Business Book Lovers - Debt Pay Off Calculator Knowledge Base

Debt Pay Off Calculator Knowledge Base

Is there a debt calculator that would tell me what my credit score would be is if I paid off debts? I have a payment plan in mind for all my outstanding bills. Can I find out how much my credit score would go p as I pay off each balance? I know this is a long process. Thank you

Should I apply for a fixed rate loan to pay off credit cards? I have $25,000 in total credit card debt (3 cards). Interest rates are 4.99, 5.99 and 11.74. The card with the highest balance is also the highest interest rate. According to a debt calculator I used, I can pay them off in 42 months with my income. I have been offered a fixed rate personal loan of $30,000 at 7.74%. I would pay off the credit cards and use the rest for legal fees (personal situation). Using the same debt calculator, I can pay the loan off in 48 months easily and probably sooner. Is it worth it to apply for the loan? Will it hurt or help my credit? I do need the extra cash and do not want to take it from my home equity or put more on credit cards. Thank you for your responses.

Online debt calculator that takes into account future charges? I am in the process of trying to get out of debt (pay off my credit cards, etc). But, life gets in the way and sometimes I have to use them. Are there any debt calculators out there that take into account new charges each month? For example, if my debt is $3000 and I am paying $400/mo, but still charging $100/mo, with an interest rate of 10%, it is going to take me X months to pay off my debt. Thanks! Sorry to confuse - I don't need a debt counselor. I have a plan to get out of debt and my debt it quite managable right now. I am simply looking for a calculator. Thanks!

Formula to calculate how long to pay off credit card debt? example input: Amount that you owe: $500 APR: 29.99% Monthly payment: $19 I need to know how to calculate how many months that it will take to pay off. Thanks! P.S. I do not have credit card debt. I just want to program a calculator. =)

Should I make xtra paymts towards my student loan or put it into savings until I can pay it all off? My student loan is ~$26,000 @ 4.125%. I am debt free except for my house, and I have a good start on my retirement fund. I am ready to start making extra payments each month towards my student loan of $500- $1000 each month. My monthly income varies, so I can not commit to an exact dollar amount each month. I also have a savings account that is currently paying 5.20%apy or 5.16% per month. As long as this rate stays at this range, am I better off putting my extra payments into the savings account until I have enough to pay off my student loan? My thinking on this is that the student loan is tax deductible and the savings is paying more than the costs of my loan. I am very strict about not dipping into accounts that are earmarked for other things, but if I did put the money into the savings, it would give me a buffer in case I had a bad month financially with income flow. I am in the 28% tax bracket. Anyone have a calculator that calculates paying off debt vs investing

Lender Pay off debt to increase loan eligibility? All my other debt is payed off except for my car loan. I owe about 18K and the car is worth only about 8K. Is it possible to apply for a home loan and have the lender pay off the remaining 18K for the car, which in turn will increase my eligible loan amount? The car was purchased at a very high interest rate. For example, whenever I try to calculate how much I would be eligible for using online calculators, there is a 30 to 40K difference if I didn't own this car. The home I want is listed at 280K and and with the car, I would only be able to get about 230K at most. Please help.

Should I cash in bonds to pay of debt? We have 4 1000 EE Bonds. I used the Savings Bonds Calculator and all 4 equals about 2,000. The bonds range in date from 2000-2003. Three of the bonds are only earning about 2% and one is earning 4% for now. I was wondering if I should cash in the bonds to pay off some of my debt? I don't care about paying the taxes. We always get money back at the end of the year so it'll just come out of that.

How do I pay off my debt? Snowball Vs. High Interest? Here is my situation: Loan Balance Rate Payment Stafford Loan 14,252.82 4.00%(fixed) 116.35 Private Loan 24,357.72 8.00% (variable) 348.96 Parent Plus Loan 9,892.95 7.75% (fixed) 247.12 I can either pay the lowest balance first (Dave Ramsey Snowball method), or I can pay the highest interest loans first. My mind is fried right now and I used a calculator which indicated high interest should be paid first (which makes sense). But I did some manual calculation to see how fast I can pay the loans off, and it kinda showed it would take the same amt of time to pay them off... I'm hoping there is a finance wizard who replies to this and tells me I'm silly and paying high interest first makes the best sense... Also, would anyone know what the variable interest rate cap on a private student loan is?? Thanks!

i nead a calculator that will let me put in my intrist rate and my balance and how much i want to pay mounthly i nead a calculator that will let me put in my intrist rate and my balance and how much i want to pay mounthly and based on thoes numbers inputed tell me how long it will take me to pay off the debt IE. 5000 debt at 19.5 intrest at 450 pay,ent a mounth would take me how long to have a balance of 0? or explain how i can do the calculations my self but just remember i nead the intrest factor in there

If my APR is 29.9, how much do I need to pay to eliminate my debit in a year? I'm looking for a calculator to determine how to pay off my debt in one year from a lousy bank. Help.

20% down on house or pay off low interest credit card and/or car? We are planning on buying a new house. We have enough money to put a 20% down payment. We also have credit card and car payment debt that is a little less than the 20% we could use for the house. The interest rate on the card is 4.99%. The car loan is 6.4%. The home loan will probably be 6+%. Since the interest rate on the credit card is less than the rate of the home loan, would it be better to put the 20% down on the house and then try to pay off the card and car loan in a few years or would it be better to pay off the card and car loan now and and just put 5% down on the house and have to pay PMI? Or maybe something in between like pay off the card but not the car (or vice versa) and put 10% down on the house. Is there a calculator out there somewhere to calculate the cheapest route? Thanks... We are working on paying down the credit card and car loan. At current rate they should both be paid off in about 4 years.

