my debt confession of 2023...the wake up call I needed

Sometimes reflection is what we need to wake ourselves up and that's exactly what's happened.
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ABOUT ME
Hi my name's Reyler that stands for Rachael Eyler and I'm a 25-year-old living in one of the most expensive places in New York on a journey to figure out my life personally, professionally, and financially! I hope you learn something from this video and if you want to start your own journey, hit the subscribe button and we can learn this thing together.

Inquiries? Send me an email!

DISCLAIMER*
I am not a financial advisor or financial expert, I simply just have found a system that works for me and I love sharing my journey to financial freedom.
My views are not the views of my employer.*

[reylersjourney]

If you are in a similar situation as me, remain positive, work hard and you will get out of this debt. To those who express negative talk toward me, it’s a reflection on you. I’m determined and excited to put all my effort into getting debt free. Have a happy new year everyone!

[ThisCorneroftheKingdom]

Saying this gently. Taking on peloton and car loan while your parents are paying over 700 per month…not ok. You need to rethink your priorities

[budgetsarainyday]

I love watching debt confessions but as a parent of children in their twenties, who both have student debt, I would never be able to take them on without seriously impacting my own life (or future retirement plans). Whilst it’s very noble of your parents to take it on, I feel like you should plan to take it back as soon as you can. It’s your debt, not theirs. New car, peleton and eating out shouldn’t be on the horizon whilst your parents have taken on more than half of your debt. On the flip side, if I was paying for someone’s debt and they were still overspending and wracking up more debt, I’d be incredibly peeved! I hope that 2024 is going to be more successful for you on your debt free journey.

[alyxayto]

You've heard of Dave Ramsey- your car loan is crazy, sell the car privately and pay off the loan, get something else for now. Drive like no one else so later you can drive like no one else...🎉

[GulfCoastGranny]

You keep saying "It's fine." If I were 180K in debt I'd be petrified! It's the opposite of fine, my dear. Grace is a good thing, You can't go back and change any decision you've made in the past. First thing I'd do is sell that $30k car and get yourself a car you can afford. There are plenty of good $10k cars out there. I just bought a great used truck for my 16yo son for $3500...cash. We are not a wealthy family but we manage every penny that comes into our home. We live on 60% of our income and save the other 40%. It took me 3 years to get to that point but, it can be done! I wish you lots of motivation and desire to stop being a slave to debt. Getting mad as hell helps too! It hurts my heart to think about anyone going to work every day just to turn around on payday and give earnings away to make someone else (ie Banks) rich. I cannot leave your channel without mentioning your parents' paying your student debt for you. That's the first thing that needs attention, not the last! I don't know how you'll make an extra 700/month, but I'd make that a priority!

[SimplySaraReads]

I’m just gonna say it but as a mother of 5. My oldest being 20. There’s absolutely no way I would take on my kids’ debt. They can move in with me and pay a little rent and grow up a bit more. For example, stop blowing money. But I would not take it. 😮 that would be so hard.

As some others have said. I don’t think you’re quite ready. The excuses and justifications are just too many atm.

I do hope for you though.

[loveandjoy]

I am so sorry. Did you ask your parents what they had to give up to pay a $700 a month student loan in perpetuity? If it’s retirement savings then they can’t afford it. You have a lot of debt for being low income. Especially in NY. You need a second job. Period. Sorry. It’s what I had to do in order to get out of debt.

[julierayfield]

$126, 000 is school loans to make 40k. I don't understand! Seems like a poor choice of a major.

[CynthiaIvers]

Thanks for the transparency. Given your income, I would cut out the eating out as you really can't afford it. Also, I would sell that car and get a $10, 000 used one. Stop using your credit cards altogether. Stop relying on balance transfers and 0% interest. Credit card companies know that most people will falter and not pay it off in time, etc. The interest you're paying is funding rewards and benefits for those of us who pay off our balances each month. Sell the Peleton - you can't afford it. Start walking or jogging in city parks. You're living a great deal above your current means. You really need to take some radical measures this year. You need to get a better paying job - a much better paying job. Your expenses appear mountainous. Also, living in NY is expensive. Think about moving to a much less expensive state, etc. Good luck!

[Ibakeandknowstuff]

This whole journey is so overwhelming. I appreciate your channel because I feel like it’s such a realistic take on what happens. Sometimes it’s good, a lot of times it’s rough. I say keep doing what you’re doing. Awareness is a huge part of it and you’ve got yours up and ready to go. Let’s kick 2024’s ass and do this! 💚✨

[succotash]

Thank you for being transparent. It’s a relief knowing that there are others on this journey with me!

[Alyseb-ln]

I’m rooting for you!!! Please please please give yourself some grace. I’ve been paying off debt now for 5 years and I can tell you…it’s not for the weary. I’ve had so many set backs both in and out of my control that I don’t know which way is up anymore.

