The Financial Houdini: How To Escape Debt for Good

Debt is becoming increasingly hard to avoid. It is like a trap laid out along the road of life, you just don’t know where and when it will snare you. And one debt can all too easily lead to more debts. People panic and make rash decisions that see themselves dig deeper holes until it feels like they will never be able to rid themselves of the suffocation. 

If this is you, don’t despair just yet. There are plenty of ways in which you can get a better handle on your situation and work towards becoming debt-free. Yeah, it is a reality, we promise. 

Honesty Is The Best Policy

Unless you are honest with yourself, and others, about your situation you cannot hope to tackle the problem in front of you. Facing reality is an important step to take. It also helps to tell others about your situation, especially your immediate family, as it will help you alleviate the stress you are under. The last thing you want to do is dig the hole deeper by living a life you cannot afford out of a feeling of fear and expectation.

Don’t Save Your Money

Okay, there is only one form of saving you should commit to, and that is having an emergency fund. However, your emergency fund does not need to be more than about $1000. Everything else should be put toward your debt. The reason for this is one of logic, after all, there is no point in putting your money into a saving account that pays 3.8% interest when the interest rates on your credit card loan are closer to 20% APR. If you’re in debt, make paying it off your priority. 

Optimize And Prioritize

If you have multiple debts it can be hard to know where to start. As such, there are certain options available to you. First off, make a list of all of your debts and then prioritize them in terms of both interest rates and those that have dire consequences if not paid. Another option available to you is to look at what the best debt consolidation loans available to you are. The interest you pay on these will be determined by your credit score, but it could be your best move. These work to consolidate all of your loans so that you only have one debt repayment to worry about making it an easier obstacle to deal with. 

Get Professional Help

There is plenty of advice out there for people struggling with debt, some of which is free and others that you pay for. What’s more, given the wide range of services out there, you will be able to get advice tailored to your needs. It could be you need help coming up with a budget or a repayment strategy, or it could be that you require an expert service to contact your lenders and negotiate a new repayment structure. It is up to you. As a word of advice, any help you can get with budgeting yourself better and understanding where you can cut back on any expenditure should be sought. Far too many borrowers have struggled to get back into the black because they have never drawn up a budget to help them strategize and regain control.