ComputerHunter.org |
|
|
|||
|
 |
Debt and Your Dreams
You may not realize what that credit card bill is doing to you? Bob is a 27 year old truck driver. He dropped out of college after one year and got a job. With hard work and good luck, he is making about $35,000 a year. Bob is passionate about remaining debt free. He drove his old car from high school until he could afford to pay cash for a newer one. He rented a cheap apartment until he saved a solid down payment on his house. Even during the lean months, he steadfastly refused to build up a credit card balance he couldn't pay off at the end of the month. At 27, he's decided he's tired of his job and would like to change directions. By living within his means and staying out of debt, Bob has enough money in the bank to take some time off, get a part time job, and go back to school. He has visions of owning his own business one day soon ? and there's nothing to stop him. Now meet John. John is in his 40's and is in upper management with his company. He's making more than double Bob's salary, but he's had a different outlook on life. John has never been afraid of debt - he figured as long as he could afford to pay the bill he was ok. He has a very nice house, a brand new $40,000 car, lots of new sports and recreation equipment, and travels extensively on his vacations. And he's done it all on credit. John was living this lifestyle before he could afford it. Now, he's almost tapped out ? his credit cards are maxed out, his house is double mortgaged, and even though he's making a great income, he has lacks the lifestyle, peace of mind, freedom, and opportunity Bob has. Externally, anyone who saw the two would think that John is the greater success. But the truth is John is trapped. He may be tired of his job. He may want to do something else. He may wish he could spend more time with his family than at work or have a business venture he'd like to pursue. But he spent his money before he had it, and now he's paying the price. Most of us think that the key to Financial Freedom is making a lot of money, but we see from our two examples that that's only part of the equation. The other part is lifestyle management and debt avoidance or debt elimination. If we plan wisely, stay out of debt, and control our desires to spend beyond what we can afford, we can enjoy a great amount of financial independence and have money to spend on things we really want to have and do, even on a very modest income. However, for most of us, this message comes too late. Anyone buried in debt will agree that it would have been better never to get into debt. But that doesn't help much now. What we need now is some help undoing the mess we made. Stay out of debt. If you're in debt get out. Don't take out another loan, declare bankruptcy, or sign up for credit counseling services, which can damage your credit. Instead, do your homework and educate yourself on the steps you can take to get back on solid financial footing, no matter what your present situation is. --- His websites are http://www.smartmoneyonline.com and http://www.freedomsociety.net
Google News - Top Stories
|
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Debt Settlement -- Why the Critics Are Wrong After October 17, 2005, a lot of people are going to become interested in debt settlement as an alternative to bankruptcy. That's the date the new bankruptcy law goes into effect, and it means a rude awakening for many consumers seeking a fresh start in bankruptcy court. Life on a Debt Management Program Signing up for a debt management program is easy; it's a matter of finding a company you feel comfortable with that is difficult. There should be no pressure added from the company you speak with, joining a DMP is your decision and you should feel like you are in a partnership with the company, meaning you both have control over your financial situation. Below you will find information on debt management programs and what they offer. How to Become Debt Free In today's consumer society it is all too easy to get into debt. If you have a few credit cards, car loan, mortgage and possibly student loans it can easily add up. If your income is reduced for any reason you could find yourself in serious financial difficulty. Reduce Your Debt With These 5 Tips It's never pleasant to realize that you're in financial hot water, but pretending the situation doesn't exist is NEVER the way to deal with the problem. If you're having trouble meeting monthly payments, find yourself borrowing or using credit cards to meet daily expenses, or have one or more of your credit accounts turned over to a collection agency, it's time for you to get proactive and bring your debts back under control. Below you'll find five ways to reduce your debt. Some take time, all take some level of commitment and effort - but it's worth putting in the time to start cleaning up your debt situation. Dont Drown Your Debts, Manage Them! Are you among the millions of people who have found themselves unable to make even the minimum payments on credit cards and other unsecured debts? If so, there is relief in sight. It is no longer necessary to keep paying constantly but never really make any progress towards reducing or eliminating your debts. You can manage your debts, reduce the amount you pay each month, and begin to decrease your balances. Debt management organizations are an excellent place to start when you are searching for way to become debt free. Budget the Luxuries First! Strictly speaking, his advice was preceded by another Heinlein maxim as well. "Sovereign ingredient for a happy marriage: Pay cash or do without. Interest charges not only eat up a household budget; awareness of debt eats up domestic felicity." Today, that advice gets abused eight ways to Sunday, as the average household is currently carrying credit card debt to the tune of over $10,000. Assuming an interest rate of 18%, this works out to about 150 bucks a month going to the credit card company. That's money NOT available for things like fresh flowers on your desk... new skis... upgrading to gourmet coffees and wines for daily consumption, or dinner out (including tips and babysitter). Debt Elimination Is The Key to Financial Freedom If you want financial freedom, the first thing that you will need to do is to get rid of your debts. After all, as long as you owe money, you can't consider yourself to be financially free. This is due to the fact that the money you will earn in the future won't actually belong to you, as you'll have to put it toward paying off debts in the past. Is Filing for Bankruptcy an Option for You? Bankruptcy laws give debtors a way to resolve debt by dividing their assets among their various creditors and in some cases will allow debtors to be freed of outstanding debts that cannot be paid, even after the division of assets. For individuals who find themselves unable to pay their debts, bankruptcy can be a