10 Easy Ways to Manage Your Debts
Some say that debts are never ending and that once you are in it, it is very difficult to get out of it. If you are already in debts, you might prefer to manage your debts yourself without seeking help from debt consolidation and management companies or some government department as some of these options might cost you some fees. What then can you do to manage your debts? Indeed, there are a few things you could do to make your debt more manageable.
1. Assess your debt
Know how much you owe, what interest you’re paying and whom you owe. Unless you start assessing how much your total debts are, you will not be able to have a proper debt relief management plan.
2. Take control of your optional spending
Keep a daily record of your outgoings for a week. They will usually reflect your spending patterns. Upon scrutiny, you will find there are a few things you spend money on that you don’t really need. The money you save can be used towards paying off your debts.
3. Take control of your fixed costs
Switching providers for your telephone, cell phone, cable, internet, gas and electricity services and any other utilities could save you money. Check around for competitive rates.
4. Research and increase your available resources.
Examine ways to increase your income, including finding additional work or selling non-essential assets.
5. Consolidation
A low rate consolidation loan can reduce the amount that you have to pay out each month, as the repayment on your consolidation loan will be far less than the combined repayments on your existing debts.
6. Make an arrangement with creditors
Contact your creditors in writing, explaining your situation and propose to them to lower payments on your debts. Your creditors will usually agree if you have conducted your account reasonably. So while you wait for their response, continue in the same manner, paying your bills on time.
7. Avoid short-term solutions
Payday loans and car-title loans may seem like a good solution when you need them but if you can’t keep up payments you could find yourself in a worse off position than when you started.
8. Don’t ignore your bills and letters
Putting away your bills and letters to deal with them later can result in you owing even more as penalties and interests can be charged additionally. Your creditors are likely to get tougher on you when you ignore your bills - if you can’t pay them at that particular time, pick up the phone and let them know.
9. Pay more than the minimum
If you have credit card debts, make sure you’re paying more than the minimum. This will reduce the interest you pay monthly and will help you pay off the debt quicker. Better still, pay in full. If you really must have credit cards around, source for the best credit cards or credit card deals you can find.
10. Learn from your mistakes.
When you have taken corrective measures, don’t feel too comfortable as you may fall back to your previous situation. If you ever start to feel that your debt is more manageable, this would be a good time to start saving whatever little you have left after paying your bills. Having some savings will stop you from borrowing again in case of an emergency. Manage your debts wisely.
How To Cope With Rising Inflation
The Malaysian Government announced an increase in petrol and diesel prices as well as electricity tariff yesterday at 40.6% (from RM1.92 per litre to RM2.70), 63.3%, (from RM1.58 per litre to RM2.58) and 20% for homes (above 400 kw) and 26% for business users respectively. The increase created shockwaves throughout the country and many petrol stations saw hundreds, if not thousands, of vehicles queuing up to have their tanks filled prior to the price increase at midnight. I was one of the motorists and I had no choice as both my cars incidentally were at the "empty" level yesterday evening. Still, the decision to queue up for not less than 30 minutes per car saved me at least RM45 in total, which can buy us 2 1/2 packs of milk powder or 1 1/2 packs of diapers for our 2 daughters.
This post is not about the merits of the price increase or fault finding. Prices of everyday goods have increased globally and governments around the world are cracking their heads trying to find a balance between income, subsidies and expenditure. It’s a matter of which government is more prudent financially. This post is about what you can do to cope with the rising inflation , where many are finding it hard to make ends meet. In many ways, these are also some of the methods that I employ.
Income
1. Be thankful with the job that you have. At least you have an income. Continue to find ways to increase your worth as an employee so that if and when appraisal comes about, your chances of getting an increment are higher.
2. Consider part-time income . How about blogging or making money online? I have a couple of sites and they supplement my income. All I need to do is to invest 1 to 3 hours a day. Do remember, however, that there are many things to learn about making money online and money does not drop down from the sky.
3. Create opportunities or look out for opportunities of income. Do not fall into dubious scams or get-rick-quick schemes. Anything that promises quick money must be treated as a scam until proven innocent . Read more