Savvy Senior: Strategies for paying off credit card debt
by Jim Miller
Dear Savvy Senior, My husband and I, who are retired, have accumulated about $7,000 in credit card debt over the past few years and need some help paying it off. What can you tell us?
Living Underwater
Dear Living, I’m sorry to hear about your financial woes but know that you’re not alone. Credit card debt has become a big problem in this country for millions of older Americans. According to a recent AARP report, 52 percent of adults ages 50 to 64 have credit card debt, along with 42 percent of those ages 65 to 74. Rising costs of basic expenses like food, housing, utilities and health care are the main culprits. But now, new tariffs on products made in China and other foreign countries will make many goods more expensive, which could make this problem worse. Of older adults carrying a balance, nearly half owe $5,000 or
TRANSIT
From page 1
more, and nearly a third owe upwards of $10,000. While paying off credit card debt can feel overwhelming, it’s doable with a solid plan and a bit of belttightening and persistence. Here are some strategies to help you tackle it:
CREATE A BUDGET
Start by taking a close look at your income and expenses to see where you can free up money to put toward your credit card debt. Also look for areas to reduce spending, such as
the growth was “because of migration to downtown” for new jobs at Amazon and other companies as Seattle experienced a tech boom.
However, in 2020 during the lockdowns, ridership fell to 15.5 million, a 67% decrease in boardings. Consequently, fare revenue also plunged from $96.9 million in 2019 to just $30.6 million in 2020, a 68% decrease.
However, from there ridership and fare revenues experienced separate trends. Although ridership increased slightly in 2021 to 17.4 million, fares actually decreased to $28.1 million. While both ridership and revenue increased in 2022, they did so at separate rates; ridership jumped by 83% compared to 2021, while fare revenue increased by just 60%.
According to Sound Transit’s 2022 fare revenue report “in past years, ridership and fare revenue were closely linked, with similar increases or decreases. The main cause of the difference is lower fare payment compliance – particularly on Link light rail – when compared to pre-pandemic levels.”
Sound Transit Media Relations Manager John Gallagher wrote in an email to The Center Square that the agency’s board “has made farebox recovering a priority, which is why we established our fare ambassador program to check fares onboard. Fare checking was suspended during the pandemic, and we recognized the need to re-establish the importance of paying to ride. We have continued to expand the fare ambassador program so that riders will be reminded of the expectation that they should pay and will do so.”
Ridership as of 2023 had increased to 37.3 million, while revenue has increased to $51.8 million. While that represents a recovery for both compared to 2020-2021, they are below 2019’s 46.9 million boardings and $96.9 million in fare revenue. That puts ridership 20% below 2019, while fare revenue generated is 47% below 2019.
O’Toole attributes this to the fact that many workers never returned to their workplace and continue to work remotely. While the percentage of employees working remotely isn’t as high as it
dining out, entertainment or subscriptions. And see if you’re eligible for any financial assistance programs (see BenefitsCheckUp.org) that can help boost your budget by paying for things like food, utilities, medicine and health care.
CALL THE CARD COMPANY
While the average creditcard interest rate is more than 20 percent, some credit card companies may be willing to lower your interest rate or work out a payment
plan, especially if you’re struggling. It doesn’t hurt to ask.
PAY MORE THAN THE MINIMUM
Credit card companies only require the minimum payment, but it’s usually mostly interest. Try to pay more than the minimum every month to make a dent in the principal balance.
CHOOSE A REPAYMENT STRATEGY
If you have more than one credit card, pick one and get
was during the pandemic, “it’s still going to stay a lot higher than 5%,” which was the pre-pandemic amount.
“Instead of having transit system that respond to economic changes, transit agencies try and force economic changes on people so that people’s lifestyles fit the transit system’s they’ve designed, rather than designing transit system to fit people’s lifestyles,” he said.
The lower ridership and fares compared to pre-pandemic levels comes despite the expansion of Sound Transit services. In 2023, the regional transit agency extended the T Line by 2.4 miles to the Stadium District and the Hilltop area.
Last year, the agency opened the initial segment of a Link 2 Line light rail service between Bellevue and Redmond as part of the East Link Extension. In August, the Lynnwood Link Extension opened, adding 8.5 miles of light rail line and four stations.
When asked about current annual boarding volumes, Gallagher wrote in an email that “ridership varies across different modes,” noting that Sounder and ST Express are “more heavily dependent on a commuter riders, and as such have been slower to recover as the return-to-office has been slower.”
He also noted that Link ridership overall is now above 2019 levels “which tells us that people are using Link to get around not just to work, but more generally to events and day-to-day activities.”