viable option. As a debtor, you are entitled to file for bankruptcy. There have been recent changes to bankruptcy laws that may affect your ability to discharge your debts without credit counseling, but individuals who have found themselves unable to pay their debts can still file bankruptcy and be freed of outstanding debts. Debt Collectors: Men or Mice? Who are these people anyway? They viciously harass you and call you bad names. They embarrass you beyond belief by leaving detailed messages with your neighbors and at your workplace. In extreme cases, they have been known to stalk you! How to Get Money When You Are Broke (Money You Don't Have to Pay Back) New Bankruptcy Law Will Not Protect You from Identity Theft Recently passed by Congress with overwhelming support, the oddly-named Bankruptcy Abuse Prevention and Consumer Protection Act was designed to eliminate "bankruptcy of convenience." The perceived problem is that many compulsive gamblers, shoppers and drug users often run up huge debts on easily available credit cards with no intention of paying their bills. A relatively easy bankruptcy filing through Chapter 7 of the Federal bankruptcy code wipes all the debts clean and gives the debtor a fresh start. Studies would suggest that most people who file for bankruptcy are actually suffering from sudden illness, job loss or some other catastrophic event, but the law was passed just the same, and debtors will now have to repay at least a portion of their problem debt when the new law takes place in October, 2005.A provision of the new law that was not well publicized is the fact that the law applies to any debt, including debt which has been incurred through theft of the debtor's identity. If someone steals your credit card, or driver's license, or both, and runs up a huge amount of debt by posing as you, then you will be held responsible for the debt. Identity theft has become an increasingly large problem in the last few years, but the new legislation should make everyone aware of the problem associated with identity theft. While a determined thief can probably steal anything, a few simple steps can make it harder for someone to steal your identity.:Shred your documents. There are plenty of thieves that will sort through trash, looking for credit card receipts, bills and any document that has your signature. If you are throwing away financial documents, shred them first. Shredders can be found at any office supply store for a reasonable price. Don't give out your Social Security number to anyone unless it is absolutely necessary. Congress originally intended that the Social Security number not be used as a national identity number, but over the years it has become just that. If someone with whom you are doing business asks you for your number, inquire as to whether it is absolutely necessary that they have it. Providing the number may not be required. A thief can obtain a lot of information about you if they have your Social Security number. Guard it carefully.Don't carry more credit cards with you than is necessary. It's rarely necessary to carry 20 credit cards in your purse or wallet. Go through them and see if you can't keep a few in a secure place at home.Check your credit report once a year and look for suspicious entries. It typically takes nearly a year for someone to find out that their identity has been stolen. Look out for loans or large purchases that you don't remember making. Never give out personal financial information, especially credit card numbers, to someone that you don't know on the telephone.A few simple steps, practiced regularly, can protect you from identity theft. More importantly, these steps can protect you from having to repay thousands of dollars of debt that some thief might run up in your name. Your identity is your most valuable asset. Protect it carefully. Save Money When Going Out It seems as though whenever we go out for the night, it costs much more than we originally intended to spend. Having a 'night on the town' shouldn't cost you a whole weeks salary. Credit Repair - Understanding The Basics What is Credit? Eight Ways to Consolidate Debt Next to winning the lottery, a debt consolidation loan is a debtor's dream. With one monthly payment and a fixed monthly payment schedule, you can actually see an end to those monthly payments. Two Ways To Debt Relief There are many debt relief programs out there both off line and online. Sometimes it can be difficult to chose one from the other. To make a reasonable choice, you need to know The Simple $10 Debt Elimination Solution Ask a friend what resolutions they made for 2004 and your bound to hear them reply "Pay off my credit cards." Ask them how they planned on reaching that goal and many of them will not have a clear cut answer. Debt Free and Carefree Are you still clearing a mountain of debt amassed last Christmas or even during last year's summer holiday? Debt Getting You Down? - Make a List! Debt is not much fun and when faced with it, people sometimes look for complicated debt solutions and often overlook the many simple ways that you can save money. Believe it or not, one of the simplest and most effective debt solutions is to get hold of a pen and a piece of paper and make a list. By this I mean that keeping a daily record of your expenditure can reveal some interesting facts about your spending and point you in the direction of how you can make easy savings right away. My Father first introduced me to this, showing me the little piece of paper that he kept in his wallet. But at the time I just rolled my eyes and ignored his advice ? big mistake. It was only a few years later when I wanted to try to seriously start saving money in order to make a dent in my mortgage loan. But this debt solution is not only useful for helping you to pay off a mortgage debt, but also credit cards and student loans and many other types of debt. Credit Card Debt: How to Get Rid of It This method is simple, but requires some discipline. Corporate Debt Management ? Perspective on the Why Entrepreneurs have a tough time in their formative years. They try too many things to get a foothold on this competitive business climate, and that too they try them too soon. When they enter into new fields that have great promise and bet on new products they run the risk of costly failures. New product launches are costly and sometimes may take time to click. Risk is one factor which keeps the Businesses spinning new concepts and makes money out of it. It is this risk that keeps the uninitiated away. If you can't risk and make some bets in business then it is no field for you. But sometimes folks go a little far on investing more and more in a failure with hopes that one day they may click. It is the greatest for a selected few to know when to invest further and get out soon sometime. But for the rest of us it is mostly trial and error. This is where debt shows its gory true form.
|
|
|
|
|
