Friday, April 24, 2009

Where the Rubber Meets the Road

Well, today we got our tax return as a pending transaction in the bank.  Just over $7,300!!  The First-Time Homebuyer’s Credit that we took flipped our finances this year – instead of owing about $700, we got a LOT back.

But here’s where the rubber meets the road.  I’ve now got a few things on my Discover card that I wanted to push out a little to pay off.  About $2,000 worth – not a huge deal, but the house has cost a little more than I anticipated, and we’ve been getting some things for the baby that has helped that balance increase.

So, I can either pay for all the baby and house stuff, then get completely out of credit card debt with the remainder, and still have enough left over to really get set in several categories (like our emergency fund), or I can pay off the truck, freeing up $204/month.

Lately, I have been of the mindset to throw everything at the truck, free up the money every month, and then work on the other expenses as I can.  But now that the money is in the bank, I’m not so sure.

Stuck in the same position, what would you do?

3 comments:

  1. Why not split things up? Pay off the credit cards with the $2000, put $400 into your small EF to bring that up to $1000, and $2450 towards each vehicle (or $4900 towards one).

    If you were to put it all on the truck, it will still take you a while to pay off the credit cards with the extra $200 it frees up, BUT I'm sure you're already mentally prepared for the term of the loan. By decreasing that just a little bit, you'll have the mental boost of paying off the CC's!!

    I know I always get a rush when I pay something off!

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  2. I think I'd still get rid of the truck payment to free up the $200 a month. Put towards the cards or split up and you still end up with all of your current bills - just for a shorter duration. Pay off the truck and you've got extra cash in your pocket to put towards other debt, stick in the bank, or that you may need when the kiddo arrives.

    Course, here's me telling you that after Mrs Snarf and I decided last night to dip into savings (that we had deemed untouchable for a while) to go ahead and pay off the credit cards this week instead of waiting to finish paying them off this summer.

    Now my usual disclaimer...you gotta pray about it, talk to Mrs Goliath Debt, and then do what y'all think is right for y'all. Remember, you have to live with whatever you do with the money. I don't. :-)

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  3. I'd pay off the truck, it'll drive like it's debt free. The cash you free up can snowball into the other expenses. I think you'll be able to take out the CC pretty easily without the truck payment.

    I'm glad you figured out the house cost more than expected. We all tried to tell you... :)

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