“Overall, we continue to see steady growth in ridership,” he added.
When it comes to recovery since the pandemic, Sound Transit’s faring better than other major transit systems nationwide. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority New York City in 2019 had 2.4 billion total boardings on its subways and buses. As of 2023, that figure had fallen to 1.57 billion. In 2023, the Chicago Transit Authority had 279 million passenger trips compared to 455.7 million trips in 2019.
One system that has rebounded as well as Sound Transit is the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which had 284.9 million annual boardings on its bus and rail services, compared to 347.7 million in 2019.
Yet, O’Toole argues that “transit agencies
serious about paying it off. Start with the card that carries the highest interest rate, or the one with the smallest balance.
If you focus on paying off the card with the highest interest rate first, you’ll pay less interest over time, saving yourself a lot of money. Once the highest-interest card is paid off, move to the next highest, and so on. Or you may want to start with the card with the smallest balance. Paying off smaller debts quickly can give you a sense of accomplishment and motivate you to keep going.
CONSOLIDATE YOUR DEBT
If you have multiple high-interest cards, look into consolidating your debt with a low-interest personal loan from your bank or credit union. Or consider moving your debts to a balance transfer credit card with 0 percent interest for an introductory period, which is usually 15, 18 or 21 months. This will eliminate the amount of interest you’re paying temporarily. But be careful! Once the
weren’t working for people before the pandemic for people who don’t work downtown. Sound Transit was building a transit system that didn’t work for 95% of workers that worked anywhere other than downtown. It’s really inexcusable that we’re spending all of this money subsidizing transit ... that basically serves only downtown workers.”
The problem with making reforms, O’Toole says, is that transit funding models aren’t dependent on having riders. For example, Sound Transit’s fare revenue makes up just 2% of its annual budget compared to 63% coming from local tax sources.
“Right now, transit agencies are trying to figure out how to work the political system to extort taxpayer money to keep operating higher levels despite lower ridership,” O’Toole said. “Transit riders contribution to transit agency budgets have become so small. They really don’t care about the riders anymore.”
While Sound Transit didn't comment on any plans it has to increase ridership beyond 2019 levels or how it might impact future projects, Kevin Wallace told The Center Square that ridership data should give the agency’s board members pause.
Wallace is the president of Bellevue-based property developer Wallace Properties and was involved with negotiations with Sound Transit on the East Link connection while serving on the Bellevue City Council.
“We put all these eggs in this basket,” he said. “It’s important that it functions.”
He added that if ridership demand isn't high enough, “it’s time for a rethink of ST3 that hasn’t been built. How can you expect it [light rail] to work in the low-density areas like Issaquah and Everett?
“This whole thing is so political,” he said. “We made the infrastructure investments. What’s unfortunate now is what we invested in, is proving to not be as viable as we once thought. That’s the question for everybody, especially the electeds [Sound Transit Board of Directors]: Why is nobody changing course and instead pushing to go into areas where we know it will be even less effective?”
introductory promotion ends, the card company will charge interest on any remaining balance.
CONSIDER A DEBT MANAGEMENT PLAN
If you need more help, use a nonprofit credit counseling agency (see NFCC. org) to create a debt management plan for you. At no cost, a counselor will go over your income and debts and determine what’s workable. The counselor will then negotiate with your lenders, to get a payment plan that will lower your interest and monthly payments and maybe forgive some debt.
If you accept their negotiated offer, you’ll start making one monthly payment to the counseling service, which will in turn pay the issuers. You’ll likely pay the agency a small fee and give up the cards included in the plan, but over time you’ll be able to pay off your debt.
Send your questions or comments to questions@ savvysenior.org, or to Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.
POLICE
From page 1
The Center Square previously reported on Seattle Police Department staffing levels reaching its lowest levels in some 30 years in March 2024. However, a turnover of city council members saw a higher prioritization of police staffing and a slew of legislation to the effect.
In 2024, the Seattle City Council ultimately approved a maximum hiring bonus of $50,000 to lateral hires and $7,500 for new recruits, agreed to a new police contract with the Seattle Police Officers Guild that raises wages for rank-and-file officers, reduced hiring wait time to three to five months, and increased the department’s advertising budget to $2.5 million in 2025 to reach more potential recruits.
“After passing more than a dozen public safety bills last year, I am pleased to see the impacts we as a city are having that can help make residents feel safe,” said Seattle City Councilmember and Public Safety Committee Chair Bob Kettle.
Pay for new recruits starts at $103,000 a year. Lateral transfers see base salaries start at $116,000. The median household income in Seattle is approximately $122,000, according to U.S. Census data.
