Living a Debt Free Life

There is nothing better than leading a debt free life. With the excessive use of plastic money, staying out of debt is a far cry. There are exceptions though. The debt settlement and debt consolidation industry is gaining prominence with every passing day. The number of consumers opting for debt help is rapidly increasing in number. Instead of living on the edge, and going through all the painstaking rituals of debt help, seek ways never to fall into debt again. Start living a debt free life.

There are many ways in which you can get out of debt. Some of them are mentioned here.

• Avoid payday loans. Payday loans attract very high rate of interest. Do not add to your existing debts. Try not to use credit cards unless they are needed in emergency.


• If you are planning to go for debt settlement or debt consolidation, take the plunge without delaying any further. The sooner you address your debt problems, the better it is.

• Make an emergency fund. You can keep aside some cash every month so that you can use it when you need it the most. Try not to use the emergency cash for buying items that are not required presently.

• Be regular with credit card payments. Don’t allow such a situation to arise where you have to avail loan from one creditor to pay off another creditor.

• Try out all options before you decide to file for bankruptcy. If you are in debt, there are ways to get out of debt and probability of improving your credit score is also high. If you file for bankruptcy, it stays on the credit report for a period of 10 years. It may affect your chances of getting a good job, staying at a place of your choice or bagging a good insurance deal.

• Check your credit report from the 3 credit bureaus. If it contains any inaccurate information, get them rectified.

• Add all your debts and try to solve your debt problems instead of putting it off.

Getting out of debt requires patience, proper guidance and effective debt management skills. A combination of 3 can help you get out of debt.

How to Maintain Your Credit Card?

In the modern scenario of personal finance, most of us have at least one credit card. We people don’t need any advice on getting a credit card since applications turn up in the mail so frequently. It is very easy to sign up for a credit card, but managing credit is not so easy task. It needs responsibility and dedication to manage credit. If we will follow the following guide lines then undoubtedly we can manage our credit.

For most of the credit cards there is a grace period of 30 days to pay the balance off each month. Smart borrowers will make use of it to their advantage to float their money expenses, using the "free money" for more than a few weeks and then paying it back in full.

However, the easiness of using plastic to pay comes with a price. It often implies that people finish up spending way more than they had initially planned on. Problems start when the monthly balance is not paid in full. When it occurs, certain amount of interest is charged on the due balance, which can be compounded quickly. Therefore it is very important to learn proper credit card maintenance to pay your monthly balances off in time to avoid deserving fees.

There is an intense competition among the credit card companies to get new customers. In fact, just a call for a lower interest rate will generate results. If you pay the balance off in full each month, then no need to be concerned with your interest rate.

In fact restricting yourself to one credit card is a wise financial decision for several reasons. First of all, you can observe all of your spending in one statement. If you are going to obtain one credit card, then choosing the right card can make all the variations for your personal financial position and your credit card maintenance. Choosing a card is a common sense, but it is easy to ignore the obvious. If don’t pay your balance off in full, then a low-rate card would be right for you. If you do pay your balance off, then a rewards card is the best option.