Stop 401k to pay debt?

[Jluke]

random thoughts:

1. Wife stops 401k contributions, husband increases to say 8-10%.

2. Live off of the higher salary, if possible/within reason; and use the other salary to pay EXTRA towards the debt. PLEASE list each loan, interest rate and required monthly payment (esp the student loans individually).

3. Keep the cars, don't beat yourself up over that. Although cars aren't an investment you are currently in that stage of life where you have two really high car payments. You made that choice; yes you can still try to sell one of them - and it may require sacrifice in another part of your budget (gym membership? dining out/entertainment?).

In the future, try to time your future car loans so that you don't have two at the same time.

4. determine your payoff plan for each loan. when a loan is paid off, that monthly payment is now used to pay extra towards the next loan on your list.

5. Post your budget and you'll get help like you never imagined.

[Starry436]

random thoughts:

1. Wife stops 401k contributions, husband increases to say 8-10%.

2. Live off of the higher salary, if possible/within reason; and use the other salary to pay EXTRA towards the debt. PLEASE list each loan, interest rate and required monthly payment (esp the student loans individually).

3. Keep the cars, don't beat yourself up over that. Although cars aren't an investment you are currently in that stage of life where you have two really high car payments. You made that choice; yes you can still try to sell one of them - and it may require sacrifice in another part of your budget (gym membership? dining out/entertainment?).

In the future, try to time your future car loans so that you don't have two at the same time.

4. determine your payoff plan for each loan. when a loan is paid off, that monthly payment is now used to pay extra towards the next loan on your list.

5. Post your budget and you'll get help like you never imagined.

Budget:

Income: net
Myself $2,600
Husband $2,200 (varies with OT but this is lowest)

Vehicle one $380 Bal. 16,780 1.9%
Vehicle two $360 Bal. 18,100 4%
Rent: $400 (living with relative)
Student loans: $130
(approx. have to check rates but others are ~ 4%)
1) ~6,800
2) ~2,200 6.8%
3) ~1,560
4) ~3,500
Car Ins. $117
Cell: $130
Storage $95
Total: $1,612
Saving's: $1,730
Gas, food, pets for month: ~$1,458
Husband's commute is longer in truck, gas runs him about $50-$60 a week. Mine usually $35 every 1.5-2 weeks. The rest is pet supplies and our food, misc. household items.

Since moving we've been socking most into savings because we can't stay here forever. It's temporary, we probably have another 3 months here as relative needs space back to put it simple and growing up with a mom who had no money I feel high anxiety not saving anything but we need a better plan. What we're doing is not working. Rent with the pets will run us around $1,200-$1,500 once we have to make the move again. The area is very expensive due to being a college area but is small, housing is limited.

[Jluke]

The gas, food and pet supplies is more than all of your other bills.

I think that area may need to be itemized better. Gas is around $240+$70. Do you eat out a lot? Do you pack lunch for work? Coffee habit? Buy water/soda etc at a convenience store instead of the grocery store?

Debt:
I think you need to get more aggressive here. I understand your focus on the savings part is conflicting with the desire to get rid of debt.

Have you considered paying off the $1560 student loan? Just be sure the student loan provider actually applies it to payoff that loan. They can be shady.

As far as the cars I would round up the 4% loan to $400 per month.

Though I guess when you start renting on your own you will have about $600 left but will have the other expenses that come with having your own place.

[Petunia 100]

Two thoughts:

1. Your gas, good, pets category is huge. Do you meal plan? Make meals around what is on sale? Pack lunches?

2. When it is time to move, can you find a place close to husband's job? If that is possible, it will help with his vehicle expense.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

How do you breakdown gas, food, and pets? I think they need to be separate so you can figure out where to trim.

[Starry436]

That is the area we need to get a hold on. Before we were saving what you see above, we were spending and hardly saving. We realized we were spending too much and didn't know what on so we cut back but it's like the money still disappears. Husband and I have two separate accounts. It's been this way since forever and we use a joint one to pay bills and the remainder is in our separate checking accounts from our paychecks.

He's usually left $450 per two weeks and I am left 250-300 per two weeks. Out of this comes our gas, food, pet and home supplies and husband has a $40 gym membership that he did not discuss with me, he just took it up as a means for something to do while we're crammed in with the relative. Yes we're staying with a relative but we take turns buying toiletries, laundry, etc all of which seems to be a minimum $50 Walmart run anymore. The dog food and treats run about $50-$60 per month. Food is high quality brand and is needed for the dogs stomach issues. We have two other animals as well and they have to eat different food. I don't usually pack lunch so I'm spending $5-$7 a day on lunch during the week. I'd say same for husband. On the weekends it seems we spend the bulk of money on food. Living with relatives, they expect to eat the dinner we cook so we're buying for more people now. So it's not even that we're eating out, it's just the frequency and quantity that we eat living where we are now.

I also have been rounding up to $400 a month on the 1.9% car loan out of my paycheck allowance. Typically when I get paid I leave myself with $280 and that's to buy gas, pet stuff, food, etc. Husband left with $450 for the similar. He is very bad at buying stuff at convenience stores vs grocery stores and I feel the bulk of his money goes to that, gym membership, dinners.

[LivingAlmostLarge]

cut the eating out lunches and put that towards the cars.