Do Doctors of Physical Therapy have trouble paying off their school debt? The average cost of a 3 year DPT school is ~75k when you factor in the ~19k/year average for tuition + living expenses + books etc... From what I understand you really can't have a job while attending DPT school so due to the hours/intensity of the program my estimate for DPT school may even be a little on the lower end. The 75k is just for the program however. This isn't counting the fact that many students are non-traditional meaning they already have a BS degree from another institution and most likely their existing student loan debt along with it. So total cost to attain the DPT degree is at least 100k in most cases. The starting salary is around 55k/year if your lucky and also dependent on where your geographic location is. It actually seems like it's lower in most cases. Student loan calculators don't like the 55k/year salary. With the 100k debt they like a salary more like 140k/year. You see where I'm going... So as looking to possibly enter the field of physical therapy I'd like to ask current DPTs or people that know currently practicing DPTs if they are having trouble paying off their debt. My current existing loans are at ~60k (for BS degree and Progress) so my final student loans will probably be more like 130k at best for student loans if I choose to go this route. You can see where my anxiety starts to set in. The math doesn't add up. I see a future filled with with ramen noodles and beater cars. I've heard that the average debt is very high for the PT. So how do they do it? With the current wages of PTs, 35-45% of net pay is paying off loans if on the ten year plan. I've paid ~60k for my bachelors degree and "Prereqs" not "progress." (Hit spell check before checking)

How much should I pay on my credit cards? Does anyone know where to find an online calculator that will help determine how much you should pay on your credit cards in order to pay down your debt without throwing away too much money in interest. I'm looking for something that you can input your balance and interest rates that will show you how long it will take to pay off if you put X amount dollars on it monthly. If you know of any website or program like this, please let me know! Thanks a bunch.

pay off credit cards or use with buying a car? OK, I know I need to get a different vehicle soon and what better time to do it then at tax time? I am anticipating about $1,000 back and I was thinking of using it to assist in purchasing a vehicle, but then I got to thinking, "Would it be better to pay off $1,000 of the $1,400 in credit card debt i'm in or use it for the vehicle?" The credit score analyzer calculator said my score would be around 680 if I paid my credit cards down that much (compared to my current 647 score). Should I pay that towards credit cards or use it toward a vehicle. Either way, I am going to the bank to get a vehicle loan, so if I used that $1,000 toward a vehicle, that would be a $1,000 less I need to borrow. I am stuck on this one guys...any suggestions?

how to calculate credit card interest / how long it will take to pay it off? I need an EQUATION or two. I'm trying to program a credit card debt calculator in PHP to basically tell me this as a result..... if you currently owe $80,000 in credit cards, and your average interest rate is 20%, You will pay $159,196.96 in interest, your total payment will be $239,196.96 and it will take you 54.33 years by paying the minimums. the only part that i know for sure is to add the two numbers together to get the total amount.. beyond that i'm kind of lost, mostly because i don't understand how credit card interest works on a deep level. I understand the "simple interest" model, which is NOT what credit cards work on.. most of the stuff i find on the net is for mortgages and simple interest. that doesn't help me in this case. thanks in advance!! the equations themselves will help.

is there a calculator online that will estimate your chances of getting a loan, by credit rating? I'm trying to plan ahead to get a loan WHEN my debt collector is paid off, in 6 months, to see if i may be able to get a loan then, so I am trying to find a resource perhaps based on reviews or provided by banks that will estimate the probability of getting certain types of loan, in certain amounts, from certain banks, just by my credit rating.

Should I make a lump-sum payment to pay off my mortgage? Ten months ago I sold my house and reaped a significant profit. I bought a smaller home, and I realized that I could pay off the new mortgage (15 yr fixed @ 5%) with one lump-sum pmt from the profit from the old house. Is this wise? My thinking is, I will pay 75K in interest over the 15 yrs, or 30-40K if I prepay and reduce the 15 yr term to 8. Obviously the lump-sum pmt eliminates that debt. I've also always felt that paying interest, just to get 1/3 back at the end of the year as a write-off, was foolish. I've tried a bunch of calculators online, but I get conflicting results. Paying this off will not hurt my retirement plans, but I"m wondering if the money could grow faster if I invest it, and if so, in what. My tax bracket is 35%, monthly mtgg pmt (P&I) is about 1580. and total mtgg amount is $200K. I gross $150K+ per year, and have no other debts (I own my car, and pay all credit card bills in full). Any help would be appreciated, thanks in advance!

How long does it take to pay off 15k in student loans? My parents are paying for my education, but because I want a car (to get to and from the school, which is about 3 hours away) they won't get me one. My dad wants to get a new car and give me his, but my mom is dead set against this. She is delusional and thinks that I can just 'borrow someones car' or 'find a friend that lives in the area'. I proposed the idea of taking the amount of the car out in a student loan, so that way I only have to pay about 15,000 dollars. I don't have the money for a car payment now, but I know that I can figure out a way to pay 15,000 once I have a full-time job. Is there a calculator or a way to figure out how long it would take to pay off this sum? I don't like the idea of being in debt, but I don't want to be stuck at school all the time because I don't have a way to get home. Okay - just a heads up. My parents will be paying for the car, NOT ME. What I'll be doing is matching the car price and taking that out in student loans... and I don't care what you think I should do financially, I just want a timeline on paying it off!

What is the quickest way for me to get out of debt? The first idea that pops into my mind is to "pay the minimums on my low interest loans and pay as much as I can on the high interest ones." But I have heard a few times that the above method is one of the slowest ways to get out of debt. So can anyone explain it to me or show me a calculator that would suggest the best way for me to pay off my debts? ... I plan on paying off everything I have under $500 when I get my income tax return. My remaining debts will be: $5,400 with 5% interest $2,770 with 13% interest $22,880 with 5% interest The first two are from the same lender. Minimum I can pay is about $80 but I have been trying to do $90 or $100. Third one has a minimum of $280. (((p.s. Yes, I do have the math skills to figure it out on my own. But I'm still curious what others have to say and if there are any calculators that I could look at .))) That was the second idea to pop into my head debtisdumb. ... Which is why I am paying off everything under $500 ASAP. My lowest interest loan also happens to be my smallest one - so I guess I might stick with my current method. Thanks for the what to Google suggestion! By the way - I have never run up much credit card debt. All of my big ones are either medical or student loan. ((already finished paying for my car - YAY!))

