Credit….

It seems to me that too many people rely on credit to live their lives. We use credit to buy homes, cars, clothes, entertainment and even food. We believe that we should be able to have what we want right now and will use other people’s money to get it right now. I think that most people don’t realize that when you buy something with credit you pay so much more for that particular item. That’s why I think it’s crazy to pay for the food you eat every week with a credit card, especially if you don’t pay it off every month.

There are so many people out there right now who don’t know how to get themselves out of the hole they dug themselves into. This is where debt management and debt consolidation come into play. Sometime you just have to admit that you need help to get yourself out of debt. You might even want to take a moment to find out what an IVA (Individual Voluntary Arrangement) is and maybe learn about organizations who specialize in helping you get out of debt.

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A lot of people believe that Money is the root of all Evil. It is true that more than 50% of marriages in America end in divorce. There is also the fact that most divorces are either caused by unfaithfulness or arguments about Money. I will have to say that I agree that money is a terrible necessity. You have to have it in order to live, but the more you have, (usually) the more money you spend. The more money you spend, the more money you need. The more money you need, the more debt you could get yourself into. It is just a horrible circle that nearly everyone gets into.

So, now you are going to ask me, “How do I keep Money from ruling my life? How do I get out of that circle?” The only real answer that I can give you is, “Don’t spend more than you earn.” I know, it’s easier said than done, but I strongly believe that if you can get to the point where you are only spending 80% of your paycheck every month, you will pretty much be set for life.

The reason that most people get into a circle that allows money to rule over them is because they spend it on things they really cannot afford. Then they spend the rest of their life trying to pay for that one thing that they really didn’t need in the first place. For instance, don’t buy a brand new $24,000 Mustang, when you can get a year old used Focus for $11,000. It will still get you from point A to Point B like the Mustang would and you will have it paid for in a lot less time. Then you can save the money every month that you would be normally paying for the Focus and then you can buy that Mustang in cash.

Buy what you can afford, not what you want. If you always bought what you wanted, then you would be in debt up to your eyeballs.

Pay off your credit cards. If you have to stay home with no cable, no internet or no cell phone for a year to do it, then that is what you should do. It may be a difficult sacrifice, but it will be worth it when you don’t have to make payments every month on a pizza you bought six months ago. Who knows, maybe you will be able to get that novel written that you have always wanted to write, sell it to a publisher and get royalty checks for the rest of your life.

I know, I have rambled on about nothing, but it seems that too many people out there are a slave to their finances. I don’t want to see people having to work till they’re dead because they spent more than they ever earned. Hold back and give yourself time to think before making any purchase. You will be glad that you did.

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.

The easiest way to pay off you debt is to pay for the debt that has the highest interest rate first. If you have 3 credit cards, the fist being $1,000 with an interest rate of 12% per year, the second at $2,000 at 36% per year and the third car is at $3,000 at 24% per year. If you pay the minimum payments for the two credit cards with the lowest interest rates and put as much as you can towards the credit card with the highest interest rate, you will pay off all you debt in no time.

You could pay off the lowest debts first. It would feel better because you are paying off credit cards, but it will take longer to pay off all of them. Try and change around the payments in this example and see the difference.

If you take the following example, each month the annual percentage rate is divided by 12 then add 1. You will get what to multiply to your balance every month. If you take the same example and on a separate sheet of paper write down what you owe to your credit cards and other loans, subtract what you can afford to pay every month, then you will have a rough estimate to how long it will take you to pay off your own debt.

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.

We will get to how to pay off your debt the fastest way possible in a moment, but I want to take a few seconds to go over the different kinds of debt as I see them.

I believe there are three kinds of debt. The first is Good Debt. This is debt that actually makes money for you. Examples of this type of debt include a home loan or a business loan. Anything that is going to appreciate over time or at least hold its value is what I would consider good debt. The best kind of debt is definitely a home loan. This is something that you buy that is proven to go up in value over time (as long as you take care of it and keep up with the maintenance). A home is something that acts like a payment to yourself. When you pay rent for a place to live, you are basically giving your money away to someone else. When you pay for a mortgage, you are paying for something that you will be able to sell latter for a profit, or at least get the money that you spent on the mortgage back. This could also be said for a business loan, but it is a little more risky as most businesses do not make it through the first year.

Now a Car would not be considered Good Debt. A car would fall into my next category, Nearly Bad Debt. Most people need a car. They need it to get back and forth to work. The problem is that for the most part (Unless you buy a Jeep or a Harley) any car will instantly depreciate as soon as you drive it off the lot, especially if you buy it new. Any loan you have for this investment will not be returned in monetary means like a house will. You can look at a car as a means to make more money. It gets you to work and back pretty reliably There are a few people out there who are fortunate enough to live within walking distance from their jobs, or do not have a problem taking public transportation. This is an alternative to investing in a car you may not be able to afford.

Finally, there is just plain Bad debt. This is anything you place on a credit card and don’t intend on paying back right away. The credit card itself is not bad debt. If you pay it off every month, it does not cost you a thing. If you let it hold a balance, you will be charged extra money that you really should not have to pay. This kind of debt actually costs you more and more money every month you leave a balance, needlessly.

My advice to you is to pay off all your credit cards as soon as possible and don’t use them unless you can pay them off every month.

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.

