Tips for getting out of debt – starting today

If you are here to learn tips for getting out of debt – starting today – I”m glad you’re here!   It can be so important to have financial freedom!

My husband and I have learned to be very disciplined to live below our means, and because of this, we have been able to stay mostly debt-free (we still owe on our mortgage, but we are going to pay our mortgage off early … we’ve already started.)

Tips for getting out of debt

Step 1: Consider a single payment for your credit card debt. Certainly the best way to pay off your credit card debt is with a single payment. If you can find the money to pay off all your credit card debt, you’ll get back on solid financial ground quickly and without paying additional interest.

Step 2: Consider paying off the credit card with the highest interest rate first.  You’ll want to pay as much as you can to that account and then send the minimum payment due to each of the other accounts.

Step 3: Then begin paying off others. When you’ve paid off one card, start paying on the card with the next highest interest rate. Focusing on one card at a time gives you clear financial goals, minimizes your interest expense, and creates a sense of satisfaction.  (this is the Dave Ramsey Method)

Step 4: Consider a home equity loan to pay off credit cards. If available, you can use a home equity loan to pay off credit card debt. The interest on home equity loans is typically lower than credit card rates and can be tax deductible. This can be an effective repayment method if you can handle it with discipline. However, these loans can be as easy to abuse as credit cards, particularly if you have a line of credit. Also, you run the risk of paying down the home equity loan at the same time you’re running up more debt on your newly cleared credit cards. Remember, your home equity loan, unlike credit cards, will be secured by a lien on your home. If you can’t make your payments, you’ll be in default, and the lender can foreclose on your home.

Step 5: A less aggressive way to pay off your debt is to transfer your balances to lower-rate accounts. Known as credit card surfing, this method works until you run out of lower-interest opportunities. However, it does allow you to reduce interest fees and pay more against your existing balance.  In other words, you are transferring all of your debt from one credit card with a high-interest rate to a NEW credit card with low or no interest rate.  NOTE:  You will have  a set amount of time to pay this off (example: 1 year) and you will probably have a transfer fee (example: 3% of your debt).

Step 6: Control new spending. It’s always best to control new spending and pay more than the required minimum payment whenever possible. Invariably, these cover little more than the finance charges. You continue to carry the bulk of your balance forward for many years without actually reducing that balance. Ideally, charging only what you can afford to pay off each month gives you the best benefits of a credit card and few of the drawbacks.  Or better yet- DON’T USE YOUR CREDIT CARD AT ALL! 

Step 7: Consider Debt consolidation. Debt consolidation is when you roll all of your smaller individual loans into one large loan, usually with a longer term and a lower interest rate. This allows you to write one check for a loan payment instead of many, while lowering your total monthly payments.

Step 8: Do additional research. Consider advantages of debt consolidation. The monthly payment on a consolidation loan is usually substantially lower than the combined payments of smaller loans; Consolidation loans usually offer lower interest rates; Consolidation makes bill paying easier since you have only one monthly payment, instead of many

I hope that you gained some insight from these tips.   Thank you for reading them & thanks to Calcpa for sharing some of these great tips with us!

Do you want more tips?  My book is full of them!