Note: Woman pictured is not Jaqui B.
A few days ago Jaqui B., one of our readers in Dallas, TX sent us the following…
“I was so embarrassed. They called my boss at work demanding I pay $16,700! I felt like I was in a black hole drowning, and now they were calling my job. My friends are starting to call me a hermit because I never want to go out with them! And to make things worse my husband and I can’t seem to go one dinner without arguing about money. What can I do to fix this ASAP?” – Jaqui B., Dallas, TX
Hi Jaqui, and anyone else reading this…
Thank you for writing in!
Sadly this has become all to common these days where a creditor will sell your debt account to a collection agency…
…who then have no shame in calling the workplace… and not just once.. but multiple times.
They only make money if they collect, so they’ll do whatever they can to get their hands on your hard earned cash!
Even if that means exposing the private details of your personal finances to your boss!
And while we wish we had a magic wand that could make all your debt disappear, that technology… doesn’t quite exist… yet..
We’re not losing hope that somebody is working on it in a lab somewhere 😉
When that day comes we’ll make sure to announce it from the rooftops.
Anyway, what we’ve got for you today are 9 of the best ways we’ve found to start paying off your credit card debt faster…
Without having to say “no” to your friends all the time…
And some of this may eventually even alleviate some of the tension at dinner time with the hubby…
Here we go…
1. Figure out exactly what you owe
Take out a sheet of lined paper and draw 2 lines from the top down to form 3 equal columns.
Title column 1: Credit Card Name
Title column 2: Amount Owed
Title column 3: Interest %
Place all your credit cards on the table and start going through each of them one by one.
First write the name of the credit card account.
Then in the 2nd column write the total amount you owe on it.
Then in the 3rd column write down your interest rate. If you don’t know it you can call the number on the back of your card and ask them what your interest rate is.
Then simply add up all of column 2 to figure out your total owed.
This may sound super basic, but you’d be surprised at how many people don’t know exactly how much they owe or even who all they owe it to!
Bonus Tip: Make sure to always pay at least your minimums on all your cards.
If your personality type requires a quick win, then consider prioritizing any extra cash or payments on top of the minimum on your card with the lowest amount owed to pay if off and then re-allocate that same payment amount to another card the next month. This is sometimes referred to as the “debt snowball” method.
If you’re ok without the quick wins, then you might consider starting with putting any extra cash or payments towards the card with the highest amount owed and highest interest rate. This is sometimes referred to as the “debt avalanche” method.
2. Negotiate Your Bills Down
You may already know that you can negotiate the price of a car or the amount you pay on your cable and even phone bill.
But did you know it’s possible to get other people to negotiate them down for you?
While they don’t negotiate all your bills…
AskTrim is a web “robot” or tool that analyzes your spending and then can cancel certain subscriptions you may not even know you had.
And our favorite part, they can even negotiate your Comcast (or other provider) bill down to a lower price… for you!
3. Consolidate or Settle Debt
Most people carrying a credit card balance will very quickly find themselves paying sky high interest rates.
In many cases interest rates at 20%+!
If your interest rates are higher than 20% or close to it, consolidation, refinancing, and debt settlement options may be worth a look.
Consolidation is where you take out a loan with a lower interest rate so that you can save money on your current rates. This also allows you to make one payment instead of multiple payments every month. Note: This is not the same as debt settlement.
Debt settlement counselors will often use their negotiating expertise to get collection companies off your back… and all your outstanding bills are lumped into one small monthly payment that you control without having to add new debt.
This is a feature often overlooked and underutilized by most people with high credit card debt and could have a massive impact on your family’s future.
4. Earn Extra Income…Without Extra Time
This is the dream, right? Being able to earn more without getting another job or starting a business.
Some people might think this isn’t possible however there are some cool web apps that actually make this possible…
For example…
An app called Acorns will automatically round up your purchases to the nearest dollar and invest the digital change.
Swagbucks is a survey site that will allow you to get paid to share your opinion.
There’s another app called Paribus that will help you get money back for your online purchases.
5. Use Free Time To Make Extra Income
Now if you do have time available or the desire to invest some extra time and effort into increasing your income… Then you might consider looking into starting a “side business” or what some call a “side hustle”.
There are several people who have taken their side hustles from strict hobbies to big-time businesses.
Not everyone wants to put in the effort or has the time for a side business.
