Debt Help

A great story of how one man overcame his struggle with materialism… Four floors of underground parking held some of the most expensive and sexy automobiles I had ever seen.  Mercedes, Porsche, Ferrari, they were all there in abundance.

It really is possible to pay off your cars - and it puts you at a huge financial advantage!! These are the steps we took to pay off our cars…

Recently a discussion popped up in the forums discussing the end of credit card rewards. The discussion was spurred by an article from the NY Times (thanks Krozfan!).
In the article, the author mentions that:
…Congress is moving to limit the penalties on riskier borrowers, who have become a prime source of billions of dollars in fee [...]

Clark discusses some types of things you should definitely avoid: Retirement Loans Debt Consolidation Debt Settlement Borrowing from family/friends Credit Card checks Tax Refund loans Pawnshop loans Getting paid under the table Finally, Clark wraps up this section with an overview of the different types of bankruptcy . … Among the important legal topics outlined were: Consumer Credit Protection Act Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Fair Credit Billing Act Truth In Lending Act Restriction on Garnishment Act Predatory Lending laws Usury laws Even the most die-hard personal finance fans can find some helpful information when it comes to consumer rights.

…It does an amazing job of covering a wide variety of topics concerning not only getting out of debt, but also of personal finance in general…

Do you have a plan to tackle your debt? It doesn’t necessarily need to be long and drawn out, but everyone should have some sort of debt reduction strategy if they want to get out of debt…

What have you done to manage your debt in light of our current recession? Have you started paying more, or less?

Should credit cards be issued to college students? If you use the fire analogy that people often do when referring to credit cards, then parents should be teaching their kids how to use the credit cards (fire) rather than what actually happens to many college students. I remember walking around my college campus during orientation and seeing credit card booths everywhere giving out free t-shirts if you signed up for a card! Woo Hoo!

I was wondering how to pay bills and this was the solution I came up with…

It is incredibly important to start spending money wisely…

As some of you may know I have been working with the team over at DebtGoal.com in the development of the program. DebtGoal is now up and running and if you are trying to pay off your debt, I encourage you try it out and let me know what you think.

I don’t remember what the interest rate was that they were charging her, but it was obviously pretty ridiculous. And for me, even though I was playing the 0% balance transfer game with all of my credit cards, It wasn’t until I saw this that I finally understood the importance of having a good interest rate.

I remember when I was trying to figure out how to control spending in my life… It is challenging, but these tips can help…

Money doesn’t solve money problems… I know it sounds absurd - doesn’t it? But the truth is that just like an alcoholic doesn’t break free from the addiction by drinking more, our money problems don’t go away with more money either. The reason it sometimes appears that they do, is because it can cover them up - for a while.

Are there circumstances that justify walking away from your mortgage? As mentioned in the Credit Crisis video we are now in the middle of a cycle where home prices are falling, banks have an abundance of foreclosed properties, and supply is high and demand is low. Some homeowners are facing situations where they owe the bank $300,000 for their house, but the house is now only worth $200,000. So they are packing up their things and giving it back to the bank to let them deal with it. Now the bank has to deal with the $100,000 gap.

What is out personal financial responsibility? Nearly all of our current personal and macroeconomic problems are the result of bad decisions that each and every one of us made of our own free-will at the time. Sure, it’s easy to say that an economic bubble is to blame for all of these problems, but a bubble is the just the result of us collectively making a lot of bad financial decisions at the same time.

It is so critically important to reduce your credit card interest rates, if you don’t it will take a whole lot longer to get out of debt. Not to mention that it will cost you hundreds or thousands more in interest charges as well!

What is the credit crisis? … Why we are all affected by it. How it happened. How leverage works and why banks use it. What role greed has had in the crisis.

Consider this thought for a moment: “Personal Finance = Personal Responsibility”. Within this statement lies the key to putting money in your pocket. You didn’t ask to be in the hole you’re in, nor did you intentionally make decisions that would ultimately lead to financial struggle. You were doing the best you could. However, you now have a choice to make.

I was laid off last year. I honestly had it a lot better than some people I know. I got about 9 months advance notice and ended up getting about 5 months of severance. I am well aware that cases like mine are few and far between. That said, there are things you can do to help you survive a layoff, should it happen to you.

These are some simple ways to become poor… 1. Spend more than you make - Actually if you only do #1, you won’t have to worry about the other 9. This is the easiest way for anyone to become poor. It doesn’t matter if you make millions or hundreds each month, the same principle applies.