I love the mortgage calculator on www.whatmortgage.co.uk - but can anyone recommend another good one? Ideally I'd like to locate one that can show a diagram of your mortgage coming down rather than just showing how long it would take to pay the debt off. I love numbers

I need assistance with a financial debt calculation, this is beyond my math skills LOL? We are looking to become debt free. My husband and I trimmed our budget to where we have an extra $300 a month to pay off these debts. We are going to start sending the $300 plus regular payment to the lowest first then moving to the next and next with additional payments and finally paying off the mortgage. What I need help with is finding either a online calculator or some assistance on how to factor in the intrest rates and such to achieve this goal. I also would like to see what it would take to do it in 4 years. Any assistance with any of the questions is greatly appreciated. Here are our figures. Credit Card- 8% Balance- 2800 Month Payment 150 Car Loan- 8% Balance- 13,900 Month Payment 356 Mortgage- 5.9% Balance- 114,500 Month Payment 915 These payments are not including the extra $300 we would be putting into it. Thank you so much for your help

Present Value of Annuity Due Using Financial Calculator? I am going over a question that provides somewhat of a solution, but I can't figure out what I need to punch into my financial calculator to give me the same answer. 1. Your cousin just came home from a poker tournament in Las Vegas and is now trying to pay off a gambling debt of $5,000. You have agreed to pay off the debt for him today, and in return he has agreed to pay you $250 per month over the next two years with payments beginning immediately. What is the effective annual interest rate you are charging him? A) 19.75% B) 19.86% C) 21.77% D) 22.26% E) 23.45% Answer C 5,000 = 250 x PVIFA (i,24) x (1+i) because it is an annuity due Solve for i using your financial calculator: i = 1.6550% EAR = (1 + im )m -1 = (1.01655)12-1 = 21.77% Yes the solution is provided, but I can't figure out how to solve for i using my financial calculator.

So here's a tax rebate question for you? What are you going to do with your tax rebate check 1. save 2. spend 3. pay off debt Me, I'm going to put my $300 on my debt, it's not what Bush wants but aw well. By the way you can get a rough est. of what you're getting by going to www.irs.gov click on the eco. stimulus calculator, and answer about 10 questions (only if you've filed already). Thanks for sharing!

HOW TO CALCULATE THIS ON FINANCIAL CALCULATOR? How long would it take for me to pay off my loans if I were to pay $200 a month instead of $100? I am currently paying 3% and I have $10,000 in debt. HOW WOULD I CALCULATE ON THE FINANCIAL CALCULATOR? THANKS

Paying credit cards over time vs. lump payment? Here's the situation: I am on an aggressive savings plan and have set aside an extra $400/month to pay off my debt (around $8000 total). Is it better to wait until I have enough money saved to payoff all balances completely (while still making minimum or better payments) or add the $400 to my existing payments? I've tried a few of those debt payment calculators, but I have different interest rates and the balances in question are not all credit cards. Does anyone have any (real) advice?

Looking for financial calculator/advice? I am looking for someone or something to answer this question for me. I have a home mortgage at 5.75% with 28 years on it fixed, and I also have a student loan at 4.125% with 25 years on it fixed. The mortgage is around $200k, and the student loan around $30k. I need to know if it is better to pay off the student loan first, and then use that extra monthly payment to pay off or down the mortgage, or is it better to pay down the mortgage since it is at a higher interest rate. Both payments are tax deductible, and I am in the 28% tax bracket. I have no other debt. I am working on creating a savings account to cover expenses in case of an emergency, and I contribute the max each year to my ira account. I can not get a 401k. I have 2 young children, that I need to start saving for their college, but have not done so yet. Anyone know of a good calculator that will let me plug in my numbers to see where I can obtain the best results with any extra income? Thank you.

So I need help with java, what is considered a class level variable? is double or string considered one? The program i make will determine how many monmths it will take to pay off that loan, what the final payment will be, and how much interest total I will have to pay. for example ** Welcome to the consumer loan calculator** How much to do you want to borrow? 1000 What is the annual interest rate expressed as a percent? 18 What is the monthly payment amount? 50 ANSWER: Your debt will be paid off after 24 months, with a final payment of just 47.83. The total amount of interest you will pay during that time is 197.83.

