credit cards). I think I might have to take your suggestion to stop using them completely for at least one month as a trial. I was kinda going at it from the other direction of using cash only for one or two categories to start and see how that works. But it probably would be a better exercise to drop credit cards entirely for a month and see how that goes. Do you use cash only or do you also use a debit card for bigger purchases?

By: Michael Weber

Michael Weber — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 14:01:12 +0000

Getting rid of the “credit card crutch” was a big step forward in my family’s life. As soon as we vowed not to use credit cards again and only spend money that is in our checking account, our budget became that much easier.

Honestly, it hurts when you have to spend money out of your checking account as opposed to putting it on a credit card to pay later. It also forces me to look closer at a purchase I’m making and I find myself looking for the best deal.

For example, I need tires for my car last month. In the past I would’ve just found a convenient place to get it done and pay without shopping around. However when I budged x amount for tires, in cash, I found myself shopping around for the best deal I could find. That’s because the less money I spent, the more that could go back in the budget. I ended up saving about $60 by shopping around and not going to the first 2 places I checked.

I would suggest trying to live without credit cards for one monthly budget cycle. If it doesn’t work, you can always go back to using them. But, my guess is that you’ll notice the difference right away.