Are You Consolidating Your Debt Yet?
Are you consolidating your debt yet? This is the time of year when we all struggle to put our debt behind us. We try and pay off all our Christmas dept does so it as we can.
Many of us have overextended ourselves during the Christmas season and we are trying to get rid of all our debt as soon as possible. With the state of the economy and the United States right now even more people than usual are trying to get out from underneath their debt in January.
2009 will be an interesting year for people try to get their personal finances in order. The first thing you need to do is have a hard look at all of your debt and make a list of your goals. Some folks don’t even know how much debt they really have until they make that uncomfortable journey into their bank accounts, Visa balances, MasterCard balances, and department store credit card balances.
I know firsthand that even looking at our true account balances is sometimes something I want to avoid for fear that our debt is that far of hand. We need to avoid detaching ourselves from are true financial state. We need to sit down with a piece of paper and a calculator and figure out our true debt – and then try and come up with a plan to pay it all off.
Debt consolidation is a valid method of reducing our monthly payments and our true debt. Once you have calculated all of your bad debt you can go to a local bank (or perhaps search online) for debt consolidation loan which wraps up all of our creditors into one big ball and creates a smaller monthly payment.
You can even go as far as finding some sort of settlement whereby you pay back a certain amount on the dollar ($25,000 instead of $50,000).
Some consumers think that getting a debt settlement will hurt their credit rating and of course they are right, but the decision not to seek out a debt settlement is far worse than getting one. There is a certain point when you have to face reality and get your financial house in order.
There are so many things that we don’t need a daily basis that we spend money on and if we could get our spending under control and learn to have fun on the cheap we would soon be our way to having a balanced financial spreadsheet. It just takes some tough decisions, or some tough lifestyle changes.
Once you have made an appointment with the trustee or an attorney they will soon alert all of the creditors you’ll money to that you are the process of a consumer settlement. This will immediately stop all of the bill collectors and collection agencies who are filling your mailbox, your e-mail box, and your answering machine with nasty messages. This will be a huge relief for you and I encourage you to make an appointment with the trustee or attorney if you’re spending has become out of control.
You want to make the best of 2009 and start slowly to change your spending habits and develop a lifestyle that is realistic as compared to your monthly income.
Do not think for a minute that your lifestyle will have to go into a slump for ever, because if you are willing to work for you can find a new job that pays better or perhaps start your own little business to increase the streams of income coming into your family household. Why not try to make a small business your hobby instead of a hobby the cost you money.
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