Credit Card Debt by

mrmonin — 2013-09-11 00:46:29 UTC

2013-09-11 00:51:32 UTC

mrmonin — 2013-09-11 14:09:34 UTC

Avoiding Credit Card Debt

In order to avoid credit card debt you need to manage your finances. First of all,you need to calculate your monthly income and essential expenses. After that,

add five to ten percent of your income to set aside for emergencies and necessary savings. Basically, the goal is to save up enough money so you can stay away from credit card debt. If you need help trying to keep track of your money, you can always get budget counseling service.

If you have to get a credit card, make sure you pick out the right one. Get a credit card that has little fees and a low interest rate, and always be sure to read the fine print to learn how to earn rewards. You also need to learn how long of a grace period you have.

Another good piece of advice is not to spend more money than what you have. Also remember to pay the balance in full. When you pay before the actual date, you will end up saving money on interest. This is because any interest you pay is calculated based on average daily balance.

Also remember to use your credit card like cash. Be in control of your credit card. Be careful to remember that cash advances come with a much higher interest rate, fee, and no grace period. The moment you take a cash advance, you start paying interest on that balance. Even if you pay the entire balance in full each month, you will still have to pay interest.

Credit card advertising companies are targeting children of younger ages. The availability of credit cards has caused the increase in credit card debt problems: since 1960’s (when credit cards became more available to the average consumer) the availability of credit cards has spiked and today’s consumers now view 300-400 advertisements a day. The age number continues to drop, so it's imperative that we teach children about credit cards, and also what can happen when they're used improperly.

Eliminating Credit Card Debt

hannahgeary95 — 2013-09-11 14:28:41 UTC

One of the biggest problems in the US is credit card debt. The interest rate on a credit card balance is usually between 10-30% APR. Fortunately, there’s an easy 7-step process that can be used to get out of it. First, make a list of all your cards, along with your outstanding balance, interest rate and minimum payment. Next, order the cards from the highest to the lowest by interest rate. After that, you need to total your minimum payments. Then, examine your monthly budget and see how much extra money is left over. Next you need to pay the minimum on each card except for the one with the highest interest rate- whatever money you came up with in the previous step is applied to that card. Continue this until the card with the highest interest is finally paid off, and then move onto the next highest. Finally, continue with these steps until you have paid off all your cards.

Now, why does this method work? To understand, you need to know about minimum payments. Those payments are a percentage of your outstanding balance. This means that as your balance decreases, so does the payment. With the stated method, it pays off the cards by stabilizing your monthly payment, regardless of your balance.
While this method works, there’s a few different ways to make it work faster. The first thing you need to do is ask about getting your rate lowered. It costs nothing, and the worst thing that can happen is you could get declined. Also, remember to balance transfers, and keep in mind that the process to paying off your debt will still take time. There’s no cure-all for credit card debt, and there never will be. However, by following these steps, you can turn what would take up to ten years, into ten months.

Bryan DeFoe

www_belbivdef75 — 2013-09-11 14:43:37 UTC

mrmonin — 2013-09-11 14:43:40 UTC