Quote:
Originally Posted by burn_this_city
Buy nice things, but plan on having them for a long time. That way you aren't susceptible to the latest greatest must have. The new truck with a slightly nicer interior and apple carplay isn't worth the $30k in depreciation. If you are buying vehicles based on what you can afford on a monthly basis, you're doing it wrong. Get off the never ending payment treadmill, otherwise you'll be on the cat food diet at 70.
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I hate personal stuff, but to put it bluntly I struggled greatly with cocaine addiction at the same time as my bank had given me a $2k limit credit card and then a month later a $16k line of credit. I took out $200 every second day for weeks on end for 4 g's of cocaine. It was devastating and after more credit ended up with about $30k in debt and hopeless interest payments.
Made minimum payments for months until the bank started literally taking money from my pay cheques which I needed for rent. I finally went through a consumer proposal (one step below bankruptcy) where they buy your debt from the bank. They bought mine for $8000 and charged it bi-weekly over 4 years interest free.
As embarrassing as it was and is to have no credit cards or credit until it's paid off (summer 2020) I actually feel amazingly free and better off then a good portion of the population now. (Simply being low on money is actually a heavenly feeling compared to "This is bank X you need to put in $300 this Friday just keep us from going to collections")
I mean, great you've got credit and vacations and a new vehicle and own a house and live the "American dream", but also have hopeless debt that you'll have to face at some point, but I'd rather have nothing than what I consider to be less than nothing - unreasonable debt that will come to a head at some point.
Right now I consider "nothing" a huge success. I added $100 a cheque to RRSP's earlier this year (personal plus employer contribution) and it feels so good, yet the average "successful" person would call it a laughable contribution, as that's how our society operates. This next year I'm going to add significant savings on top of RRSP despite still struggling with addiction. Can't wait.
Society actually views you as more successful if you have large RRSP contributions and all the standard "well to do" society standards and hopeless debt that you have to face one day than smaller contributions and no credit, it's hilarious.