C++ programing problem-how do i correct these compiler errors? The program output should behave as below: ** Welcome to the Consumer Loan Calculator ** How much do you want to borrow? $1000 What is the annual interest rate expressed as a percent? 18 What is the monthly payment amount? $50 Your debt will be paid off after 24 months, with a final payment of just $47.83 The total amount of interest you will pay during that time is $197.83 ** Don't get overwhelmed with debt! ** here's my program's source file: /* Broken into several functions, this program first asks the user to enter the amount of money they want to borrow, the interest rate, and the monthly payment amount. It will then determine how many months it will take to pay off the loan, the amount of final payment, and the amount of total interest. */ #include <iostream> #include <iomanip> using namespace std; // Global constant. const int month = 12; // Function prototype. void getInput(double&, double&, double&); double payLoan(double, double, double, int&, double&); int main() { double balance, interestRate, monthlyPayment, monthlyInterest, totalInterest; int months; cout << "** Welcome to the Consumer Loan Calculator **"; // Function calls. getInput(balance, interestRate, monthlyPayment); payLoan(balance, monthlyInterest, monthlyPayment, months, totalInterest); cout << "** Don't get overwhelmed with debt! **"; return 0; } //**************************************************** // Definition of function getInput. * // This function asks the user to input the * // principal, interest, and payment amount. * // It only accepts positive values. * // All three parameters are reference variables * // so that the function returns the overwritten * // values of the arguments which are passed to it. * //**************************************************** void getInput(double& balance, double& interestRate, double& monthlyPayment) { do { cout << "How much do you want to borrow?"; cin >> balance; } while (balance <= 0); cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; do { cout << "What is the annual interest rate expressed as a percent?"; cin >> interestRate; } while (interestRate <= 0); cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; do { cout << "What is the monthly payment amount?"; cin >> monthlyPayment; } while (monthlyPayment <= 0); cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; } //************************************************ // Definition of function payLoan. * // This function uses a nested loop to calculate * // the monthly interest and payments. * // It also keep track and reminds the user * // of the total months to clear the debt. * //************************************************ double payLoan(double balance, double monthlyInterest, double monthlyPayment, int& months, double& totalInterest) { double interest, payment, totalInterest, finalPayment, leastPayment; // Set numeric output formatting. cout << fixed << showpoint << setprecision(2); monthlyInterest = interestRate / month; int months=1; while (months++) { while (balance > monthlyPayment) { interest = balance * monthlyInterest; payment = monthlyPayment - interest; if (payment < 1) { leastPayment = interest + 1; cout << "You must make payments of at least $" << leastPayment << endl; cout << "Because your monthly interest is $" << interest << endl; } balance = balance - payment; totalInterest += interest; } if (balance < monthlyPayment) break; } finalPayment = balance + balance * interest; totalInterest = totalInterest + interest; cout << "Your debt will be paid off after " << months << "months, "; cout << "with a final payment of just $" << finalPayment << endl; cout << "The total amount of interest you will pay during that time is $" << totalInterest << endl; } =============================================== "11.cpp", line 34: warning #2549-D: variable "monthlyInterest" is used before its value is set payLoan(balance, monthlyInterest, monthlyPayment, months, totalInterest); ^ "11.cpp", line 88: error #2101: "totalInterest" has already been declared in the current scope totalInterest, ^ "11.cpp", line 95: error #2020: identifier "interestRate" is undefined monthlyInterest = interestRate / month; ^ "11.cpp", line 97: error #2101: "months" has already been declared in the current scope int months=1; ^ "11.cpp", line 122: warning #2940-D: missing r The last warning: "11.cpp", line 122: warning #2940-D: missing return statement at end of non-void function "payLoan" }

C++-compilation problem? include <iostream> #include <iomanip> using namespace std; const int month = 12; void getInput(double&, double&, double&); double payLoan(double, double, double, double, double&); int main() { double balance, interestRate, monthlyPayment, monthlyInterest, totalInterest; cout << "** Welcome to the Consumer Loan Calculator **"; getInput(balance, interestRate, monthlyPayment); payLoan(balance, interestRate, monthlyPayment, monthlyInterest, totalInterest); cout << "** Don't get overwhelmed with debt! **"; return 0; } //**************************************************** // This function asks the user to input the * // principal, interest, and payment amount. * // It only accepts positive values. * // All three parameters are reference variables * // so that the function returns the overwritten * // values of the arguments which are passed to it. * //**************************************************** void getInput(double& balance, double& interestRate, double& monthlyPayment); { do { cout << "How much do you want to borrow?" cin >> balance; } while (balance <= 0) cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; do { cout << "What is the annual interest rate expressed as a percent?" cin >> interestRate; } while (interestRate <= 0) cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; do { cout << "What is the monthly payment amount?" cin >> monthlyPayment; } while (monthlyPayment <= 0) cout << "You must enter a positive number!\n"; } //************************************************ // This function uses a nested loop to calculate * // the monthly interest and payments. * // It also keep track and reminds the user * // of the total months to clear the debt. * //************************************************ double payLoan(double balance, double interestRate, double monthlyInterest, double monthlyPayment, double& totalInterest); { double interest, payment, totalInterest, finalPayment, leastPayment; // Set numeric output formatting. cout << fixed << showpoint << setprecision(2); monthlyInterest = interestRate / month; int months=1; while (months++) { while (balance > monthlyPayment) { interest = balance * monthlyInterest; payment = monthlyPayment - interest if (payment < 1) { leastPayment = interest + 1; cout << "You must make payments of at least $" << leastPayment << endl; cout << "Because your monthly interest is $" << interest << endl; } balance = balance - payment totalInterest += interest } if (balance < monthlyPayment) break; } finalPayment = balance + balance * interest; cout << "Your debt will be paid off after " << months << "months, "; cout << "with a final payment of just $" << finalPayment << endl; cout << "The total amount of interest you will pay during that time is $" << totalInterest << endl; } ==================4 errors detected:============ C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\HW\2008fall\11.cpp:51: error: expected unqualified-id before '{' token C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\HW\2008fall\11.cpp:51: error: expected `,' or `;' before '{' token C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\HW\2008fall\11.cpp:84: error: expected unqualified-id before '{' token C:\Documents and Settings\Administrator\My Documents\HW\2008fall\11.cpp:84: error: expected `,' or `;' before '{' token This is a new compiler I've just downloaded and it's totally different from the UNIX HILL from school computers. I had put semicolons but I don't know why the compiler says a ";" is expected. I won't be able to use the school computers until next monday and this assignment is due tomorrow. could someone please compile this source file for me and tell me if there's any errors?(and how to fix them...)