But if you do…
You might consider looking into the following popular side businesses to start…
– Babysitting
– House Cleaning
– Dog walking/sitting
– House sitting
– Delivery services (think picking up groceries, restaurant orders, etc)
– Workout buddy (think people who want to exercise but don’t want to do it by themselves – you’re not training them, you’re just along for the workout!)
If you’ve got some unique skills you might look into packaging that skill into a service like…
– Resume creation
– Personalized calligraphy (think wedding or any event invitation, vows, gifts etc)
– Personalized portraits/murals/large scale paintings
– Custom sewing (think quilts, clothing, alterations, furniture re-upholstery etc)
– Graphic Design (think logos, business cards, website graphics)
– Custom cooking (think people who need food prep done for their fitness programs etc)
If you’re willing to learn a skill, you might look into options like…
– Affiliate marketing
– Blogging
– Selling Hand Made Items in person or online
– Website design
– Virtual Assistant (there are lots of business owners looking for remote assistance with their daily tasks)
6. Sell Your Extra Stuff
A quick google search for “app for selling stuff” will give you several options on how to sell your stuff simply and easily.
Here are some apps you may consider using to sell your extra stuff.
LetGo is available for android and iOS. You can have an item for sale in less than a minute. Buyers contact you through the LetGo app chat to ask questions about your item or buy. The downside is that transaction do not happen through the app so you and the buyer have to work out payment logistics.
OfferUp is available for android and iOS. It features a very easy interface that allows to snap 1-4 photos, enter a title, select the category, note the item condition, and enter an optional description. Then set your price, verify your location. Notifications let you know when someone is interested however you will have to coordinate the payment logistics directly with the buyer.
5miles is available on android and iOS. It has similar features to LetGo and OfferUp. Additionally you can also list garage sales, local services, housing, and even jobs. There’s also the ability for the buyer to pay you through the 5miles wallet using their debit or credit card, or you can choose to exchange payment directly with the buyer.
Close5 is a selling app created by Ebay which is available for android and iOS. It has the same features as LetGo and Offerup. It additionally has the option of letting you set up a “best offer” price which has the buyer suggest what they are willing to pay for it.
7. Automate Your Savings
Yes, there are apps available for this, however most banks will allow you to set up automatic transfers from your checking account to your savings account for free.
You can select the amount and frequency of those transfer.
You might consider starting out with something as low as $10 every week.
Some savings accounts also have a feature that automatically transfer over $1 from your checking account to your savings account every time you use your debit card.
Other banks have “keep the change” and similar programs that round your spending to the nearest dollar and transfer the change to your savings.
This may seem like a tiny amount, but over time it builds up to the beginnings of an emergency fund.
While an emergency fund isn’t directly helping you to pay down debt, it can prevent you from putting emergency charges on your card because your emergency fund will help you to cover emergencies.
Again, this sounds super basic but many people do not have an emergency fund, let alone a savings account!
8. Earn Cash Back on Your Everyday Expenses
When people hear the words “cashback” they think of credit cards that offer to give some money back on everyday purchases.
But did you know that this isn’t limited to credit cards?
There is a free app called iBotta that will pay you real cash for your everyday purchases that you’re already making like milk, bread, eggs and more like apparel, cosmetics, and other brand name items.
Simply find offers, go shopping, and redeem.
There are other similar apps to iBotta, like Ebates and others.
9. Get Creative With Your Entertainment
You don’t always have to go out or spend a ton of money to have fun. For example here are a few creative ways to have fun with little to no cash out of pocket.
Host a recurring game night: Have it at a different friends house each week. The host provides the games and the guests provide the snacks.
Host a progressive dinner party: This moving party migrates from one host to the next (during the same night). For example you might start at Sherry’s house for appetizers at 5pm. You then move to Joe & Sarah’s house for soup & salad. This will be followed by the main course at Brad’s house. And finally Suzy will provide dessert at her house. This works best if the hosts live close together or if you live in a small town.
Check your community calendar for events: They often offer free or low cost courses, concerts, lectures and other events. Some communities tend to favor events for families, seniors, singles, couples.. while others tend to focus on cultural or activity based events. It’s a great way to have fun with friends and family as well as making a new friend or two in the community without having to open your wallet or dig in your purse.
If you’re into learning or gathering knowledge, did you know you can take college courses through MIT, Yale, and other well known educational institutions for free? It’s true, in fact these aren’t just simple youtube videos. These are entire courses at the undergraduate and graduate levels in subjects like… health & medicine, mathematics, social science, business, education, fine arts etc
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