Credit counseling can be valuable, but it comes at a cost. You can use those payments for your debt instead of for counseling. Strategies such as budgeting and negotiation can help reduce your debt without the need for a counselor.
Budgeting
According to the Federal Trade Commission, budgeting is an important step in evaluating your finances. Once you track your income and expenses, you can identify where you might have additional funds for debt repayment.
Pay More
Bankrate.com suggests always paying more than the minimum requested payment. Increasing payments will cut down the length of time it will take to eliminate your debt and reduce the total amount that you will pay over time.
Debt Negotiation
If you call your creditor and ask for a reduction in your interest rate or in the balance that you owe, you may receive both. The Motley Fool suggests that this can be particularly effective if you are behind in payments and your creditors feel you are a threat to file bankruptcy.
Balance Transfers
The Motley Fool recommends balance transfers to reduce the interest you pay on your debt. If you currently pay 20 percent interest on a $10,000 debt and you can transfer that to a card with a 10 percent interest rate, you can save $1,000 per year in additional interest.
0 comments:
Post a Comment