First Time Homebuyer - No Money Down and ... (Is this wise?)? I have one credit card with 15k in debt at 5% and pay $300 per month. I will also be a first time homebuyer and will most likely not be putting any money down. Was thinking of doing a 30yr fixed 80/20 loan (if numbers work out to be better than full 100% w/ PMI). Ideally, I would like to pay off my debt before buying a home, but cannot in this situation. Would it be possible... and what do you think about bumping the mortgage amount up 15K to pay off the debt? In essence, I will most likely be paying more in interest since the mortgage interest rates are higher and amortized over 30yrs, but a 15K increase in the mortgage amount over 30yrs at 7% is approx. $100 according to the mortgage calculators. That would free up an extra 200 that I could use to go towards the mortgage. First, do you think it would even be possible for the lender to do this for a first time homebuyer program with no money down? And second, do you think this is a good idea? Thanks

will my ex have to pay the csa? my ex has refused to provide any details to the csa and keeps on ignoring them. he is on over £300 a week and wont buy his son as much as a baby wipe because he is to busy with his new girlfriend and her kid. the csa have sent his boss a form out to tell the csa how much he earns. can his boss lie for him? will my ex defenetly have to pay. i have worked it out on the csa calculator and he is in over £400 worth of debt with them and the csa have said soon as they have got the form back off his boss they will do a calculation to see exactly what he owes and will set up an attachment of earnings. how much will they take a week from him if he is in debt of £400? he keeps on ignoring their letters that is why they have had to go to his employer. does anybody no what he will have to pay a week for our son and the debt. will it automatically come off his wages and is there anyway he can stop the csa from taking the money uk answers only please

Actual overall cost of $120,000 30-yr mortgage? I just read something where a man claimed that his $160,000 mortgage loan at 4.29% interest will cost him over $500,000 when the debt is finally paid off. I believe this was a 30-year loan he was referring to. I feel like a terrible & uninformed consumer, but I never realized I might be paying out a ton of extra money on my own $120,000 30-year mortgage at 5%. The idea that I might end up actually paying out more like a half-million dollars is sickening. Does anyone know how I might be able to calculate our actual payment, after all is said and done? Or is there an online tool or calculator I might be able to use that would generate a figure? Thank you.

Payoff everything in 5 years or continue to build real estate portfolio? My husband and I are at a financial crossroads in our lives. I recently finished my medical residency, he is about to get his MBA in two weeks. I ran a "debt snowball" calculator adjusted for my new attending physician earnings and we'll payoff our debts (primary home mortgage, mortgages for 3 investment properties, a credit card and small student loan) in 5 years. This doesn't include the increase in salary that my husband will hopefully receive, so complete payoff may come sooner than 5 years. We would also save tons in interest saved from early pay off. On the other hand, we also set the goal of building a real estate property company, eventually transitioning from residential rental to medical commercial rental properties. In aid of this goal, we could capitalize on the weak housing market and continue to purchase residential rental property. This would make us lots of money because our major South Texas city has inexpensive housing that is now even cheaper in this depressed market, but will undoubtedly be worth considerable more in the next five years or so. My husband and I have discussed this at length, we've gone back and forth. Both routes are very attractive. So my question is this-- If you were in a similar position, would you just go into "payoff mode" and erase your debt in 5 years or would you continue to build real estate holdings? Lavista-- Totally missed the point. First of all, my degree is worth more than paper. To me and most any country in the world, it gives me license to do what I've always wanted to do which is heal people. Additionally, I try to make sure that I'm not caught up by the superficial world (although I admit that this is a constant conscious thing I struggle with) My husband and I live in a neighborhood where the average salary is 1/3 of what our yearly salary is, my car is 10 years old, I still wear clothes that I've had since middle school, we seldom shop for any consumer goods and in general try to be good stewards of the earth's resources. Having said this, I do like to be stable. I like knowing that come what may, I will be able to provide for myself and my family. There is nothing superficial or wrong about this desire especially since I donate more in time and money than the average US citizen. Thanks for the link, though. I'll check it out. -M

Math Problem: how do I solve for TIME in a question like this? James Taylor has $1500 in credit card debt. His annual interest rate is 15%. He decides to make the minimum payment of $25 per month to pay off his credit card bill. How many years will it take for him to pay off his credit card? (Round to the nearest whole number) I need a formula to work this out by hand. NO ONLINE CALCULATORS STEPBY STEP Please

Solar panels as an investment and saving - sounds too good to be true!...? (Firstly I apologise for the length of this, but I wanted to explain the whole situation just so there's no ambiguity). Here in Brisbane, Australia we get 7-8 sun hours per day on average (source: http://www.livingin-australia.com/sunshine-hours-australia/ ); our household uses ~20kWh per day based on the average of all the power bills for 2009. Using this calculator ( http://www.bdbatteries.com/panelcalculator.php ... too lazy to crunch the numbers myself) it tells me the ideal system is 3.2 kW. Our house has a large north-facing roof so that is good enough for solar panels. For practicality (and to keep the numbers conservative) I sourced the figures for a 3.5kW system which is within the price range of $30-40k, but after selling RECs (Renewable Energy Certificates) and taking advantage of federal and state subsidies and offsets it is priced at ~$15-20k; I'll assume a worst case (say, $25k) to keep it conservative. With a Home Equity Line of Credit Loan we currently have $220,000 in debt overall. At ~6.5% interest the monthly repayments are ~$1,190. If we were to throw the $25,000 for the entire solar setup onto the loan, the loan would increase to $245,000 and interest would be ~$1,330 per month, a $140 increase. Since we are currently paying $126 per month ($4.20 per day) in power bills, it seems it is not worth it. However, 3.5kW x 7.5 avg sun hours gives 26.25kWh daily, or ~6.25kWh more than is needed. When taking into account the 44c/kWh feed-in tariff that is a lowest possible return of ~$82.50 per month (I say "lowest" because it is real-time net metering, so if we have nothing running during the day it will send a lot of power priced at 44c/kWh to the grid; when we buy it back when we are back from work at night it will cost only 16c/kWh, so overall we will gain more than $82.50 per month). So then if we had to pay $140 extra per month on the loan but that eliminates $126 per month in power costs and includes $82.50 at the minimum in feed-in credits, is that is effectively a saving of $68.50? I know it isn't really a saving per se since simply paying loan interest doesn't reduce the loan's size, but to me it seems to be a saving since the power cost of $126 per month will always be there so it may as well be moved from one account (elec) to another (HELOC loan) without making much difference financially; also the HELOC loan can be paid off and thus interest repayments become lower, while the cost of electricity is only set to rise (on top of inflation-adjustment each year, we are expecting sharp rise when the carbon trading scheme gets passed, and the generators were granted a 16% increase for January 2010 anyway!!!). Additionally when the 3 kids have moved out of home the power use will drop, leaving more electricity for the grid (so more money returns) in addition to less expenses overall (so the HELOC loan will be easier to pay off) - seems like a double win! There are two major downsides that I can immediately see: variable interest rate rises and home valuation. However for the latter, I am not sure whether it is really a problem. For all I know, solar panels would most likely increase the value of one's home (seems to be logical anyway), which in turn means more flexibility regarding the floor of the HELOC loan if it is needed. I am somewhat naive regarding how HELOC works so that is my main concern in this plan. So is this too good to be true, or have I missed something (I generally don't believe in "too good to be true" hence why I am asking). Naive re HELOC; I am one of the 3 kids mentioned in the question (19yo) so this is just for me to propose to my parents as an idea.

