1. How might Carrie go about establishing a debt limit?

2. What two or three things can she do help keep her student debt under control?

3. What can Carrie do to build a good credit history?

4. Getting a free copy of her credit report?

Carrie Savarin, age 25, is a nurse practitioner with the local health department. She earns $65,000 per year, with about $9000 of her income coming from overtime pay. Her disposable income is about $3300 per month. Her employer provides a qualified tax-sheltered retirement plan to which Carrie contributes 4 percent of her salary and for which she receives an additional 4 percent matching contribution from her employer. (She could contribute up to 6 percent with an equal employer match.) Carrie has $19,000 in outstanding student loans on which she will pay $354 per month over the next five years, and her total credit card debt is $3000 on which she has been paying $120 per month. Otherwise, she is debt free. Carrie would like to purchase a new or late-model used car to replace the car she has been driving since her senior year in high school. She has $2000 to use as a down payment