Drowning in $23k credit card debt… any way out

Credit Card
1

I’m really struggling with my credit card debt and don’t know what to do. Right now, I can only afford the minimum payments every month.

I’m 33. About $13k of this debt is from bad decisions in my 20s, and the other $10k came from financial problems after COVID (had to use credit cards for groceries, daycare, and bills).

I also have two personal loans—one was for home repairs, the other for our wedding (which I regret because it was a lot of money for just one day).

I feel embarrassed and frustrated, but I’m not using these credit cards anymore.

For context, I’m only listing my personal debts. My husband’s income covers things like the mortgage, utilities, and his car payment.

Here’s what I owe:

  • Discover: $10,252 (23.24%)
  • Citi: $6,019 (26.99%)
  • Bank of America: $4,771 (27.24%)
  • Synchrony: $1,863 (29.99%)

My monthly take-home pay is $2,600, and here’s what I pay every month:

  • Car payment: $232 ($3,500 balance)
  • Personal loan #1: $748 ($9,939 balance)
  • Personal loan #2: $412 ($12,753 balance)
  • Car insurance (for both cars): $130
  • Childcare (before and after school care): $250

My credit score is 632.

I’m trying to put any extra money toward my Discover card, but after covering everything, I usually have around $100-$200 left at the end of the month.

My minimum payments are:

  • Discover: $224
  • Citi: $185
  • Bank of America: $152
  • Synchrony: $200

That doesn’t leave me much to work with.

If your advice is to “stop drinking, smoking, or eating out,” just know that we don’t do any of that. We already cut out eating out completely, and we’re as frugal as possible with groceries.

We both work full time, but I’m open to picking up a side job. Selling a car isn’t an option because we both need one for work.

Any real advice on what I can do?

2

Call your credit card companies and ask if they offer a payment plan. They might be willing to lower your interest or set up fixed monthly payments. Some companies will close your account when they do this, but it could help. Don’t feel bad about past mistakes—at least you’re facing them now. You got this!

3

Are you and your husband treating this as a shared problem? If he has good credit, maybe he could help by consolidating the debt at a lower interest rate? Since part of the debt was for home repairs and the wedding, it’s not just yours.

If you’re handling this alone, focus on one card at a time. Either pay off the smallest first or the one with the highest interest. Looks like you have about $1,200 left after other expenses. If you put every extra dollar toward the debt, you’ll see progress faster.

4

Call Discover. I tried using National Debt Relief years ago, but after six months of not paying, Discover sued me. I stopped using them and just called Discover directly. They let me set up a fixed monthly payment plan and closed my account. Took me about 18 months to pay it off, and I didn’t have to deal with interest anymore. The downside was I couldn’t use credit cards for two years.

5

If you have multiple cards with the same bank, see if they can consolidate them. Another option is a 0% balance transfer card. Some offer 12 to 21 months of no interest if you qualify.

A balance transfer could help you pay things off faster instead of interest eating up your payments. If you can’t get approved for one, then focus on the highest interest debt first and throw every extra dollar at it.

6

@Ren
My wife ran up a $9k credit card balance, and I helped her pay it down with a balance transfer. We knocked it out in 18 months with no interest. Definitely worth looking into if you can qualify.

7

Look into debt consolidation. You might be able to roll everything into one loan with a lower interest rate. That could make payments more manageable.

8

I contacted Discover and they lowered my interest rate. They also froze my account so I couldn’t use the card, but it was worth it. I set it up over chat in their app. Might be worth checking out.

9

The fastest way to free up money is paying off small debts first. If you pay off your car loan, that’s $232 a month freed up. If you then tackle Synchrony, that’s another $200. After that, you’ll have $400 extra every month to throw at the bigger debts.

It’s called the snowball method and it works because you see progress quickly. Once you clear out a couple of these, it gets easier to keep going.

10

Do you care more about improving your credit or getting out of debt faster?

If you just want to be debt-free, call the credit card companies and ask for a hardship payment plan. They’ll usually lower your interest and set up a fixed payment, but they’ll close the account.

If your goal is to keep your credit score up, a debt consolidation loan might be a better choice—if you can qualify for one with a lower interest rate.

11

Synchrony is killing you with that high minimum payment. Focus on paying that off first. Then your car loan. Once those two are gone, you’ll have $432 extra every month to work on the other debts.

12

You need more income. No way around it. Whether it’s extra hours or a side gig, more money coming in will make this way easier.

13

Check out Cambridge Credit Counseling. They’re a nonprofit that can work with your lenders to get your interest rates down. You’ll have one fixed payment instead of multiple bills each month.

14

You need to bring in more money and stop spending on anything unnecessary. No Netflix, no takeout, no shopping. Every extra dollar should go toward paying this off. If you really want to get out of debt, that’s what it takes.