7 Steps To Eliminate Debt Page 1

7 Steps To Eliminate Debt

Many Americans today find themselves in large,
seemingly insurmountable amounts of debt They
ignore the problem until it threatens their financial health
and has huge negative effects on their life !earn ho"
to ta#e control no" and eliminate your debt by follo"ing
these seven easy steps and the best part is that it
"on$t cost you a dime to do so%
1. Use Common Sense
People fail to reali&e ho" much they have already
spent, and before they #no" it, they$re ma'ing out their
credit cards on a monthly basis The best "ay to #no"
(ust ho" much money you are spending is to pay for
everything in cash
This means using credit cards only for emergency
purposes, such as une'pected car e'penses and medical emergencies )y paying "ith cash,
you "ill gain a higher appreciation for every hard*earned dollar
2. Stop Impulse Buying
Do you really need that item+ ,nstead of buying it no" "ait a "ee# and see if you still "ant it
,f you "ant to free&e your debt, you must free&e your spending
3. Develop A Plan
There is an old saying in the financial "orld- ,f you fail to plan, you plan to fail This advice
applies to everyone, including family households
Start by developing a road plan that "ill ta#e you to debt*free &one .ou need to #no" ho"
much your total debt is and ho" long it "ill ta#e you to pay it off given your current payment
plan
The ne't process involves establishing a budget !ist all your revenues and #eep trac# of your
e'penses This "ill give you a better idea of ho" much money is coming in, ho" much money
you$re spending on different activities, and "hether or not you can sustain your current
spending habits
/nce you #no" e'actly ho" much you$re spending it$s time to cut bac# on unnecessary
e'penses Ta#e a close loo# at each e'pense and determine "hich ones can be eliminated
0se these free consultations- DebtMatch, Debt1enie, DebtProfessional
7 Steps To Eliminate Debt Page 2
.ou can then use that e'tra money to lo"er your debt
2utting bac# ta#es a lot of "illpo"er ,f you find it difficult to do so, , suggest you set up
e'pense (ars They "or# in a very simple manner- Set up a (ar for each main activity, such as
movies, clubbing, restaurants, fast food, gas, and so on
Every month, put cash into each (ar according to your budget /nce the money is gone, stop
that particular activity ,f there is money left over, apply it to reducing your debt As
rudimentary as it may seem, this techni3ue "or#s "onders
. !esea"#$ %oney&Saving 'ptions
!oo# for money*saving opportunities li#e lo" interest rates and credit card offers )efore
settling do"n "ith a creditor, shop around Most people are afraid of ban#s4 they thin# that it
is still as hard to get a ban# loan as it "as in the early $56s )ut today, most creditors are
eager to lend you money Don$t be afraid to negotiate the rates
,f you don$t have time to shop around and compare lending rates, you can al"ays chec# out
)an#7atecom .ou$ll get an instant loo# at the average rates on various types of cards, as
"ell as lin#s to the best credit card deals
2arefully loo# at these different plans Some credit cards allo" you to cut your interest in half
simply by paying an annual fee of 896 ,magine that- .ou pay 896 once a year and your
annual interest rate gets cut from :;< to =<
(. Ta)e A#tion
Ta#e these steps today and stic# "ith them Don$t be la&y Discipline is critical
*. Don+t Close C"e,it Ca", A##ounts
>hen you close your credit card accounts, you reduce your options As long as your current
credit card companies aren$t charging you any fees for inactivity, it$s in your best interest to
hang onto your accounts
The problem "ith closing accounts is that you$re at the mercy of "hatever credit cards you
decide to #eep That$s the e3uivalent of having to shop at one store no matter ho" good the
prices are else"here
Plus, "hen credit card companies notice that you$re not using them anymore, they$ll generally
send you an offer that saves you money
Al"ays #eep your options open and be ready to s"itch ban#s once you get a better offer
0se these free consultations- DebtMatch, Debt1enie, DebtProfessional
7 Steps To Eliminate Debt Page 3
7. Al-ays Pay 'n Time
The "orst thing you can do is ma#e late payments ,f you let the deadline pass, you$ll pay
interest on the full credit card balance as of the purchase date
The late fees hurt you immediately and "ould be better used to reduce your debt They$re
also a stri#e against your credit rating and future bargaining po"er
)y paying late, you also diminish your chances of getting the best rates and deals on a car
loan or a mortgage ,n the long run ** especially in the case of a mortgage ** that #ind of
negligence can cost you thousands of dollars
Also, in addition to these seven tips, you should also try the follo"ing-
?irst, you need to create a list of all your credit cards, including their balance, interest rate,
minimum payment, and last statement payment @o" rearrange that list so that the credit
card "ith the highest interest rate is at the top and the card "ith the lo"est interest rate is at
the bottom Aigh interest rates, especially on cards that you have a high balance on, are your
greatest concern
Second, add up the re3uired minimum payments for all of the cards Decide ho" much
money you can come up "ith each month in addition to the money needed to pay off the
minimum payments on all cards ,t is important that you find "ays to put aside more money
than needed for (ust the minimum payments or you "ill never be able to pay off your debt
@o", each month pay the minimum balance on each card, but on the card "ith the highest
interest rate pay the minimum balance plus all the e'tra money that you put aside in the e'tra
step 2ontinue to do this until the first card B"ith the highest interest rateC is payed off in full,
then apply this same principle to the ne't credit card
.ote- it is not a good idea to use one credit card to pay off another credit card$s debt%
Also, 2all every one of your credit card companies and re3uest a lo"er interest rate .ou may
be surprised at ho" 3uic#ly some of them "ill agree !o"er interest rates mean you can
eliminate your credit card debt more 3uic#ly "ithout increasing your payments
/inal Step
There are many free resources on the internet that help you analy&e and eliminate your debt
, suggest loo#ing into some of these offers-
DebtP"o0essional.net+s 0"ee ,ebt analysis p"og"am provide your &ip code,
estimated total debt, and email and have a specialist tal# "ith you about ho" to reduce
0se these free consultations- DebtMatch, Debt1enie, DebtProfessional
7 Steps To Eliminate Debt Page 4
or eliminate your debt
Debt 1enie+s 0"ee2 no obligation #onsultation similar to DebtProfessionalnet, it is
"orth trying out also !i#e above, provide your &ip code, estimated total debt, and
email address
Debt%at#$.net 0"ee ,ebt assessment fill out the form and their system "ill match
you "ith one or t"o specialists "ho "ill e'plain your options, and then you decide "hat
is best for you
0se these free consultations- DebtMatch, Debt1enie, DebtProfessional