How much could we spend on a house with our income? I am looking ahead and trying to figure out how much of a house my wife and I could afford. I dont plan to buy a house until all my student loans are paid off. I am never sure how much to put down on those house affordability calculators for "monthly debt". But Combined the two of us will be making around $110,000 gross income by the time we will be looking to buy. We are both in jobs in which our pay will increase about $1,000 every year too.... Approximately how much could I expect to get approved for?

amortization table? I am looking for a website that allows you to enter loan information or credit card debt information, for example, you enter date, amount of loan, payment you will be making and the calculator does the rest, it will tell you interest you owe and the exact date it will be paid off. Interest.com used to have this table and has either done away with it or I am not able to find it anymore. If anyone has any ideas, let me know.

Can I work in one state and buy a house in another state? Here are the details. I make 23,000 a year and pay about 250 a month to credit cards (I have, 10,000 credit card debt and 8,000 student loans deferred) I have a low credit score (about 520) Having put all of my financial information into an online calculator, the calculator says I can afford about a $40,000 dollar home. I live in Washington state have found a $35000 dollar property (not a mobile home) in Texas. My question is, how does my credit score affect my ability to purchase a property at such a low price, and am I able to live in Washington and purchase a home in Texas and work until I've paid it off? I need some very straightforward advice please, no jokes.

File Chapter 7 or be a slave for 6+ years? I have $35,000 in credit card debt. I am unable to find work in Michigan except selling on eBay, which is how I amassed most of my debt. I did well for a couple of years, but loss of sources, increased competition and slow sales over the past 2 years have left me living with my parents and barely able to make my minimum payments. I am not using my credit cards at all, and literally have no money left after bills, food and rent. (I do pay rent, which helps my Mom - it was actually her idea that I move home.) According to the online credit calculators, at my current payments, it will take me more than 6 years to pay off all my cards, that is if I can find the money. Should I just go ahead and file Chapter 7, since I'm probably stuck at my Mom's house for the next several years, and will be lucky to find a job at Target? Would a Chapter 7 hurt my chances at finding a crappy minimum wage job? After being self-employed four years, I don't have the resume to get a good job anyway.

Should I re finance my personal loan ? I currently have a personal loan and 2 credit cards which I am thinking of re financing into one personal loan. The person loan is a fixed loan and I still have around 2 or so years left on it. I have looked at a personal loan calculator to amalgamate all these debts and the repayments are $7.00 less per month than my current personal loan repayments, not to mention the extra money I am paying every month on the credit cards. The new interest rate If go ahead), is less than the interest rate I am paying on both the personal loan and the credit cards at the moment. The only downside I can see is that the personal loan that should be paid off in a few years will now not be paid off for 7 years. I am just about to stop my income as my maternity leave has stopped and am hoping not to have to go back to work for another 4 years (when my son goes to school), so the extra cash would really come in handy at the moment. I will be able to survive financially (hopefully) but the extra cash should really help. Besides the extra interest we are paying, is there any other things that I should be taking into account before going ahead with this ? I don't want to go ahead with this and then find that it was a bad choice and that I should have left it as it was. Thanx :)

i have a settlement agreement w B.O.A. and they are threatening to call it "unmet"? when we first talked on the phone about the settlement, they told me the amount (around 7000) and then told me i would be paying it off in increments of 1100 the last day of each month. but when i received the detailed settlement letter, they lumped two months together for a total of about 3000 in the last month...which the representative working on my case conveniently left out of her speal. no way can i afford 3000 a month...ive been telling them this for months. so at the end of may i payed them half of it, and spoke on the phone with a rep who said i could pay the other half at the end of the month. then today i get a call saying they need the payment by tomorrow! her excuse was that there was a federal law requiring them to collect any settlements in 93 days. i was so flustered and pissed i didnt ask 93 days from what? because the whole settlement period has been 120 days...so WTH? i tried to press her on the 93 day thing, sensing the BS...i am well aware by now that when you settle, they use calculators and confusion (reminds me of buying stuff in India) and even miscalculate the amounts you owe and try to make you pay more payments of the settled monthly amount than you should. my friend overheard the conversation and said they were bullying me. the rep, rachel, threatened to cancel the settlement. she said they would have to start it all over with the original 37,000 debt and do another settlement, if i dont pay them 1500 by tomorrow. i told her what i told the other guy...i cant get it until the 1st of july. i told her a tree is about to fall on my house (carpenter ants) and i could sell the tree maybe to someone for a couple hundred bucks...but thats the best i could do. is this a scare tactic or are debt card companies known for totally scrapping settlements like that. cuz if they are we are definitely in bankruptcy. they milked the cow dry.