Now that you know what you spend every month, it is time to see if you can really afford what you spend. Take a moment and go get your pay stubs for this month, any kind of work that you do on a regular basis that will add to you monthly income. You don’t want to add any money that you only receive once or every few months, like gifts from family or an inheritance or even that once in a while job you take just to make ends meet. If you can’t depend on it, then it is not regular income. I know that there are a few of you who work by the job and that your income is not the same every month. You are going to want to write an average amount for your monthly income. Don’t cheat. You want the numbers to be as accurate as possible.

We are going to use a 4 week month. This will allow you to get an extra month of paychecks a year.

If you have a positive number, that is a good thing. If you have a negative number, you are in trouble and may want to again seek Professional Financial Help.

My suggestion for those of you who are spending more than what they bring in, is that you go over the list from the How Deep Does Your Debt Pit Go? article and try to figure out what items you can cut back on or eliminate all together. Most people don’t need cable, or a cell phone, or the internet. Most people can cut out the amount of time they spend eating out or renting movies. If you can live without it, try to eliminate it from your life. You don’t have to go without it forever, just until you have your debt paid off and you can afford to have it in your life. You must do what you have to do to live within your means.

I have seen people trade in a new car that they just bought for a used car that they were able to buy free and clear for a couple of thousand dollars. It may mean you will have to pay a little more on car maintenance every month, but they didn’t have that car payment looming over their head all the time. I have seen other people sell their home and buy a smaller home that is more in their price range. Sometimes you must make sacrifices in order to put your family in a better position.

Take some time and look at what you spend each and every month. Start subtracting things that you don’t really need or can live without for a while. When all your debt is paid off, you will find that the sacrifices you made were worth the trouble.

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.

Now that you have Committed yourself to stop spending money, it is time to see how deep your Debt Pit Goes. So now, I want you to stop reading here and go gather all your current Credit Card Statements, your Car Payment Book, Your Loan Statements, even your Mortgage Statement. Then Come back and read on.

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Did you get them all? Don’t Cheat. That one, too. The Sears and Gas Cards do count as Credit Cards.

OK. What we need is to Write Down the Outstanding Balance, the minimum Payment and the Interest Rate for Each Debt.

If you have More than 5 Credit Cards, You definitely have a spending problem. You should seek Professional Financial Help.

Now write down any large sums of money you may owe a friend or family

You really should pay the Friend or Family Loan first. They may not be charging you interest, but it will cost you respect and trust in the long run.
Now that you have the totals for all you debt, lets add it all up and see how deep your Debt Pit Goes.

OK. Go ahead. It is OK to Cry.

Do you have any idea what you spend every month? If you are having problems paying your bills, then you probably have no idea. Then we need to find out what your regular expenses are every month. Put an honest number next to each item below and add them up.
Each Month, What do you spend on:

If you have problems accounting for all of your expenses every month, take a couple of weeks and keep a log of what you spend (absolutely everything you spend). Then go ahead and fill this out a little more honestly.

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.

For the most part Credit can be a very strong ally. You must have credit to buy a house, a car, or anything else that requires a loan. So, unless you have a whole mess of cash lying around, you pretty much need credit and a credit history.

The bad thing is, Credit is money that does not belong to you. It is money that will have to be paid. What credit card companies want you to believe is that you are worth the amount of the line of credit they give to you. I can’t say this loud enough…. YOU ARE NOT WORTH ANYTHING BUT WHAT IS ON YOUR PAYCHECK!!!! So why are you going to spend more than you make?

I know, I know. “What about a Mortgage or a Car Loan?” Well, Frankly, You really should not be spending anything you don’t already have. A house is an investment. It retains its value for the most part. But paying a $1600 Mortgage payment when you only make $2000 a month is just not all that smart. We will come back to the mortgage in a later chapter. As for your car, it is an investment, too. The car itself does not retain its value unless you own a Jeep or a Harley (I’m not promoting either of those. Jeeps burn too much Gas and Harleys.. Well, I had a friend die on one a few months ago (April 2005), but reliability is a necessity. You have to ride that fine line. Buying a new car for a crazy amount, or driving the used car you already own and saving what you would be spending on the loan payment (so you will have more in the bank for a down payment, while saving more on interest and paying the new car off faster) while trying to keep the used car in good working order (maintenance, maintenance, maintenance), in other words reliable. Again, more on the car loan later.

OK, Back to the Credit Cards. They are Evil! E-V-I-L!!!! Why? Because they are spring loaded traps. They get you to spend money that you don’t have and make you pay more when you can’t pay them back. See… Pure EVIL!

I say… Cancel all your credit cards except for two. Keep one Mastercard and one Visa, preferably ones that pay you back in one form or another. After you cancel the others (of course you cannot cancel the ones that still have a balance. More on that later), then cut them up and throw them out. From the two you have left, one goes in your wallet and the other goes into a safe place in the house for emergencies.

There are now two ways you can use your two remaining credit cards. The first is to never use them again. This is for those who cannot control themselves when they are out shopping. Those of you who are impulse buyers, you must use cash from now on. And those ATM cards, the first time you overdraw on your check card, I don’t think you will be using it again without thinking.

The second way you can use your card is to pay it off every month. This is for those of you who are more responsible. I like this way because it keeps everything on one bill. But, until you get used to your spending habits, you may find paying the bill off each month will hurt your checkbook a bit. That is ok. If you can struggle by paying the higher bill, you will be less likely to run it up that high again. If you find that you don’t pay if off every month then go back to the first option. Don’t use your credit cards again. (leave them for emergencies, and NO, those black 4-inch heels are not considered an emergency!)

Go back to the How to Eliminate Your Debt Page.