alica wrote about living week to week, though both she and her husband make a good wage.  She speculated as to why this was and mentioned their debt. I thought this would be worthwhile to discuss on a new thread.

I don't know who decided to start telling people that it is a good idea to borrow. I was taught to avoid debt if at all possible.  I was told directly that being in debt made you a slave.

I think this is correct. When you owe someone money, they own you. You have to work to pay off your debt!

I have never been in debt one cent other than a mortgage. I've never had a car loan, never borrowed a dime from friends or family and I've never carried a balance on credit card for even a day.

I really like my freedom, obviously. My situation and way of living reflects my values.

What were you taught about debt?  How do you feel about it? What have you learned?

Medical  bills have done us a bad turn but nothing we can't handle, thank God.  We live pretty good, I have no complaints. I also avoid using credit, don't use credit cards, etc.. I was raised with the same values  as Elsa so I avoid debt like the plague!

Annalisa, it's true.  I don't know of anyone, anywhere who was taught to cherish freedom more than we were, both overtly and otherwise. 

I didn't learn a thing about debt or savings or finances. I learned as I went along and followed the trend when I turned 18 - which was get a card and put money on it (buy stuff) and pay it down, so you can earn credit. That's all I knew, you needed credit if you wanted to buy something expensive. I was never taught that you should save to buy something! What a revelation, right? LOL.

Now we are both taking care of our past mistakes and though it's difficult, we have learned a lot and are more than willing to clean up our messes, looking forward to the freedom of being debt free.

Since McDonalds wont open me up a line of credit, I have no debts other then living expensives and a few medical bills.............our income gives us a bit of freedom to do things that are fun, like breathe.

But the higher the cost of living the less that is left over............however I and Annalisa know how to shop well and cut and or trim the fat where applicable.

It costs too much. I'm in dept ....know it is managable. I have a plan , and think I can do it. But my life does not start before I am done with my dept. It is like jail.  I had bad role models when it came to money, but at the same time I feel I've learned from it....offcourse after repeating the same mistake:( ...but what is done is done.  I am never doing credit again, no morgage ever. (even if I know renting is stupid, atleast I'm free) . I also feel borrowed money is easier taking for granted that when every cent you have is worked for....it makes you think of money in terms of hours and it helps me regulate my spending and have a more realistic view on cost, investment ect

I grew up with a mother who was in debt. I am not in debt because I grew up with hard times, always. 

I grew up with the same thought process with, debt makes you a slave. I said to myself growing up. If I had little money, but not in debt, I was living the good life.

I've actually to tried stopped people from obtaining loans because I thought it was a bad idea, but they pushed me aside and said I was silly. Now they are in trouble with the banks everyday because of this.

You can't tell people what to do, no matter how sound your advice is.

I was taught never to incur debt. So much so that when my husband and I married, I paid off the remainder of the mortgage on his (now our) house and we signed agreements that we own it together. I do not like debt!

I was also taught that if you lend anyone money it's best that you think of that loan as a gift. Would you want to give that person money? If so, go ahead and enjoy your ability to do that. I've lent plenty of friends money keeping this criteria in mind and it's all come back to me, I think because I genuinely did not mind if it did or didn't.

I have a personal amount of debt I'm comfortable with.

I have no problem having a car payment now and then. I like cars. I like cars that get me home from work when there is 8" of snow on the road without being afraid it will breakdown.

My aunt and uncle have always paid cash and they can't get a cellphone because they have no credit record.

More should get around to handling finacial affairs as Elsa outlined. Many are being forced to adopt these principals as the middle class continually diminishes in rank and the larger percentage land in the lower end of the scale.

I was taught the same as Elsa. But I have debt now due to my grad school costs, it just seems there was no other way.

I wasn't taught about money.But I'm learning from my family's experiences.I will do my best not to be in debt.It's a stressful situation for me,for anybody.I would be willing to work and pay all my bills,then work less and have a loan to pay off.

I've paid off my truck loan almost 2yrs ago.... working on getting 3-credit cards paid down. Kinda sucks that I longer have a 2nd job , otherwise this would have been paid off by now. I'm sooo looking foreward to being debt free. Until I go for a new truck.

My parents didn't have debt I am aware of- my Dad was pretty straight arrow (miltary) so I think they pretty much did all the right things. We had a big house but a lot of kids and they weren't excessive spenders so never heard about money problems.

I hate debt. Just think if you had your house paid off and all you had to pay for was taxes, food, car insurance, incidentals..to me that's freedom. I like getting points and rewards for my spending. I like free. I think you should be aware of your taxes.

Hubs is a disaster. Great income, carries debt even when he could pay it off..so clear to me that it is a psychological thing. Have not figured it out, to be honest. He says everyone has debt and I disagree. I was always around conservative money people and I think the same way. 

Have always admired Caps- the ones I know began building early and the fruits are there as years go by. Ahead of most others, in my experience. 

