Recover from a Spending Spree
It can happen to the best of us, even the
most financially responsible people overspend. Most common causes
tend to be home improvements, holidays or buying a new car however,
there are some steps you can take to reduce those bills and become
debt free.
The first step is to take action now. If
you can sort out your debts earlier then you are less likely to
have your debts build up and incur higher minimum payments. Get
your credit card bills paid off as soon as they arrive through the
door. It doesnt matter if they arent due for another 2 or 3 weeks.
The sooner you pay it the less likely you are to forget and the
sooner it will be out of your hair
The next step is to make at least the minimum
payment on all of your credit cards. If you can afford to do so
try and pay back more than the minimum monthly payment. You may
think making a late payment may not be such a big deal you may be
in for a shock. Credit card companies often share information and
a late payment could cause your interest rates to rise on all your
other cards.
Step four is to consider transferring any
high interest rate balances to a low interest rate card. With lower
interest rates your balances (especially the high ones) will be
easier to pay off. To find low interest credit card you can look
on sites such as moneysupermarket.com
which will keep you updated on the best rates available
The final step is to use any availabe cash
you have to put towards your high interest debt. If for example
you have a high interest debt of 18% and have money in a savings
account which gains 5.3%, then you are best using that money in
your savings account to pay off your debt. That kind of return is
very hard to find so be sure to use any available cash to pay off
any high rate debts.
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