Alternative Financial Solutions

Personal finance can sometimes get away from you if you do not have a plan or stay with a plan you do have. When you find yourself in a situation where your monthly obligations may be overwhelming your income, the thought of a debt consolidation loan may come to mind. But alternative financial solutions can help you get your debt back under control without having to take out a loan.

Follow a Budget

Financial problems can arise when there is no plan on how to spend or save money, according to the article "Debt Elimination Tips" on the financial website The Digerati Life. Track your spending for a month by saving all of your receipts and writing down every purchase you make. At the end of the month, analyze your spending and cut unnecessary purchases. For example, if you buy a cup of coffee on the way to work every morning then you can save that money by bringing coffee from home.

Bring all of your bills together and develop a budget that will tell you how much per month you pay in bills and allow you to see areas where you can reduce your monthly spending. If you have a cellular phone and a land line, you can save money by getting rid of one of them. Apply the money you have saved to your bills, and you will begin to reduce your debt.

Extra Income

One of the ways you can address your financial problem without taking out a consolidation loan is to inject more income into your monthly budget. Take on a part-time job for a few hours a week, or ask if your company is offering overtime that you can take advantage of. Try your hand at online auctions and sell some of your unused belongings for cash. Find any way you can to generate more income, and apply that extra income to your bills.

Call Your Creditors

If you analyze your credit card bills, you may see that for some accounts you have an interest rate exceeding 20 percent. According to The Motley Fool financial website, you should call those creditors and ask to have your interest rate lowered. It seems simple, but it also never hurts to ask. Let the creditors know that you will transfer your balance to a different card if they do not help you out. The end result will be less interest you will have to pay, a lower monthly payment and more money you can apply toward your bills.