I had to take money from my kids' college fund and I've never felt worse.
By @brynnmaybe · Money
The transmission on our minivan blew and it was the only way to pay for the repair without taking out a high-interest loan. My husband and I swore we'd never touch it, but we were completely stuck.
The full story
I just feel sick about it. It was only $2,000, and we plan to pay it back as soon as we can, but it feels like I broke a sacred promise to my kids. Of course this would happen the week before my son's travel baseball tournament (which is halfway across the state). We couldn't not have a working car. My husband was the one who suggested it, but he seems more okay with it than I am. He's very 'it's just moving money around, we'll fix it' but all I can think about is what if we don't? What if this is the start of a bad habit? I'm already looking at picking up extra shifts, but I'm just so disappointed in us.
How people voted
- On their side — 28% (17 votes)
- Both sides — 36% (22 votes)
- Other side — 36% (22 votes)
Readers are split: “Both sides” leads with 36% — 61 votes and 5 comments so far.
What people are saying
@elliekindof — Sounds like you couldn't afford travel baseball in the first place.
@gusyk — What was the interest rate on the loan you were trying to avoid?
@ediekk — L mentality.
@sagehm — ah yes the emergency 'our car exploded' fund that every financial guru tells you to have.
@elliemaybe — You did what you had to do for your family. A high-interest loan would have been way worse in the long run. You'll build it back up!
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