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Further
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Cyber Speed And the Speed of Thought - Kerry Harrington
Cyber Speed And the Speed of Thought Copyright© 2003 The Wealth Writer eZine. Word count 498 Marketers on the Internet often overlook the fact that any potential customer arriving at their website is travelling at cyber speed or the speed of...
Speak With E's Part 1 - Sandra Schrift
“Educate, Energize, Entertain, and provide an experience for your audience” 1. The most important objective of any speaker is to appear credible and knowledgeable about the subject. 2. Embrace your audience. Remember, it is about them, not...
9 Pointer for Evaluating a Business Proposal - Ray Burton
Finding a business opportunity on the net is easy. But evaluating the right one for you, takes a little knowledge. With so many scams, takers and failed ventures you need a little more than the, "highest dollar for the least amount of work"...
An opportunity called Home Business - Arun Pal Singh
Opportunity has strange ways of presentation. While you may search heavily for it everywhere, it will stand there silently, waiting to be found. It will not knock your door or pat on your back to grab your attention. It will stand there; appear in...
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5 Surefire Ways To Eliminate Credit Card Debt
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Written By:
Wes Atkins
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Do you have enormous credit card debt? You are certainly not alone. According to research, the average family in the United States has $7000 in credit card debt and pays about $1000 in interest each year! Throw in a late payment or two, or an over-the-limit charge, and that number skyrockets. Imagine what you could do with that $1000 if it weren’t being spent on interest.
Let’s imagine for a moment that you have $5000 debt on one credit card that is charging you 17.5% APR. Let’s also imagine that you pay only the minimum due of $25/month on this card. Guess what? You will never pay it off! The interest alone on this card is $73/month!
That means that each month you get further and further into debt. By the time you have been paying on this $5000 for 10 years, assuming you have not used the card during this entire period of time, you will owe $20,385! That’s over $15,000 in interest. If you triple your payment to $75, it will take you over 20 years.
So, what do you do? How do you get out of debt and use that money towards other necessities, savings, and investments? Here are a few simple methods that you can use without having to go to an expensive financial counselor.
Tip #1: Cut Up Your Cards
The very best way to reduce your credit card debt is to STOP using your credit cards! There is no need to have more than one card, so pick the one with the lowest interest rate and cut up the rest. The one you keep should be deemed an ‘emergency card.” These are true emergencies, not mere inconveniences. For instance, buying a new TV would not be an emergency, but renting a car in order to get to the bedside of a dying loved one would be. You can carry your emergency card with you, but don’t make it too easy to use. One good suggestion is to cover the card tape and paper and write on it: For Emergencies Only.
Tip #2: Move Your Debt
If you have more than one credit card payment, you may want to consider moving debt from a card with a higher APR to one with a lower APR. This will lower the amount of money you are spending towards the interest and get you out of debt faster.
Tip #3: Use the Snowball Principle
List all of your credit card debts, and the amount you are paying each month. Pay off the lowest amount first. Then use that money - continued below ...
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to start paying off the second lowest amount. And then the next and the next. Let’s look at an example.
If you have a $7000, $5000, and $2000 card with payments of $150, $125, and $100, you will finish paying off the $2000 card first. Once it is paid off, you take that $100 and put it towards the $5000 credit card. That means you are now paying $225/month. You have increased your payments which will pay off that credit card sooner and will have you paying a lot less in interest. Once that is paid off, you apply the $225 to the $7000 card, making your monthly payment $375. This will greatly accelerate the payment of this card, reducing your interest payments even further. When everything is paid off, you now have $375/month extra to put towards savings or investments!
Tip #4: Prioritize Your Debt Repayment
One of the best ways to pay off your debts is to get rid of the highest interest payment first. Looking back at the snowball example, you took the lowest and paid it first. If, however, the $2000 card had the lowest interest rate, you would want to pay off the card with the highest rate first. This will save you much more in interest payments.
If the math gets too hard here, don’t despair. There are many places on the Internet where you can find good debt reduction calculators. It is then just a matter of punching in your numbers and reading the report.
Tip #5: Consider Consolidation
If you own a home, you may want to consider consolidating your debt using a home equity loan. Since a home loan is a secured loan (they can take away your house if you don’t pay) you have a much lower interest rate than you do on your credit cards. Paying a lower interest rate is always a good thing! Not only that, but the interest you pay on your home loan is tax deductible. This is NOT true for credit cards.
By following these tips, anyone can take control of and completely eliminate credit card debt.
Wesley Atkins is the owner of http://www.credit-cards-advisor.com- which aims to get you fitted with the best credit cards to suit your situation. With numerous credit card articles and easy online credit card applications you will never choose the wrong credit card again.
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Budgeting Tips to Save Real Money - Don Blackhurst
Sticking to a budget can be difficult, but with so many demands on your finances you have to be extra cautious. TV ads are constantly bombarding the airwaves with messages that you need to buy this or you must have that. Usually, if you just wait a...
R² = EOC (Recruitment and Retention = Employer of Choice) - Rick Johnson
Copyright 2005 Rick Johnson Problems with staffing and retention may not be due to bad hires or a low unemployment rate. In fact, they may be related to poor management insight by not recognizing your employees as a core competency in your...
WHY BAD THINGS HAPPEN TO GOOD BUSINESSES - Cathy Bass
You've seen it a thousand times. Maybe it's happened to you. An excellent idea carried out by someone totally committed to the idea's success and yet they fail. Six months later somebody who could care less (but likes to make money) steps up and...
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