Im 23 and make 42K a year. Should I buy a condo? I have a steady job as a scientist, paid off car, paid off student loans, and about 20K saved up. No debt and I live frugally (internet, phone, and food would be my money eaters...) I make 42K a year, maybe 28K after taxes. No children or hubby in future, so a small 1BR condo would be nice for me. Should I go in and buy? Entering my info on various mortgage calculators, I am told I can afford a house that costs max ...55K! I feel like I can afford more than that...but of course that's what everyone thinks! Also, I hear 1br condos have bad resale value. What should I do?

can you still get a morgage....? if you have debts,even though you are paying them off and never missed any payments. Have done morgages calculators on line and they have said yes but am still un sure.

Auto loan financing; prepayment of principal ? OK I need to finance a car or van , I just got discharged from my Bankruptcy , I'am on Unemployment .I have $500.00 as a down payment , Iam looking for a vehicle price between $3000.00 and $4000.00. On the "loan calculators" with 25% interest and depending on the vehicle price ($3000-$4000) . All the calculations come to under $100.00 a month , then add insurance for say $60.00. What and where on the contract should I look for options with paying the car off , that are best for me. I want to be able to pay the $100.00 a month payment as stated above , then when I find a job , I want to pay it off quicker.I do not want the extra payments I send in to just go towards the interest. Or say if I continue to pay $100.00 a month , then just save extra cash to do a payoff.What would I have to ask and/or lookout for on the contract.Say if I have the payoff money , then could they say like I owe more because of the interest? Can someone break it down for me in laymans terms , so I do not get ripped off.I'am trying to rebuild my credit not go back into debt. And I NEED to get a car in order to get a job , all the jobs that I'am qualified for are in the suburbs.And I need a car to get out there. Thanks

Would we qualify? and how much? Thinking about buying a condo with my fiancé in Los Angeles…Do you think we will qualify and about how much? His Score EX 750 Mine EX 710 No negatives INCOME Gross income combined is 51k My fiancé makes another 4k a year but is not reported or taxed…I know this won’t help us. EMPLOYMENT I am done with school and I am currently working in the same field I studied. I have been working with my current employer for a year and 3 months. Prior to that I worked at another company in the same field for 1 year. My fiancé has been at his employer for a year and 6 months. Before that he worked for a sporting goods store for 3 years. DEBT Together the only debt we have is a 239.00 monthly lease payment on my car. No school loans. We have plenty of Credit cards but all balances are very small and paid off every month if any. I also contribute $100 a month to a IRA retirement account. ASSETS 25000K in savings to spend on down payment AND closing cost. My fiancé has a 2006 truck with 15k mileage –Paid off… (I don’t know if that counts) I have been looking at those online mortgage calculators but I don’t know how true they are. Let me know what you guys think… THANKS!

Would a bank qualify us for a home loan? Thinking about buying a condo with my fiancé in Los Angeles…Do you think we will qualify and about how much? His Score EX 750 Mine EX 710 No negatives INCOME Gross income combined is 51k My fiancé makes another 4k a year but is not reported or taxed…I know this won’t help us. EMPLOYMENT I am done with school and I am currently working in the same field I studied. I have been working with my current employer for a year and 3 months. Prior to that I worked at another company in the same field for 1 year. My fiancé has been at his employer for a year and 6 months. Before that he worked for a sporting goods store for 3 years. DEBT Together the only debt we have is a 239.00 monthly lease payment on my car. No school loans. We have plenty of Credit cards but all balances are very small and paid off every month if any. I also contribute $100 a month to a IRA retirement account. ASSETS 25000K in savings to spend on down payment AND closing cost. My fiancé has a 2006 truck with 15k mileage –Paid off… (I don’t know if that counts) I have been looking at those online mortgage calculators but I don’t know how true they are. Let me know what you guys think… THANKS!

Would we qualify? How much house could we afford? Thinking about buying a condo with my fiancé in Los Angeles…Do you think we will qualify and about how much? His Score EX 750 Mine EX 710 No negatives INCOME Gross income combined is 51k My fiancé makes another 4k a year but is not reported or taxed…I know this won’t help us. EMPLOYMENT I am done with school and I am currently working in the same field I studied. I have been working with my current employer for a year and 3 months. Prior to that I worked at another company in the same field for 1 year. My fiancé has been at his employer for a year and 6 months. Before that he worked for a sporting goods store for 3 years. DEBT Together the only debt we have is a 239.00 monthly lease payment on my car. No school loans. We have plenty of Credit cards but all balances are very small and paid off every month if any. I also contribute $100 a month to a IRA retirement account. ASSETS 25000K in savings to spend on down payment AND closing cost. My fiancé has a 2006 truck with 15k mileage –Paid off… (I don’t know if that counts) I have been looking at those online mortgage calculators but I don’t know how true they are. Let me know what you guys think… THANKS!

Is my family able to buy an affordable house in S/W FL? I make apx. $33,000 a year and fiance is homemaker...? my finace and daughter ( plus 1 on the way) are looking for a steady home. my credit isn't so good right now, and i can't afford to pay it off because my apartment's rent continues to go up every year. ive been looking at mortgage calculators that say some of the homes in my area are less then 80,000 and are at a estimated monthly payment i can afford. am just a very confused wannabe first time home buyer and am looking for help on how to get out of my terrible debt making apartment.... thanks for any help or advice you can offer :)

Can someone give me REAL advice as to how much mortgage I'd qualify for? I've looked at a trillion online calculators and they ALL give answers that are just all over the map. Here's my situation: If anyone can help ease my mind with some REAL insight, I'd be SO appreciative. I make $50k a year. My credit score is at least 720. This is what I scored about two months ago PRIOR to paying off my credit cards and a personal loan I had. Never missed a payment, never was late on one either. My debt to income ratio is 11 percent. I have $10k for a down payment and an extra $3k for closing costs. When the time comes to buy a house (which will be this summer, God willing), I MAY have $15k to put down instead of the $10.) I live in CT. Property tax, on the high end will probably be $3,500/a year. Insurance per year I'm guessing will be $1,000......<---it's probably less than that, I don't know how much house insurance really costs when it comes down to it. I have $10k in a pension plan and $12k in my 401(k). What are the chances I will get approved for a $170 or $180k mortgage? Is this possible? Or am I stretching it? Note I am the ONLY buyer/owner of this house. Thanks guys!