Being debt free is most definitely freeing.  I'm not very good with money, but I've managed to stay out of debt somehow, now I've got to work on building my savings!

One of my best friends lost her business just over a year ago and the debt it has left her with is huge.  We've been talking alot about it lately because it's keeping her up at night and (I think) making her ill.  Her two partners are not in a position to help pay it off and she's got a house tied up in the whole mess, so she can't afford not to deal with it...

It's not unsurmountable, but she sure feels like it is most of the time.  We spent yesterday contacting experts that might help her figure it all out.  I'm hopeful and want to see her get out from under all the pressure.

Uhh... I don't like being in debt, that's why I think Ca$h gifts are the greatest thing you can ever do for someone.

I was taught to hoard money, and I like to spend. I have found a happy medium.

I have student loans and the last of a car loan. I was taught these things are necessary. Now I have different feelings about money based on the experience.

Other than mortgage and a graduate school loan, I do okay for myself.  It feels good.   And because these payments are automatically debited from my account, I always say a prayer of gratitude for what the loans got me, and that I'm able to pay them off.

From time to time I splurge via a credit card.   :)  Otherwise, same here.  Pay as you go, stay sane and light on your feet.

I've never been in debt--thanks to parents who paid for all of college. I never got a credit card in college and credit scares the shit out of me.

Unfortunately, you really do HAVE TO HAVE A CREDIT CARD in our society, period. If you want to get a car, which I am going to need to do in 2012, I pretty much won't be allowed to do it. Everyone tells me I can't just hand some guy off Craiglist a few thousand of my savings, I MUST go to a dealership filled with sleazeballs and get a bank loan. Hence why I sucked it up and got a secured card at the end of last year, and now I wait on it to become a real boy...er, credit card.

I do not look forward to going into debt, but it seems to be something I will have to do.

My fellow Taurus coworker is having similar issues with buying a house right now-- he paid off his college and car in a few years and got rid of his credit cards years ago, but now that he's buying a house it is suddenly A Problem that he has no current credit/debt. He has good credit on one credit report and no credit on the other two and the bank doesn't like that, even though he's like the most stable human being on the planet, hardly spends anything, and I'm sure has buttloads of money on his own by now. Good god.

Isn't it ridiculous that we have to buy things like college and the like that are so amazingly expensive that there is no option but debt you can never pay off? WTF, world?

My debt stems from an emotional choice. I don't regret it. I wanted my kids, before they were too old and off on their own at university and whatnot, to spend Christmas in Texas with my parents, myself and my sister. My mother's health is a bit iffy, as well. She has a slow growth cancer. And let's face it. My parents are not getting any younger. We had all just been through a jarring, quite devastating couple of years. That includes the kids. It was time to get back to family.

That was a whopping 17,000 wracked up right there. And yes... On a credit card. Then it spiralled for a while longer until I realized I was sunk. Got rid of the card with a loan that will take me another 4 years to pay off.

Of course, I made myself less free. Of course from an intellectual and financial vantage point, it was ridiculous. But I will never regret my choice.

In fact... With my somewhat charged nature and propensity for making such decisions on a strictly: what is really necessary for our mental & emotional health NOW... I could see doing this again in future.

But I'd best not.

I definitely have a troubled relationship with money.

I was taught to never incur debt or borrow money. My parents are cash people, have never written cheques or had credit cards. They are seniors, own their own home outright and can live comfortably off their pension even though it isn't very big.

I have debt, a lot of it too--from going to university as well as several impulse purchases when Neptune transited my 2nd house--rather than paying off debt when coming into cash, I bought something else on credit.

After a prolonged period of shame I am over it--over feeling ashamed. I have a debt free by 40 plan. feel SO different now that Neptune is out of my 2nd, it is crazy. I was doing things like buying organic veggies weekly even though my budget absolutely didn't support the cost. I can see now, I was filling an emotional hole, much as I did when I was younger with food and then alcohol. I'm working on it rather than let the shame eat at me. At the very worst, it prevents me from feeling pride about what I have accomplished at uni.

I was raised to buy only what you can buy yourself. I think I like saving so much because it prepares me for any surprises I'll have to pay for. I avoid owing anyone any money.

I was absolutely taught to avoid debt.

And before I lost my job I had none, save for my mortgage.  But just after I bought my home, that is when I lost my job.  I did all I could to get re-employeed but 15 months passed before a 3 month no benefit contract job opened up.  I would have accepted any job. 

I'm hoping to be digging myself out of the whole that this event put me in.  Trying to not be homeless and still have money to eat basic food was tough for some time.  I am much better off now than when I was in that living hell. 

Sometimes bad things happen to good people.  If I can find a job {even one with a pay cut} closer to home I will be better able to make it up to zero.  I currently have a stable job in Homeland Security so I am counting my blessing for that at least, even though the 5 hour commute is pretty bad.

