Lack of Debt Buys Happiness ?

by bigcajunman last updated on November 29, 2021

Another oldie but goodie on Money not being the root of all evil (DEBT is).

Thus lack of debt must assuredly make you happy?

My honest opinion on the Money and happiness thing is:

Lack of Debt makes you VERY happy

Now you might think that is the same thing as “Money can buy happiness,” but no, not at all (in my estimation). Money buying happiness is the diametric opposite of my pithy concept, since buying things is where DEBT (BOO!) comes from (well, buying and not paying for it). I suppose if you had enough Money to pay for all your things and stay out of debt, you could be delighted, but my guess is there are not that many folks out there like that.

Think of it, every time you look at your pay stub (if you are out of debt), most (if not all) that Money is yours. You have to pay your monthly bills, but you don’t have to take what is left and figure out how to service your debt. You can instead plan on how to save it (the opposite of servicing the debt). How can this not make you happy?

No, I am not saying that all folks out of debt are happy (people can find ways to be miserable no matter their circumstance), but I am telling you to have one less thing to make you UNhappy if you are out of debt.

originally published on April 3, 2013 { 11 comments }

Mike Carlson April 6, 2013, 10:47 AM

We can easily avoid debt if we choose to live a life that is simpler and less complicated. We are just too stubborn to accept the fact that we have to live a life that only our income can afford.

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Matt April 4, 2013, 10:58 AM

Having debt is a burden that just causes angst and compounds problems – being out of debt just means you have one less thing that will help you be as miserable or happy as you want to be.

Money is nothing more than a tool that can be used for either good or bad(aka debt).

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Bet Crooks April 4, 2013, 7:11 AM

When we paid off the mortgage there was a huge feeling of freedom. For example, it meant my husband could honestly feel that if he wanted to quit work and try his luck somewhere else, he could. I think lack of debt is much more likely to result in happiness than having more money is.

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Money Beagle April 3, 2013, 12:32 PM

Every debt you reduce gives you extra freedom associated with the payment you no longer have to make. I think right there gives you a level of happiness. The variable in play is what level of happiness that gives you. For some people, it’s huge. For others, they could take it or leave it.

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- bigcajunman April 3, 2013, 1:29 PM
  
  Debt makes you unhappy, I think that is a mostly shared opinion, but yes, there are folks without debt that are not happy.
  
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Jane Savers @ The Money Puzzle April 3, 2013, 7:22 AM

I hate my debt, all $18,233 of it. I am working so hard to make it disappear but the process is slow and frustrating.

My debt makes me feel like I am in a holding pattern and life won’t start until I am free from the burden.

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- bigcajunman April 3, 2013, 8:22 AM
  
  So NOT having it will make you happier? QED
  
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  - Jane Savers @ The Money Puzzle April 4, 2013, 7:26 PM
    
    My Latin continues to rust but I do agree with your conclusion and I am sure that you are too much of a gentleman to have used the modern definition of QED which would have been appropriate after the whiney nature of my original comment.
    
    Reply
    - bigcajunman April 4, 2013, 8:19 PM
      
      WTF? QED is rude now? What do mathematicians say at the end of a proof now? TIL that QED is NSFW! WTF?
    - Jane Savers @ The Money Puzzle April 4, 2013, 8:31 PM
      
      Quite Easily Done. A put down according to my son.
      I had to Google NSFW and TIL. I do not text and my slang vocabulary is lacking in depth.
    - bigcajunman April 5, 2013, 8:30 AM
      
      Quite Easily Done? That is not NSFW, what a let down, in fact that was the nickname we had in Deductive Geometry for that expression.