Have you thought about getting off the credit grid?

Either via canceling your cards and refusing to pay and ruining your credit,
or by canceling them and paying them off, you'll be better off.

Pay only for what you can afford to with cash.

Start buying physical gold and use that as your savings.

I don't want to cancel any of our cards because that will hurt our credit scores. I plan to put our cards into my safe and only keep my BofA card for
emergencies. It is just really hard to part with $15k to pay off th cards.

It can be really hard to part with that money but it will save you money. Always remember that you are paying interest on what you still owe.

$15,000 might seem like a lot but you're actually in a lot better shape then most people. They key here is interest. Each month you are actually getting further into debt because the interest reate keeps adding money to your overall debt. If you do the math you can begin to see how much of your money is going to interest rates. You have the right idea by paying more than the minimum. I know it sounds a little radical, but I would start taking money from that $750 worth of savings each month. The faster you get out of credit card debt the more you will save in the long run. I'm not saying you have to spend all of your savings, but I would probably use around half of the $750 towards your credit cards. You should also be hesitant in continuing to use your credit card. Keep your overall charges to a minimum. Use it only for the essentials food etc. If you are able to don't use it at all. You can also try calling the bank that is on your credit card and trying to discuss your situation. Best case scenario you might be able to get them to lower your interest rate. Worst case scenario they say no. It won't hurt to try. Lastly you can talk to a professional negotiator. Professional negotiators have the ability to negotiate debts on your behalf. They already have established connections with the banks and are trained in debt negotiation.

Pay off those credit cards with cash. You stated that you are paying $650 a month towards the credit cards and saving $750 a month. Combine that money and apply it towards replenishing your savings. At that rate you will be able to replace the savings account back to 30k in 10 months. Plus the credit card companies won't get anymore interest.

Thankfully, most of my CCs have 0% apr for this year. I think I am going to pay off some of the biggest CCs that I am paying interest on and then send the ones with 0% apr more money each month so they get paid off this year.

You have to ask yourself what degree of debt relief you want. If you plan on paying back your credit card companies then the solution is simple - make a budget, stick to it, pay any extra money you have each month to the account with the largest interest rate, rinse and repeat. It's not rocket science.

Unfortunately, no credit card company is going to give you better rates or negotiate a settlement if you are current on your payments. They have to think there is a chance that they will lose money before they will deal. Therefore, your next best option is to stop making your payments temporarily - say for 3-5 months - and negotiate a deal which includes removing the late payments from your credit report.

Lastly, you can simply stop making your payments and take the hit on your credit score. This strategy will likely give you the most debt relief and if you don't need a great credit score of a couple years, this is a viable strategy. Search for DebtClear to learn more.

I have to agree with littleoc02us.

In my opinion, that's the best approach. In the process, you might be able to improve your credit score as well.

There is good debt and there is bad. Good debt can be essential in life. For example, your mortgage or education. In the long run, real estate can still give you a good return.

Bad debt, in most folks cases, is credit card debt. Instead of getting a return in the long run like mortgage, you pay, as some folks do, exuberant charges in terms of interest.

So there is a potential of positive return in the case of good debt but there is a definite negative in the case of bad debt.

My two cents... Pay off the credit cards and build up a six month cash reserve. If you want to keep one small credit card around for psychological purposed or to maintain credit that's fine.

To build wealth you need to earn interest not pay it.

This might sound weird, but I don't believe in debt. It sucks the fun out of life. So I think you should pay off the credit cards and never look back. I wouldn't have any problem using the money in the bank for paying off debts.

Maybe you should keep it forever and let it grow with interest and pay minimum payments.

My situation isn't quite as bad. I probably have about $600 in debt due to unpaid medical bills. Will this hurt my credit score? I heard rumors that medical bills don't count against your credit score but then why would anyone pay their bills, right?

Actually that isn't true. Don't pay and see what happens. A collector will be calling you soon.

I don't think medical bills doesn't count. It would be best if you will allot money paying your debts before start saving because the interest in your debt will definitely be bigger than your savings.