Weathering a recession

[dancerjodi]

How would you do? This person has it kind of simplified:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/display/web/2007/11/06/manion_commentary/

Its a weird balance between comfort and risk. As I've earned more money and purchased more things I've felt more secure BUT also have more to lose. I think I have a healthy understanding of what could be quickly given up - its the debt that's stuck to you (loans, credit cards) that you can't offload easily that can be crippling. I think far too many people consider these niceties as givens or as needs and end up buried (myself included historically).

I'll feel a huge load off my back in the next couple of years when my car loan and student loans are paid off. :)

Comments

[dancer.livejournal.com]

Debt free is awesome. I think the author's point is that a lot of the debt we have (that we drown under) is a result of ourselves buying things that we probably don't need. There's always arguments about whether something is an investment or not, but in the strict sense of existing (having food, shelter, clothing) a lot of the debt that we have were from niceties.

I'm not arguing people should give these things up, as much as be aware of them (and make choices knowingly). I think far too many people just think "ah, I'll finance it" without really thinking of what that will mean 5, 10, 20, 30 or whatever years down the line.

[cris.livejournal.com]

it's also telling that the default option for people who want to have nice things is to take on debt, rather than be patient and save up.

[lurfmonkey.livejournal.com]

It's a tough call sometimes. If you look 5-30 years down the line and try to prepare for that, you tend to miss out on the present. I don't want to end up like the people who save for something that never comes. There's always the risk that something will happen that will shorten your life or make it impossible to enjoy what you saved up for. I totally realize that we're irresponsible with money. No, we don't need the latest tech gadgets or to go on nice vacations, but those type of things help with our mental health, and I don't regret spending the money on them. For instance, our trip to Vegas was totally superfluous, but we had a great time and were able to spend time with you guys that we wouldn't normally get to spend because of our busy schedules. That never would have happened had we stayed home.

I don't encourage debt and living beyond your means, but I don't think watching every penny is necessarily a good thing either. But I guess we're fortunate in that we know the money to cover our debt is going to come. Tammy has several outstanding invoices, but her clients are notoriously slow to pay them. Many people with debt either have no way to pay it off or have no intention to. That's where it gets really dangerous.