Bridging The Gaap

www.dollarbuydollar.com

What’s it all about?

Through his blog, Dollar Buy Dollar, “Fellows” depicts much of his day to day life trying to pay back his not insignificant debts. As most of his debt is credit card debt, the majority of interactions in attempting to repay are with with credit card companies and their associated legal departments. Though not intended as professional advice, such information is extremely helpful to both those in debt and those who are not.

For those who are currently in debt, the information in many of Fellows’ posts may help you work with the credit companies to help you pay back your debt (yes, they WILL work with you…sometimes). For those not currently in debt, it never hurts to know a little bit more about how these companies work, and how you can avoid trouble with them.

What attracted me to the site

This was the first blog I ever saw about debt repayment, after having seen a report on it on CNN.

Reading Dollar Buy Dollar also has a more therapeutic edge to it; if you are in debt, or at risk of becoming in debt, and feel alone in your experiences, reading Dollar Buy Dollar may help give the sense that one is not alone, as Fellows is reporting literally from the frontlines of debt repayment. For a good example, check out this post.

Lessons to be taken from the site:

As with any debt blog, Dollar Buy Dollar also serves as a cautionary tale. One of the most pertinent lessons I have taken away from the site is the story of HOW Fellows became so deeply indebted.

Turns out, it’s practically all credit card debt, one of the worst kind you can have (second only to payday loans, likely). Fellows’ credit card woes began in college, and continued into his twenties where “credit started to become a ‘lifestyle’”. For more information read this post on Dollar Buy Dollar.

An expensive marriage and a return to school without a return to the student lifestyle also contributed to a total of about 70,000$ of debt before fellows began paying it off.

The Final Word:

I like Dollar Buy Dollar, I like Fellows, and better yet, I like that he has learned form his mistakes, and in so learning, is helping people learn about their finances in his own way.

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