I started this thread to detail my journey through debt, particularly my credit card debt. I am happy to say that, as of yesterday, I am completely credit card debt free. What's more is that my wife and I are about to close on a house on July 12th. I used the early wihlthdrawal exception for IRAs, where you can withdraw up to $10k for the purchase of a home. We are only putting 3% down, but the house is almost 500k, so waiting to be able to put down 20% would have taken years.
My new branch manager job at my credit union has been going very well. I may even be transferred to a bigger branch since some people have left recently. I am currently commuting an hour each way, but, with my up-and-coming move to my new home, that is about to be cut down to about 2 to 8 minutes each way, depending on which branch I end up at in the next month or two. I'm lining myself up to ask for a raise at my six-month review, which should be in the $5k to 10k range. I'll have to get the pay scale for my position, but I'm just going off of % increase for lower positions' jump in pay as you go up the pay scale.
Now we just have to get my wife working in Bellingham so she isnt commuting to everett, which is going to be 1 to 1.5 hours each way, depending on traffic.
I am going to try to refinance my student loans once I close on the house. One issue I'm worried about is that half of my student loans (~$26k) are locked up in my parents' home equity line of credit, so I'm not sure if I will be able to wrap that up in a student loan or if I will have to pay that off in another way. I want to get that off of my parent's backs so I can be as independent from them as possible even though I have been paying on those loans.
Gonna be applying for a few more rewards credit cards too now that my credit score is around 775 and I dont have to worry about mortgage lenders questioning every inquiry. Vantage West credit union offers 5% back on Costco purchases. Fort Knox credit union has a 5% back on gas card, which also works at costco. Alliant credit union offers a 2.5% unlimited card with no foreign transaction fees for 99 a year, which beats out any 2% back card as long as you spend at least 20k a year on it (we spent 40k on our 2% card last year). Finally, we want the costco credit card, more so for the special deals it unlocks for TVs, appliances, tires, etc (like warranties, 15% cash back, extra discounts) rather than the 2% back on costco purchases or 4% back on gas since the previously mentioned cards make the costco credit card pale in comparison.