Will get there shortly. Thanks! We have all the tools necessary to do so... Such an exciting time for us. Outstanding debt will be dealt with swiftly and in totality, so no need to do that. What great advice though! Jumping on those books today. Already got some great ones per Ewing's suggestion and look forward to reading them all. No 401K for me not my wife - I'm a full-time art student and she works full-time. Thank you for the suggestions In desperate need of household discipline. One credit card only... My credit is too bad to get anything but secured cards, so that's the initial route we will take to boost scores. The intent is to use the new card(s), then pay it all off monthly. I'm glad we are on the same page. The rest will come with time. I'm taking notes and adding all these suggestions to a list so we can start checking things off quickly. Thanks for everyone's prompt replies so far. If there's anything that pops in your head please don't hesitate to add it here!
Yeah paying down debt, especially credit card stuff etc with high interest rates, should be a huge priority. And then I would highly recommend opening a second bank account to be used as an emergency fund... and a separate account because this makes it easy for you to separate what money is for use and what is for emergencies only. You don't need to have a lot there but it would certainly be useful to have enough to cover your living expenses for 2-3 months... just in case something bad happens. Once those two things are done then you should already be able to breath a little easier.
If you only read one book on investing, "The Intelligent Investor" by Ben Graham would be my first choice.
I last read this book a few centuries, err, decades ago. Good read, but I would recommend reading jt in a quiet location away from outside distractions. FWIW, The Intelligent Investor is now available in ebook form. I just grabbed it on loan from the local public library that uses the Overdrive app on my tablet. Let your fingers do the walking...
Great to see you here, and I hope that you find this site helpful to get you headed in the right direction. May I suggest Dave Ramsey's book "The Total Money Makeover"? It is a strategy book to help you accomplish these goals that you list here. I will issue a word of caution, it is not a quick fix, as there really isn't one, but if you are willing to put in the work and stay focused on your goals, this is a plan that will change your life.
Well, I hope you will find this forum instructional Go Away and Atlanta. It is nice to have current information at our fingertips and to be able to learn what to do and not to do in terms of stocks and bonds or at least suggestions. This is a great forum to ask questions as some of the people that are located on here are financial experts who can help you with your needs.