While living debt free...

or ALMOST debt free, there is still financial things to contemplate.

Do you pay off your credit cards and pay them off like Dave Ramsey suggests? I love that man, and I can't stand that man. read more of my love-hate relationship with the Ramsey man here and here.

My point... if you are working to build credit, mantain good credit and keep a constant run on your credit then you MUST use credit cards. i know Dave Ramsey would die if he read this, but I hate to tell him that I am right. Take it from someone that is credit conscious and keeps an eye on my credit often, you have to use them some.

So while you are paying off debt, be careful before you throw the cards away or in the shredder. Pick one thing a month that you charge. For me, it's been my water bill. I charge it every month, get the bill from my credit card and then pay it. No interest charged, but for that month i got a "1" on my credit report. That's a GOOD thing.

Live debt free. do NOT be chained to the chairs of debt, but be smart about keeping your credit looking sharp and clean. you don't want to pay off debt, and then stop using any form of credit for 10 years and then go try to buy a house. the bank will NOT lend you the money because of the lapse in your credit report (that and other reasons like how the banks aren't giving money away period these days).

Be smart about it.

Any suggestions?