Managing and Eliminating Credit Card DebtSolutions to help you get debt free

Credit Card Debt is a Major Problem in US

It’s tough to avoid the buy-it-now messages you are constantly bombarded with

You can’t escape it in everyday life: TV, Radio, Internet even your Smart Phone

Not everyone has a credit card, but those who do 58% carry a balance

The Truth about Debt—Dave Ramsey The Total Money MakeoverMyth: Debt is a tool and should be used to help create prosperity.

Truth: Debt isn't used by wealthy people nearly as much as we are led to believe.

Debt is dumb. Most normal people are just plain broke because they are in debt up to their eyeballs with no hope of help. If you're in debt, then you're a slave because you do not have the freedom to use your money to help change your family tree

According to a USA Today article about debt, 78% of Baby Boomers have mortgage debt, 59% have credit card debt, and 56% have car payments. It takes a lot of will, discipline, courage and help to slay the debt monster. But it can be done. Imagine how much you could put toward retirement if you just didn't have a stinking car payment? This is how the wealthy really build their wealth. Debt is dumb. Welcome to the real world!

Now Let’s Look at the Best Ways to Get that Debt Under Control

First and Foremost

ADDING TO THE PROBLEM

Take an InventoryBefore you can fix your debit you need to see how deep in debt you are

Get Better RatesWork on negotiating your current credit card rates down.

Sometimes you can do this on your own Find out what your Annual Percentage Rate

(APR) is. You can find it on the bottom of your statement

Find out how your rate compares to the National Averages

www.bankrate.com www.lowcards.com www.cardtrakcom

There are 5 categories of rates. Make sure you’re in the right one

Super-Prime- Most Credit Worthy Prime- Average Borrower Sub-Prime- Below Average Promotional- New Customers Punitive- People who Broke the Rules i.e.

Missing a Payment

Get Better Rates (cont’d)Armed with this information you can call the credit card company directly

Always talk to a supervisor Don’t take no for an answer Call the dedicated Customer Service Line

Even a percentage point can save hundreds Transfer balances on to the lower interest

rate card

Figure out your monthly Income & CostsList all sources of income

If you have an unstable source of income (one that varies) such as sales commissions, don’t put too much dependence on the when figuring your monthly income

List your expenses Take a look at a year’s worth of expenses

to see how much you spend each month.

BudgetList your essentials, things you can’t live without

Food, Gas, Electric

Review your other expenses (not including credit card debt) and see where you can make changes

Your non- essential expenses Eating Out, Entertainment

Not necessarily cutting things out, but cutting back may be enough to get things under control

A good resource to help you calculate your budget

www.thebudgetcalculator.com/index.html

Compute a Dedicated FundThe amount you can afford to pay for your debts

Subtract your expenses (not including credit card debt) from your income Negative you’re in trouble Positive you now know what you have to

divide up to pay off your debt

Figure Out a Payoff StrategyMake larger payments to the card with the highest interest rate so it gets paid off before the others

Payoff the card with the smallest balance and then work on the others

Peer-to-Peer Lender Borrowing money from one of these lenders at

a fixed interest rate that can be 20 to 30 percent lower than most credit cards Lendingclub.com Prosper.com

This can save hundreds of dollars in interest You just need a job and a good credit score to

qualify for an online loan for up to about $25,000

Stay on TrackStash Your Plastic

Studies show people are more likely to spend more when they use their credit cards then when the pay cash

Get Some Motivation & Support Set a goal

Dream Vacation Down Payment on a New House

Get Support Plenty of blogs and forums on the Internet

are dedicated to people trying to get out from under credit card debt

Always good to talk to people going through the same thing

Track Your ProgressKeep an Eye on your spending

Don’t obsess just check in every few months

APPENDIX

Sources Sited for this Presentation Bach, David Start Over, Finish Rich pp. 46 – 49 Creditcards.com – 5 Steps to Eliminate Credit

Card Debt Ehow.com - How to Eliminate Credit Card Debt Financialplan.about.com – How to Eliminate

Credit Card Debt Getting Out of Debt Made Easy

Nationaldebtrelief.com – Eliminate Credit Card Debt – National Debt Relief

Ramsey, Dave The Total Money Make Over Thebudgetcalculator.com/index.html