by Hope
This is part 6 of where the house proceeds were spent and accounts for the bulk of the money.
This is the BIG SPEND – my credit card debt! I was pretty close to spot on when I made the plan. Although I didn’t realize that even if you pay off the debt prior to the due date, they do charge you interest the next month even if you spend no money on the credit card. And not all credit cards do that.
Total Paid in Credit Card Debt: $24,582
So yes, more than 1/2 of the house proceeds went to debt. And it feels, so, so good. And I’ve written recently about starting to close credit cards. I’ve not rushed into it. As I do want to see what happens to my credit score as I close them. Right now my credit score is sitting at 718. Closing my Amazon Credit Card only dropped my score by 1 point. I was surprised by that. I thought it would drop more dramatically especially since it was one of my older cards.
NEVER AGAIN!
I do mean it when I say I’m breaking the cycle I’ve been in for far too many years.
In fact, as I visited Beauty and her fiance at the end of June after their 4 wheeler wreck, I did determine that I am going to need to do some work on this side of me. Not sure how. But I do need to do the work.
I recognized as I enjoyed their beautiful home and country lot and then a friend’s apartment in Atlanta, that the temptation to have my own place again can and probably will hit unexpectedly. And knowing me, I would make bad financial decisions getting there. (No, I’m not saying that I am facing that temptation now. Living with my parents and helping them is my #1 priority now.)
But I do recognize that I have a really, really bad track record. And I’ve put things in place to keep me accountable especially on the savings front. But I really feel I do need to eliminate the easy access to credit card more than I had planned. And deal with my decision making issues.
More things to bring up with my counselor, who can only talk to me when I’m physically in the state of Georgia due to insurance regulations. So next appointment is in August. I’ll explain that another time.
Total house proceeds spent explained in this series through part 6: $34,325. More to come…
Hope is a resourceful and solutions-driven business manager who has spent nearly two decades helping clients streamline their operations and grow their businesses through project management, digital marketing, and tech expertise. Recently transitioning from her role as a single mom of five foster/adoptive children to an empty nester, Hope is navigating the emotional and practical challenges of redefining her life while maintaining her determination to regain financial control and eliminate debt.
Living in a cozy small town in northeast Georgia with her three dogs, Hope cherishes the serenity of the mountains over the bustle of the beach. Though her kids are now finding their footing in the world—pursuing education, careers, and independence—she remains deeply committed to supporting them in this next chapter, even as she faces the bittersweet tug of letting go.
Since joining the Blogging Away Debt community in 2015, Hope has candidly shared her journey of financial ups and downs. Now, with a renewed focus and a clear path ahead, she’s ready to tackle her finances with the same passion and perseverance that she’s brought to her life and career. Through her writing, she continues to inspire others to confront their own financial challenges and strive for a brighter future.
Back here in April, https://www.bloggingawaydebt.com/2025/04/plan-for-house-proceeds/, your credit card debt was approximately $20,600.
Today, you talk about paying off approximately $24,600. You point out that finance charges continued to accrue after your large payments, let’s say that was another $500-1000. (~30% interest rate).
That leaves another $3,000 of new, undisclosed credit card debt that occurred between the end of April and the beginning of July. Presumably, separate from the large expenses you’ve been laying out here to avoid a double count.
If you didn’t realize this $3,000 discrepancy, then you have lost control of your finances again.
But if you did realize this, then you should have openly discussed it and owned the overspend, instead of hoping readers wouldn’t pick up on the discrepancy.
I think everyone is worried that the money is about to run out. You’ve not said anything about income or cash flow, not even a statement like “My income in June was sufficient to covered my budgeted line items and I didn’t dip into savings” nor “My income in June didn’t quite cover my budgeted line items, I dipped into $XYZ of savings”.
Why would you hold on to the cards? Who cares what your credit score is. You need to have savings and retirement not to mention paying off your student loans before you think of buying a car or another home. Exactly how much money do you have left?
How did your credit card balance go up $3600? You said a few posts back it was $21,000.
I almost wish you had started with this first, before we saw the spending on other stuff!
I commend you for acknowledging you have a spending problem and wanting to work on this. Why is your amount of credit card debt thousands of dollars higher than you said it was? Knowing what you actually spent that additional cash on will help you break the cycle.
There is such a thing as a financial therapist. It won’t be free but a few sessions could be a worthwhile investment.
The paragraph where you talk about wanting housing for yourself and making financial mistakes to get there is a disturbing contrast to your defense of the graduation and 21st birthday spending. It comes across like paying for hotels for fun purposes is a higher mental priority for you than the ability to fund actual regular housing. I get that you are representing yourself as choosing to be with your parents for the caretaking support, but it’s also rings true that you would struggle to get your own apartment right now if you didn’t have this option.
So to me when I read how you’re talking about housing, I’m hearing that you are trying to recast housing yourself somehow into a “want”, some financial temptation where you could be mistaken to prioritize that. Rather than the reality that your finances are so dire you cannot afford to house yourself, and therefore it would be absurd to pay for discretionary hotel stays. Yes you have an alternative for the time being, but the future is uncertain. Really what mistake would you make getting yourself a roof over your head that would be worse than 3k in one month on parties?
Guess I’m testing the “who approves Hope’s comments and when” theory with this, heh. History would suggest you have been on some travels and/or are struggling to give any explanation of the next chunk of spent house proceeds. I agree with the suggestions lately about Debtor’s Anonymous, finance-focused therapy, or similar. I know you said there is accountability here, but it’s not enough as we see here you are free to withhold information and your participation entirely. I hope you find an accountability partner who can be there with you, can’t be ignored easily, and with whom you can have regular scheduled sessions.
Wow, I haven’t been to the blog in over a month and just caught up on all the posts about where the house proceeds went. Hope, we need to see a post on your income. So many of these expenses should have been built into your normal budget. You’re facing retirement and are woefully unprepared. These posts make me worry that if you have a few bad months you will be right back in debt.
With what little money she had left, and the ridiculous party spending, I’d be surprised if the next mishap is “I put in on a card because I have income and can pay it” followed by “oops, work fell through unexpectedly” without ever accounting for any income or the understanding the difference between spending on tires and spending a crazy amount of money on a grad party when she can’t even afford a roof over her head.
You say you use this site for accountability. I want to suggest a format to help you understand why people are worried about you. I earned $51,600 after the sale of my home and have spent $34,325 which means I have $16,000 in savings. I have $20,000 in debt which gives me a negative financial net worth at – $4000(20,000-16,000)
I understand caring and worrying about your family but I have to wonder what happens when your kids hit new milestones? What happens when they marry or have kids? Are you going to celebrate those things by rationalizing putting those celebratory milestones on the card? What happens when they inevitably need help like you once did with an illness or life challenge and you don’t have the means to help because you for some reason you thought that once they turned 18 they would have all the t tools to be self reliant all the time( despite your own experience)? Do you put that on a card? It’s time to set savings categories for those type of things in your budget and stick to a budget. At 50 years old you NOW need to juggle living while paying debt AND saving for retirement.