I also see that hand in hand with the responsibility with paying what you owe.  I have never filed for bankruptcy or walked away from any debts I have owed.  I know there are circumstances that people need to have this option so they can move forward, but there are a few out there giving people a bad name by taking advantage of the help offered after not being responsible and then continuing such behaivior recieving the help.

I hope everyone that wants to get out of debt can, and wish them all thebest luck to get there.

There are so many responsible people that have not been irresponsible at all but have fallen into tough times.  We will recover through our continued hard work.

In fact the aversion to debt is probably one reason I was never able to go to college.  I couldn't afford it, so I didn't go.  I was taught if you cannot afford something you can live without you probably should not spend on it.

((Bruce))  May the wind be at your back!

I have a small amount of debt...it's a pain, but I'll pay it off in a few years.

Hubs has debt from his business.  We have the mortgage and a small amount to pay off on the American Express.

We don't like it, but we don't have debt out our asses like some of these keep up with the Joneses neighbors do.

I never had any debt when I was younger.  My parents paid for college in full - they have $$$ put away for my kids for the same purpose - and I ran up big bills, but paid them all off.

I still have a problem with impulse spending.  I just won't be doing it with a credit card.  As soon as this shit, about $1500, is paid off, I'll never use another one.  I'll keep one for keeping my credit score up, but other than that, no funking way.

Just in case there's anyone who may be effected by yesterday's news, I'm posting a link to Obama's Student Loan Initiative 'We Can't Wait' White House press release:

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/2011/10/25/we-cant-wait-obama-administration-lower-student-loan-payments-millions-b

It's interesting--SL debt doesn't freak me out, like the idea of a mortgage does. I don't aspire for homeownership. I don't know why (though I suspect Neptune-ruled 4th House has something to do with it).

I feel like I'm still mobile with this debt. It's strange, and it's also fascinating to me, how people approach their debt.

All my feelings right now revolve around not wanting to accumulate any more. I have hit the limit I feel okay about.

I was raised that if you can't afford it, you can't afford it.  That's not a judgment, it was an observation, but believe me if anyone in the family was living beyond his means, it would have been judged! 

I went to college in the early 90s, and I got through by taking an extra year, earning some scholarships, working, and getting help from my parents.  I never took any financial aid or a loan, and when I graduated I was completely free and clear of it.  It was a hardship on my whole family for me to go to college, but everyone chipped in to make it work - and would have done so if either of my sisters had wanted to go.  

I often feel like I was bred in a different time, you know?  The world is weird to me now.

@rachael--I just clicked on your link, and that's actually the program that my loans are currently under (the IBR as it is now). I have noticed that a lot of my fellow classmates did not seem to be aware of this option, or didn't want to fill out the necessary paperwork, as they thought it was too hard. My 2nd house Mercury trine Saturn thought it was worth time and effort to have that weight taken off my shoulders for a year. : )

On the subject of debt, I was taught to buy what I could afford, and not use credit cards for anything other than emergencies, and medical expenses. I have only one credit card, thru my credit union, and it has an unusually low balance (about as much as my rent on my apt). I paid if off in full when I was in school, but now it's taking a little longer, but it possible, as the total balance isn't that high.

I also bought my first car, with some help from my Mom. I also paid her back in helping her buy a gently used car a few years ago. I am not in massive credit card, home, or car debt. And my student loans are my biggest debt I owe right now--which--all things considered...isn't that bad. : )

I was very ill a few years ago and got reckless during that period. I was trying to initiate several business deals too, on and off, and put money into trying to get those going (nothing doing so far! - I'm still hopeful in some areas). Then I failed to get paid for two lots of work, leaving me £2000 the worse off... both cost me money in commuting etc to do the work, too - one of them a considerable sum. Bummer!

So I'm currently a few thousand in the red, and I absolutely hate it. I'm a Cap and being in debt makes me crazy. 

In fact I've been that far in debt twice before, and paid it off, but this time at my age it's looking pretty impossible short of selling all my nice 'stuff' (family furniture etc). Meanwhile I'm just about managing the interest payments, but unless I can find a source of income soon, I don't know how long I can keep that up. I dread the car conking out...  Every time I think I'm getting on top of some of it, something happens like having to get a new laptop.

It's extremely worrying. I've spent most of my life worrying myself silly about money, which I've always found hard to come by - and to keep! - and I'm so, so tired of it :(

I do know though that I can live on almost nothing - I've had good practice!

Thank you Maureen  =)

If there's enough wind I'll pick up some of those treading water as I start to sail forward   =)

I hate hate hate hate hate carrying debt.

I was told it was a good idea to get a credit card and carry some debt in order to establish a good credit rating, but not to let it get out of hand (which is a very subjective thing).

I think student loans are the devil.

I appreciate paying a mortgage instead of rent though.  It allows me a certain amount of freedom concerning what I do with my home, and there is theoretically an eventual end to it. 

Being in debt blows chunks.