<prompt> Human: I posted this a while back and got great advice and tips. Turns out I counted my chips while they were still on the table and this windfall, directly impacted by the price of oil, has turned out to be 22,000 instead of 30,000. As it stands right, now my family has 20,000 of credit card debt, a roof that will need replacing sooner rather than later and we have liquid cash of 22,500. We spent all of last year being house poor due to unexpected expenses and I cant put myself or wife through that again. We need peace of mins. I plan on paying the higher APR credit card balance of 10k today but I am at a loss of what to do next? If I payoff the other 10k balance, ill free up more money that is going towards minimum payments, but it might put me back in the same position. it is scary only having a grand or so as an emergency fund. i know so many other people would kill for a 20k windfall, i understand its a blessing and bail out that most people wont receive. edit: thanks for all the replies! I think we are going to pay it all off. Assistant: Im glad to see you didnt increase your credit card debt from last month. That shows discipline even when you knew a big check was coming.If you didnt pay down the other 10k balance at 12 interest, what would you do with the money? What are your other needs? The 10k balance costs 100 a month in interest.Human: I would just let the money sit and set up auto payments more than minimum payment. It wold be purely peace of mind  <response>: You would still have an emergency fund of 2,500. I would pay it off in full, then use the saved monthly payments to go in to the emergency fund.If your house needs repairs, set a savings goal and save the money separately from your emergency fund. Spend less or earn more in order to get to that goal faster. When the goal is met, use the money to repair a particular problem with the house. Get quotes and plan for extra costs so that you know you can cover the renovationrepair with cash once you begin. e.g. If your previous projects that you thought were going to cost 1,500 cost 2,000, and 500 cost 750, plan for 25-50 overruns for your next project. This can help you avoid heading to credit cards. 