How to Get Out of Credit Card Debt
With the number of credit card offers that the average American
home receives every year, and the fact that the average American
is about $8000 in credit card debt, it is not difficult to see
how quickly consumers can get deep into debt with credit cards.
Although it's not easy, there are some simple steps that can be
taken to begin to decrease your credit card debt and to begin to
gain control of your spending and finances once again.
To begin, look at the latest statement for each of your credit
cards and check the balances on them. Then check the interest
rate you are being charged by each of these cards. Some
creditors can charge up to 21% or more in interest annually. If
you find that you are carrying a balance on one or more of these
high interest rate cards, and you are only paying the minimum
required payment each month, it may take you years to pay the
balance off. Not only that, but when the iniital balance is
finally paid off, you will actually have paid many times the
initial charges when you consider all of the interest paid
during this time.
The next step you must take to avoid this scenerio is to
consolidate your debt. If you are carrying a balance on a high
interest rate card, begin looking for a card that offers a lower
interest rate. If you are carrying balances on more than one
card, look for a credit card that offers an introductory rate of
0% on balance transfers. Apply for one of these cards and
transfer your existing balances to this new card. Now you have
anywhere from 6-15 months (depending on the new card's terms) to
work on paying down your balance without worrying about added
interest charges. However, be sure to ask about any transfer
fees involved before opening one of these new credit card
accounts.
The final key is to stop all unnecessary spending and increase
the payments to your credit cards as much as possible. Above all
else, avoid paying only the minimum required monthly payment.
This is the worst thing you can do. Continue to pay off as much
as possible every month while reducing your spending as much as
possible and you will find your debt beginning to decline until
you are finally out of credit card debt entirely.
About the author:
Karyn Kudrna is owner of the websites
www.credit-123.com and
which offers information on
low interest credit cards
and
www.finance-123.com which offers
credit cards for bad
credit
