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As I was sifting through the custom reports on MS Money the other night, I came across a startling tidbit of information. Over the past 12 months, I have paid an average of $275/month in interest to credit cards! That’s more than half my rent every month just in interest! I don’t know about you, but I can think of many different ways that I could put that money to good use. Now, I realize this isn’t an option until I get my credit cards paid down, but it still surprised me at how much we are actually paying each month.

We relied on credit cards for quite some time back when we were younger. Then it just became habit to charge the things we wanted, just because we had high credit limits. I knew we were digging a hole for ourselves, but I convinced myself that we could pay it off without causing too much trouble. About two years ago I finally caved and put four of my credit cards on a debt consolidation plan through Care One. It was probably the best decision that I have ever made. I know it shows up on my credit report and effects my FICO score, but without it I would be in a much worse place than I am now.

I was to the point where I was barely making any progress on the cards. They were maxed out and what I was able to pay wasn’t making a dent. The debt consolidation program worked for me and got all my interest rates lowered (even lower than what I was able to negotiate with the credit card companies just months before). Over the past two and half years I have paid almost 2/3 of that debt off.

Credit cards may sound like a great idea, and if used properly they can be a decent way to build your credit score. But take it from me, more often than not they just give you the urge to spend more than you can handle. Even a person with a poor credit history or no credit history can get a secured credit card or have a co-signer for a credit card.