How Do I Get Rid of My Credit Card Debt?
Many people who face financial difficulties are in their current state because their credit card debt is spiraling out of control. This happens to millions of people every year – an unexpected situation arises such as car repairs or medical costs, they don’t have the savings to cover it and they use a credit card to pay the bill.
Most soon realize that credit card payments are the most expensive money they’ll ever borrow, and many people simply do not understand how to get rid of their credit card debt. Below are a few suggestions of how to begin the process of wiping out this sort of debt forever.
Evaluate your debt – Every debt situation must involve obtaining a clear idea of just how much you’ll need to pay it off. This isn’t as easy as it sounds, as you’ll need to include calculations for the interest that accrues on your debt every month. However, you’ll need to do this in order to have a goal in place.
Assess your budget – It’s quite surprising how many people do not do this, but you’ll need to take the basic step of writing out what your net income is every month, deducting your required payments such as your mortgage/rent, car payments and food. After that, you’ll have an idea of what you can afford to spend on paying down your debt every month.
Get control of your spending – When people take a hard look at their monthly expenses, most can easily pick out several items that they can immediately eliminate from their spending. Examples include going out to lunch and/or dinner regularly, paying for high-priced coffee and unnecessary trips to the mall. If you’re constantly adding to your debt load, you’ll never get on top of it.
Save money – This may sound counterintuitive, as the reason you have credit card debt is likely because you didn’t have savings available in the first place. However, even if it’s $100 per month, every dollar saved will eliminate the need to spend that dollar with a credit card should future unforeseen circumstances arise.
Get moving – Now that you’ve gotten a picture of your financial situation, figure out what you can afford to send your credit card companies every month. Make sure you pay a higher amount than the interest that accrues (which is often more than the minimum required payment) so that your total debt is reduced.
