Digging Out of Debt

Joseph McKinley got into credit card debt the way a lot of people do–using plastic to purchase items for which he didn’t have the cash. “At first I just wanted to establish credit and when I lived at home it was easy to pay it off,” recalls the Philadelphia native. “But when I moved out, the credit card offers kept coming and I opened card after card to furnish my new apartment and buy clothes and electronics.”

For many consumers the lure of a 0% introductory rate can be enticing to purchase big-ticket items, but after 18 months McKinley says those rates shot up to 24.99%, leaving him with more than $4,000 in debt across three cards. It didn’t help that in December 2003, he also lost his job working at a local casino.

With no income or emergency fund at the time  McKinley relied on his credit cards to survive. He did this for three months  before finding employment with a national bank in Philadelphia. But by then, the 36-year-old divorced father of two was knee high in debt–$21,000 worth to be exact. “I thought to myself, ‘This has got to stop, this is crazy.’” His situation instantly reminded him of his late mother, Denise McKinley, who had accumulated and maxed out more than 20 credit cards. She eventually filed for bankruptcy.

But unlike his mother, he decided against bankruptcy. “I made the debt, and I need to pay it,” he says. First he transferred the balances from his three store credit cards to his Chase and Discover credit cards, which offered lower interest rates. He used the bonuses he received from his new job with the Department of Homeland Security as a supervisor for the Transportation Security Administration and his salary increase to aggressively attack the debt. He has also found ways to curb spending. For example, as a TSA employee he receives free monthly public transportation cards from the federal government. By taking the train to work he saves, on average, $120 per month, an amount he also applies to his debt.

But even with all his efforts he soon realized that his strategy for digging himself out of debt wasn’t making a dent. “What I was paying was only going toward the interest. Every time I would get a new statement it would be higher than what the previous statement balance was,” explains McKinley.

McKinley reached out to his lenders for help, asking for lower interest rates or a payment plan option to reduce his monthly bill. His requests were denied. Frustrated, he researched ways to reduce his debt and came across a debt solutions company that negotiates with lenders on a debtor’s behalf for a $45 monthly fee. He enrolled in the program in August of 2007. Within a few months McKinley says he noticed a change. His Chase credit card interest rate was reduced from 31.99% to 6%; Discover 14.99% to 12.99% (later increased to 15.64% after canceling the debt management program); Bank of America 19.99% to 9%; Zales 24.99% to 9.9%; and his Midas card stayed the same since the balance was low.

Today, McKinley has paid off $17,500 of his debt. Now, he has just about $3,500 outstanding and is proud of how far he has come. But he also feels that he has put

so much emphasis on attacking his debt that he has neglected other areas of his financial life. As a result, his retirement contributions are way behind schedule, he has minimal funds in his emergency savings account and has not developed  a plan to pass on generational wealth to his children.

McKinley has less than $300 in his checking and savings accounts, $350 in an emergency fund, and a little more than $3,000 in his retirement account. “I’m living paycheck to paycheck. I’m turning 37 next year and I need to start thinking about retirement and securing my future,” he says.

The Advice
Black Enterprise and AXA retirement planning specialist Ilyas Akbar reviewed McKinley’s financial situation and offered the following advice.

Start investing for retirement. McKinley has forfeited approximately $18,000 in employer match dollars by not contributing 5% to his retirement account since he started in 2004. “Minimally, he should increase his contributions to at least 5% of his salary to take advantage of his employer match,” says Akbar. Based on his current take-home pay, McKinley should contribute approximately $310 per month into the plan, which is about 7% of his pay. With his employer match of 5%, this will help put him on track for retirement.

Finish paying off debt. For McKinley to really secure his financial future, he must commit to a savings and investing plan and not incur any new debt. Akbar recommends that he use the $2,000 Financial Fitness Contest winnings to pay down his highest interest debt (Discover Credit Card; $3,395 at 15.64% APR). After applying the $2,000 toward that debt and with continued payments of $150 a month to the remaining

balance ($1,395), he can pay off his balance in about nine months. McKinley also has a medical bill for about $1,394, toward which he pays $120 monthly. He should continue making those payments and will have that bill paid off in 12 months. Akbar then suggests that he redirect the $270 toward his retirement and savings. McKinley should continue his $305 monthly payments toward his automobile loan.

Build an emergency fund and curb spending. Akbar suggests that McKinley focus on building at minimum three months, but preferably six months, of emergency reserve funds for regular monthly living expenses. Taking public transportation saves McKinley $120 a month, which he should apply toward his emergency savings. McKinley estimates that he can reduce his monthly cable bill from $145 to $85 by switching to basic cable. Once his contract with his cell phone carrier ends in January, he plans to change service providers. His bill is currently $90 a month and a new plan under MetroPCS will be $50 a month. be suggests he apply these monies toward his emergency fund. Once he reaches his six month goal he can then funnel that money into his high-yield savings account.

Get life insurance and an estate plan. McKinley has life insurance through his employer, in which $8.40 is deducted from his paycheck per pay period. Akbar suggests that McKinley obtain term life insurance to protect his two children. Term insurance will allow McKinley to obtain a higher level of death benefit with less impact on his budget. This is especially important since his 6-year-old son has special needs. He should work with an insurance professional to determine the amount and length

of the term contract. McKinley should also have a will prepared by an attorney and explore a supplemental needs trust for his son with special needs. Life insurance can be used as a funding vehicle for this trust. He should also look into long-term disability since there is no employer-provided long-term disability benefit. This will protect his earnings and savings in the event of a prolonged disability.

Plan for his children’s education. McKinley has two sons, ages 6 and 16 (for which he pays $668 a month in child support). Once he has adequately addressed savings, retirement, life insurance, and develops an estate plan, he can consider utilizing a 529 plan to save for his youngest son’s education. The 529 consists of after-tax contributions, but offers tax-free growth and tax-free withdrawals for qualified educational purposes. Since his oldest is just two years shy of enrolling in college, be recommends that he apply for grants and scholarships. He should also consider staying in state, since local colleges generally have lower tuition and fees for residents.

Monitor credit annually. After closing four of his five credit cards, McKinley’s FICO score took a huge hit. be suggests he get a copy of his credit report from the three national credit reporting agencies every 12 months at www.annualcreditreport.com. Make sure that the information in the report is accurate and up to date. Any errors should be addressed with the Federal Trade Commission. He should beware of credit repair scams and use resources such as the Federal Trade commission’s site to learn how to improve his creditworthiness and to find legitimate resources for low or no-cost help (ftc.gov/credit).