Who comes up with mortgage calculators? I'm a single mother who has not debt a credit rating of 783 and pay 1415 in rent & that is just rent that doesn't include water, power, trash, phone, cable or anything else. Through those in and it's closer to $1800.I have no debt not even a car payment. I make sadly only about $40,000 dollars as an executive assistant. I don't live lavishly and while like any woman enjoy nice things I know when & what I can afford and live within my means though admit sometimes times are tight but I know what I can afford & never bite off more then I can afford even if I might like something better. I don't mind paying what I currently pay cheapier would be nice but still & yes I know about property taxes which where I live is about 10% paid twice a year. My point and question is I would like to buy a condo or house obviously it makes more sense so how come if I go to a "how much home can I afford" calculator it will tell me I can only afford a loan for $150,000 if that even at a fix rate and for 30 years. When even after taxes I would make well over that in 30 years.

Dad offering a loan for our down payment... what to do with it, or whether to even accept it? My husband and I recently got pre-approved for a home loan, and the lender figured it with $0 down payment because we qualify for USDA/FHA (?) assistance (my husband knows the specifics). Anyway, my dad has offered to loan us $10,000 to put toward a down payment. It would be a huge help, but I've used online mortgage calculators, and maybe I'm doing something wrong, but it seems $10k down hardly makes a difference (it's a loan, not a gift, from my dad, so consider I'm paying him $100/mo for a while here). All we have saved at the moment is the $1,000 that we plan to use as earnest money when we make an offer, so $10k would be a huge help. The lender did say that for every $1,000 you put down, you probably take less than $10/month off your mortgage payment. So is it even worth taking my dad up on the offer, if we have to pay the mortgage, AND my dad $100/month (for 8 1/2 years)? Just wanted to know what the advantages are to putting down such a sum of money as opposed to going with 100% financing like we originally planned. Would it help us get approved for a better interest rate or something like that? I'm also considering taking him up on it so we can clear all of our credit card debt, that way our only "debt" is paying him $100/mo and not throwing away money on interest. Which would be the better option, in your opinion?

When considering how much home I can afford, what does credit card payment mean? When looking at the various calculators, they all refer to credit card payments, but I'm not sure what it's actually asking for. I have a decent rewards card, so I pay everything, including my bills, using my credit card, and then pay it all off at the end of the month to keep my finances easy to track and get a little cash back. I have no credit card debt, as each month is a clean slate. Do I put my average monthly payment, or is it only looking for debt? Does keeping all my expenses in a central location affect the appearance of my financial standing to lenders?

Why don't I qualify for financial aid? I'm 21, a full time student, and still dependent on my parents. I want to transfer to San Diego State University. I put my info on the csumentor.com financial aid calculator and it said I don't qualify for anything. My parents only make around 70k a year. I work part-time and only make under 5k a year. We pay our taxes and do not receive any assistance from the govt. I have one sibling that is in high school. We don't own a house. We rent and it takes about 21k from my parents income. We don't live some amazing life and give ourselves all the luxuries we would like because we can't afford to. Yet, I know people in my jr college receiving financial aid checks and then see them drive off in an Escalade. The only financial aid I get is a waiver to pay my classes. How is it possible for them to send me to college if it costs almost 20k a year. Money is already tight and we can feel it. How am I supposed to pay for this without finishing with a huge debt from a loan? What can I do? I don't want to be a burden on my parents any longer and do not want to put this on them. Your advice would be greatly appreciated and feel free to email with any extra info. Thank you.

Will proving that my credit debt will be paid off within the month help me get an auto loan? I'll be a first time car buyer. As a kid, I received my first credit cards and got a little carried away, tallying up 4k+ in debt, on top of school loans which tally about 7.5k right now. I'm in good standing with the school loans, but because I've neglected the 2 credit cards that totaled 4k in debt, my credit score is currently at 600 points. Well, now that I'm older, 23 in fact, and have a better job, I will be paying off these debts. I started a 3 month payment plan with 1 which will end on the 27th of this month, and on the second credit card, I'll be paying off in two payments. One scheduled for tomorrow, the other scheduled for the 30th of this month. Now, my car was recently wrecked by a drunk driver (It was parked). It was a hit and run and I only had liability, so I'm out of luck there. I have no down-payment for a new car. I'm hoping that with a credit score of 600 points, will having proof (letters from the debt-collectors on the scheduled dates of payments), help me with an auto loan? Also, a side note/question: I figure my APR's going to be about 15%. Since the debt will be paid off this month, and I need a car ASAP (I need it for work), should I settle for a high APR and simply re-finance when (if) my credit score improves in the next two months? I'm looking at a 485 dollar car payment with an APR of 15%, which is within my budget according to financial calculators online. I also plan on sending off 1k dollar payments for the first 5 months. Will explaining this to the loan (Toyota) company help me? Or will they not consider this? I appreciate the answer, but I would like to clarify the payment. the 485 dollar monthly payment for the car loan factors in the 15% interest rate already. It's quite within my budget, about 15% of my monthly income, 20% of my take-home. I've taken in to consideration all of my bills. It's a Scion TC, stripped down with no features. It's got an excellent trade-in value which I plan on doing after 3 years.