You got your car. While it’s a depreciating asset it still holds some value. As for your peloton I think it’s fine as long as you get your money’s worth out of it. The goal is to keep your head above water and keeping your regular spending low which it sounds like it’s possible. Not trying is the only failure you could have for 2024 and I think you’re doing great!

I’m a new subscriber and I’m here to support you along the way!

[TiffaniStarr]

There are so many other affordable options than a 30k car loan and a 3k loan on a piece of workout equipment. Sell the car and get a cheaper car. Sell the peloton and get a more affordable work out machine. You were talking about how you gave up Orange Theory which is a ridiculously overpriced class to begin with. You should prioritize health and physical well being, but you can’t say it’s a good choice if it’s causing stress. Ditch the peloton and get a cheaper machine and use their subscription service for workouts instead.

Also gotta love america, we want you to pay $140k for a $50k job lol

[MicheleL-vebm]

I can’t understand how you have over 100k student debt for a job that pays 40k!! My daughter is walking out in May making over 80k and she owes 30k for student loans. You have a serious income problem…..a side hustle is necessary!!

[wlyssa]

New subscriber and first-time viewer here! Thanks for the hot take and the realness of your financial situation. I know the feelings of frustration when it comes to finances, but I feel your resolution and commitment throughout this confession. I was in a similar place with my Discover CC debt - and I think I had an interest of close to 30%. It was a KILLER!! I made the decision to transfer that debt to a lower-interest personal loan through a local credit union, and it's been the best decision I've made. Seeing the majority of my payments actually go to the principal and not the interest is so satisfying, and I felt so competent in handling/taking ownership of my debts.

We will most definitely get through this. Sending you good vibes and positive energy as we enter 2024. Happy New Year!

[thomaschew]

Ok
I was one of those that commented on your first debt confession although I wasn't mean (which is out of character for me LOL) and I watched a number of your videos and concluded that you are not taking this seriously and stopped watching. Then the magic of the YT algorithm kicked in and I clicked. May I say that my sense is you are ready. You seem to now clearly see the gravity of the situation and you are no longer making excuses.

So
Good on you!

If I may, Sue (my spouse) and I are completely debt free including our mortgage and our kid's college, the part that was our responsibility and the part that was their responsibility is also paid off. We are what Dave Ramsey calls Baby Step 7 and The Money Guy step 9 on the FOO. I say this not to make you feel bad or brag rather to say that when we started our debt free journey that led to where we are now it was the third time we went on such a journey. The first two ended in failure and it was I believe because we were not serious, we were not ready.

I think that part of the "being ready" for us was that we were so mad at ourselves for having so much debt and that being pissed off about it was what really got the ball rolling.

If you are like me you might think about your personal finances like...all the time. When we had $136K of consumer debt the thinking was a bit grim. We still think about our finances all the time but we had debt for so long that it's hard to comprehend that we are debt free. We are always reading some kind of book on personal finances (we have about 45 books on the subject) but now we read more on investing because when you are not making debt payments you get to keep all your money! Wow!

Part of that is frugal living the other part is increasing income. For 2023 our savings rate was an astounding 50% I say this if, we can do it anyone can do it, we are not special. It took us 5 years to get out of the debt hole. 5 long miserable years but such a great feeling to be free of all that.

Keep at it! 👍👍👍

[thebudgetevolution]

Hi Reyler 👋 um a loan at 26k paying $282 you’ll pay the loan off before loan forgiveness 😅 Now that you have time… look for a cheaper car and a payment that is less than 10 of your salary which would be under $330 a month that saves you $100 per month that can go towards your cc debt. It’s time to make sacrifices in order to pull yourself ahead. Make a plan and move forward. The interest alone is killing you. I give you credit to announce your debt and your mistakes.

[Cristalcortes]

You should apply to be in Caleb hammers YouTube channel. Thank you for your honesty.

[CH-bitl]

You can't afford your loans if your parents are having to step in to pay it on your behalf. You seem pretty nonchalant about that fact. Public loan service forgiveness is only for the federal portion and majority of your student loans are private...yikes. plus almost 20k in credit cards... clearly was living above your means while they pay for student loans for you.

8% interest rate on a car is pretty normal nowadays. Pretty high loan balance for it. Hopefully you followed the 20/8/3 rule for buying a car. 20% down, monthly payment no more than 8% of monthly income and no financing for more than 3 years.

Glad you froze the credit cards so you aren't still spending on credit cards moving forward. You need to budget hard now going forward. Budget your paychecks and show yourself how you are tackling the debt. You may need to ramp up the side hustles to clear up a good bit of this mess in a reasonable amount of time.

[ellenstam-mulder]

i hope that you can pay off very fast your debt. i wish you all the good. being debt free is really great.