Babies on the Brain
mkd923
member
Paying off debt before getting pregnant
mkd923
member
My husband and I are trying to pay off our $15,000.00 in credit card debt before we have children. But we're both getting very antsy. My husband is 27 and has type 1 diabetes so he's worried about infertility as he ages, but we realize it will take a while to pay off this debt. Is it worth it? How much do new babies REALLY cost. So many people have said, "you're never financially ready" but we want to at least feel like we have a grasp on the actual costs. ANY advice will be great. Thanks!
This discussion has been closed.
Re: Paying off debt before getting pregnant
DH and I didn't stop preventing pregnancy until we were down to 1 car payment plus our mortgage. We had no credit card debt or student loans.
Having a baby can relatively inexpensive or astronomical depending on your insurance and health. What happens if you have a high risk pregnancy and aren't able to work? If your also needs a NICU stay and subsequent doctor appts? These are all things to take into consideration.
As for there never being a right time, I agree. But I firmly believe there are better times and worse times. This seems like a worse time. Take a hard look at your finances and see how you can knock that debt down fast. Make a plan and stick to it for several months before you worry about TTC. As far as baby costs insurance is the #1 thing you need to look into. Also I think it was baby center that had a calculator for baby costs.
H and I are putting off TTC for financial reasons. We know it will be worth it in the end to not have the added debt hanging over our heads.
Good luck!
Love: March 2010 Marriage: July 2013 Debt Free: October 2014 TTC: April 2015
Oscar born November 20, 2016 at 35w6d
On a side note, everyone is different of course, but DH is Type I and we were able to get pregnant without any trouble. DH was 35 when DD was born, 37 when DS was born and will be 40 when #3 comes.
Credit card debt is a different animal completely. It affects your credit differently than term debt and is just generally more expensive.
Most people couldn't afford to pay off all their debt before having a baby. I'm currently trying to pay down my 14k left in student loans before baby so I understand being antsy.
Just set realistic goals for yourselves and stick to them. Any little bit you put towards your debt is an investment in you and your baby's future! Good luck!
That being said, I understand when people say "you're never really ready". I need a new car, we are in the process of buying a new house, and I'm planning to start an EdD program in the next few years. My student loans won't be paid off for another decade, at least. We'd be 50 if we waited to TTC after paying those things off.
Pick the things that you can tackle in a reasonable amount of time, and learn to manage the rest, working your baby expenses in now, rather than after baby comes. Check out Dave Ramsey, we are using his method, and it has helped many people we know.
Best of luck!
But she also states that her student loans aren't going to be paid off for a decade. WOAH. I do not think Dave Ramsey would condone that.
OP... I know Dave Ramsey says not to wait on kids to have debt, but I do think that you need to have a definite plan and an understanding of why you have all that credit card debt in the first place. Are you living beyond your means and therefore charging things on the credit card? Have you changed your lifestyle and made the decision not to go into any more debt ever? I second doing Financial Peace University with your DH if you can and have not already.
I think that if you have that attitude I would be less likely to wait until the whole amount is paid off, especially since you have the other health issues working against you (which may or may not be as urgent as you think, I obviously don't know the intricacies of the health issues).
If you have a good grasp on your current budget (a working, realistic budget that includes savings/debt repayment), working in baby expenses may be easier than you think.
O, I totally get that and for most that makes perfect sense to most people. Except then she brought up the fact that she is following Dave Ramsey... which means she either has a really ridiculous amount of student loan debt or is not actually following his plan. Probably would have had nothing to say about the situation had she not brought him up
Also - a thought. Over the years of paying off your H's students loans at a low interest rate... how much money would you have if you instead were able to put that <$175 in a mutual fund that instead of costing you money is earning you money. Hmmmm, that would be some fun math. That is one of the biggest reasons why debt repayment is so alluring. When your money isn't going to someone else it is instead working for you
edited to add missing words
O, I totally get that and for most that makes perfect sense to most people. Except then she brought up the fact that she is following Dave Ramsey... which means she either has a really ridiculous amount of student loan debt or is not actually following his plan. Probably would have had nothing to say about the situation had she not brought him up
Also - a thought. Over the years of paying off your H's students loans at a low interest rate... how much money would you have if you instead were able to put that <$175 in a mutual fund that instead of costing you money is earning you money. Hmmmm, that would be some fun math. That is one of the biggest reasons why debt repayment is so alluring. When your money isn't going to someone else it is instead working for you
edited to add missing words
ETA: --------mobile quote fail------It is a ridiculous amount of student loan debt. I was on my own from the age of 17, so even living expenses were loaned out while I worked toward my undergrad. Not ideal, but it is what it is. We are loosely following some of Dave Ramsey's principles; my dad introduced them to us and it seems smart: pay off small debt first, get rid of high interest cards, don't accumulate more debt, etc. As for the wedding...we are paying cash, and I plan to only do it once, so we're going all out.
I was simply advising to get out of the CC debt and pay off things that are within reach, but in my own experience, we have chosen to pay off some of the larger things (student loan debt, car loan) while we are growing our little family, rather than wait to start our family.
A lot of people are suggesting a Dave Ramsey course. Dave Ramsey is a great public speaker, but he is ultimately a salesman. You can accomplish a lot of what he tells you to do by spending conservatively and sticking to an actual budget. My boss told a joke about Ramsey at our Christmas party. Essentially, the jist of it is that every accountant and financier wishes they had been the one to sell people common sense and make millions (and millions and millions and millions) off it.
That said, if you actually feel out of control of your finances, it seems to help people who are very unfamiliar with financial concepts. Willpower, an excel spreadsheet and the Internet might get you just as far though.
I have an accounting degree and I work in finance, so I'd like to think I have a pretty good grasp on money. That's just my two cents. Good luck to you either way! Everyone deserves to feel in control of their money!
Absolutely. That's why I said that would be fun math! Knowing all the numbers is important. And for you, you've done the whole problem and come up with the solution that makes the most sense because you know the numbers. I guess I was just encouraging looking at the whole picture as opposed an individual facet of the whole financial picture.
Obviously it is kind of hard to give blanket financial advice over the internet when you don't know everyone's situations, or what their numbers are. Not trying to come across judgey or like I know everything (because I don't!) so I apologize if anything came across anywhere close to that.
@Ebuchan It's funny that you say that because he himself says that he is just trying to teach what should be common sense! I don't think he is the end all be all to financial sense but it is certainly a nice place to start when you have absolutely no idea where to start.