{"id":3957224,"date":"2024-04-11T18:52:15","date_gmt":"2024-04-12T01:52:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mynorthwest.com\/?p=3957224"},"modified":"2024-04-12T15:22:16","modified_gmt":"2024-04-12T22:22:16","slug":"gee-and-ursula-living-in-the-moment-debt-hosts-talk-funflation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mynorthwest.com\/3957224\/gee-and-ursula-living-in-the-moment-debt-hosts-talk-funflation\/","title":{"rendered":"Is living in the moment causing debt? Tips to curb ‘funflation’"},"content":{"rendered":"

Just as Americans are getting into spring break and ready to revel in summer activities comes a warning about “funflation.” A Bankrate survey shows<\/a> even the cost of having fun has increased as people go into debt to enjoy life.<\/p>\n

Bankrate Senior Industry Analyst Ted Rossman said overall, prices have increased about 20% since the pandemic, but you are likely paying even more for discretionary items.<\/p>\n

“Things like airline tickets, hotel rooms, concert tickets, dining out, I mean these are all things that have grown more rapidly than the overall price growth we’ve seen,” Rossman said.<\/p>\n

But, Rossman insisted he’s not trying to be a killjoy.<\/p>\n

Jack and Spike video<\/strong>: Inflation is hitting fast food. That’s a good thing!<\/a><\/p>\n

“I always try to be careful when I talk about this because I don’t want to tell people you can’t have any fun, but I do want to warn about the dangers of credit card debt,” he said.<\/p>\n

Rossman said the average credit card interest rate is at a record high of 20.75%. Nationally, Americans owe $1.13 trillion on their credit cards.<\/p>\n

“To put it in a little bit of context, that figure is up 47% from the beginning of 2021,” Rossman said.<\/p>\n

Set aside money to fund your fun<\/h2>\n

Yes, there’s still some post-pandemic, pent-up demand. So, he suggested doing a few things to help fund your fun.<\/p>\n

First, set up an entertainment fund by putting money aside every month.<\/p>\n

“Things are going to come up. And it’s good things, right? You get invited to a wedding, or a concert, or a sports event or something. We want to be able to do these things, but we don’t want to put it on a credit card and finance that forever and ever,” he explained.<\/p>\n

More news: <\/strong>Surging home prices prolong Seattle’s ‘bidding wars’ era<\/a><\/p>\n

Next, he said to tap into unused gift cards, airline miles or credit card reward points. But if you have a cash-back or rewards credit card, remember to pay it off every month.<\/p>\n

“It doesn’t make sense to pay 20% in interest, just to get 1% or 2% or even 5% in cash back or airline miles,” Rossman explained.<\/p>\n

He said the perks don’t make up for what you’re paying in interest.<\/p>\n

Ursula says she’ll spend the money to travel<\/h2>\n

Ursula Reutin, host of “The Gee and Ursula Show”<\/a> on KIRO Newsradio, said Rossman offered great advice, especially when it came to unused gift cards.<\/p>\n