Budget Rehab: How to Stop Paying Only Interest and Make Real Progress on Credit Card Debt

NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast

NerdWallet Personal Finance

Education, Investing, Business, How To

4.3 • 893 Ratings

🗓️ 18 May 2026

⏱️ 27 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Learn how to tackle $25,000 in credit card debt and which payoff strategy could work best for your situation. How do you get out of $25,000 in credit card debt when minimum payments aren't making a dent? In this episode, hosts Sean Pyles, CFP®, and Elizabeth Ayoola sit down with listener Jessica, a Bay Area mom carrying three maxed-out credit cards with interest rates ranging from 11% to 24%. They walk through her real budget, including nearly $2,000 in rent, close to $1,200 in monthly transportation costs, and significant childcare expenses, to understand why her spending outpaces her income. They also explore what options could realistically help her make progress, from nonprofit credit counseling and debt management plans to whether a free bankruptcy consultation might be worth her time before committing to any path. Read through NerdWallet's guide to the best strategies for whittling down what you owe, depending on how much debt you have: https://www.nerdwallet.com/personal-loans/learn/pay-off-debt Want us to review your budget? Fill out this form — completely anonymously if you want — and we might feature your budget in a future segment! https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLScK53yAufsc4v5UpghhVfxtk2MoyooHzlSIRBnRxUPl3hKBig/viewform?usp=header To send the Nerds your money questions, call or text the Nerd hotline at 901-730-6373 or email podcast@nerdwallet.com. Like what you hear? Please leave us a review and tell a friend. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey Elizabeth, we have to talk about the newsletter.
0:04.0	What newsletter are you talking about, Sean? You mean the new, free, smart money email newsletter?
0:08.6	Yes, and I have to say it is so good.
0:11.4	It really is. It has clips, episode roundups, and behind the scenes takes from me, you, and our producer, the stuff that makes you feel like you're really part of the show.
0:20.4	And listeners, for the record, you actually are part of the show.
0:23.7	I'm going to be sharing personal stuff.
0:25.4	You know, I love sharing my business, and I'm going to be sharing parenting tips from an eight-year-old and a single mom perspective.
0:31.5	And I am loading up the newsletter with my favorite gardening tips and lots of cute photos from my garden, including my pets,
0:38.4	just napping among my flower beds. It's kind of adorable. And the best part is that this newsletter
0:43.8	is totally free. So head to nerdwollet.com slash podcast to sign up. For the record, that's
0:49.4	nerdwollet.com slash podcast. Come hang out with us. Imagine opening your account and seeing the same thing
0:56.7	month after month. You're making payments, but the balance is barely moving. That's where today's
1:02.6	listener is with $25,000 in debt and a big question. How do I pay it down and get ahead?
1:11.6	Welcome to NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast, where you send us your money questions and
1:15.2	we answer them with the help of our genius nerds.
1:17.6	I'm Sean Piles.
1:18.6	And I'm Elizabeth Ayola.
1:20.6	Now we have another listener question today.
1:22.9	We heard from the great wine that you guys love listener questions.
1:26.7	This episode's one comes from Jessica,
1:28.8	and she's actually joining us today. And she has a question about debt recovery. So we're going
1:34.1	to be doing a little bit of a debt rehab episode and looking at her budget and also looking at
	...

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