Business/Finance

How to Get Out of Debt (10 Powerful Tips to Help)

Abigail Chow

November 24, 2022

Want to know how to get out of debt? Then you should absolutely read this article!

It reveals very powerful tips that can help anyone get out of debt, regardless of their current financial situation.

First things first…

Are you over your head in debt and not sure how you are going to pay it all off?

If so, you are not alone.

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We understand that it may seem impossible at the time, but when you follow the advice of experts, and take the information we are about to give you into consideration, and follow our tips, paying off your debt is going to get easier.

Table of Contents

Why Paying Off Debt is Important

Paying off your debt is a good way to help you achieve good financial health. There are many benefits to paying your debt down such as:

Improving your credit score.

Eliminating an emotional and/or mental burden that has been on your shoulders.

Once you have paid your debt, you can move forward to focus on saving and other financial goals without worriment.

Paying off your debt is a great way to reduce the amount of interest paid over time.

Dangers of Interests on Credit Card Debt

Have you been making minimum payment on your credit card every month?

Let us say you have a credit cards with 17% interest – you spend $5,000 and you’re on time with your payment every month, but the problem is, you only make the minimum payment.

By doing this, you are going to spend more than the original price – add an additional $850 (that is 17%).

Assuming your minimum payment is 4%, over the course of 10 years, you are going to pay something along the lines of $2,267 in interest.

That is a whole lot of money you are paying interest!

Related: Importance of Saving Money.

More Dangers of Debt

Carrying a debt is a major financial burden that can continuously stick in your head and drag you down, but that is not the only thing it is dragging down …debt can also drag down your credit score.

If you have other financial goals you are trying to achieve, such as purchasing a house in the near future, you will be required to have good credit, so it’s even more important that you focus on paying off that debt.

While some people choose to tackle the smallest balances first, you have others who choose to tackle their highest interest accounts first.

The ones who tackle the smallest balance do so to get rid of them faster and to help them feel more productive.

To find the best approach that is the most suitable for you, develop a couple of different payoff plans and then evaluate those. Once you find the plan that is the best for you, stick with it.

Once you have successfully paid all your debt, you can take those monthly payments you had been making and start paying yourself (putting the money into a savings account).

10 Powerful Tips to Help You Get Rid of Your Debt

1. Negotiate with Debt Collectors

First things first, before you begin repaying debt, sit down and do some calculations.

You need to determine the type of debt you have, whether it is credit card debt, mortgage debt, student loan debt, or something else along those line.

After you have determined the type of debt you have, take a look at how much debt you have.

If you really want to come up with a personalized plan for your debt payoff, understanding the type and amounts of your loans can go a long way.

2. Learn about the Debt

When a debt collector first contacts you to collect debt, they are required to give you certain information either when speaking with you or in writing within 5 days after they have contacted you.

The information they are required to give you will include:

The creditor’s name.
The amount that is owed.

During this time, you can choose to dispute the debt and request the name and contact information of the original creditor (if you do not already know).

Once you have learned about debt, you can move forward to making a realistic proposal to the debt collector.

If you are not really sure how much money you owe or who you owe the money to, it would be a good idea to learn more about the collector.

If you choose to dispute a debt or even part of the debt with the collector, you need to do so within 30 days of receiving a notice.

Afterwards, the debt collector is not allowed to contact you again without sending you written verification of the debt they claim you owe.

3. Plan for Making A Realistic Settlement Proposal or Repayment

For those of you who are wanting to make a proposal to repay the debt, here are some considerations to take to mind:

Honesty

It is important that you are honest with yourself about how much you are really able to pay each month.

Look over your debt priorities first, because you could end up falling behind on other bills because you are too busy paying off this debt – you do not want to cause yourself any additional problems and sink into an even deeper hole.

Monthly Take-Home Pay

Develop a summary of how much money you are paid each month (your monthly take-home pay).

Make sure you include all of your monthly expenses (including the amount you would like to may each month as well as other debt payments).

It would be a good idea to have some money left over to cover emergencies and unexpected expenses.

The Total Amount

Again, this company has paid $25+ million to members:

Decide on the total amount of money you are willing to put towards the entire debt to settle it.

This could be a specific number of payments or a lump sum of money.

Again, do not pay more money than you can afford.

Once you have a repayment plan, go ahead and negotiate with the debt collector.

Explain Your plan to the Collector

When you speak to the debt collector, tell them about your current financial situation.

You may find that you have more room to negotiate with the current debt collector than you did with the original creditor.

Record the Agreement

By all means, you need to record the agreement and let the collector know you are doing so.

There are times when debt collectors may not recall their conversations with you.

If you reach an agreement on a settlement or repayment plan, make sure you record the plan that the debt collector has promised.

Those promises may include forging the debt once you have completed a certain amount of payments and stopping collection efforts.

Before you make your first payment, make sure you get it all in writing.

Also See: Ways to Stop Money Fights In Your Relationship or Marriage.

4. Create a Budget

Obviously, you need to have some type of budget in mind if you plan on eliminating your debt.

There are savings and budgeting apps that you can use in order to track your expenses and income.

How to Get Out of Debt

5. Live Below Your Means

Yes, you should definitely work out ways of living below your means, if you want to get out of debt.

This is simply spending less than you earn. This will help you put money aside to pay off your debt and keep your future spending down.

It doesn’t make sense to spend all you earn every time and to repeat that over and over again. This will keep you perpetually in debt.

You can read all about techniques for living below your means here.

6. Pay Off the Most Expensive Debt First

In the beginning, we explained how some people pay off the least expensive debts first because this gives them a feeling of accomplishment.

While this is completely up to you, we recommend paying off the most expensive debt first.

If it’s credit cards you’re trying to pay off, sit down and sort the interest rates from highest to lowest and tackle the credit cards that have the highest interest rate first.

The trick is to pay off the balance with the highest interest first – you can increase your payment on the car that has the highest annual percentage rate, while you continue to make the minimum on the rest of the cards.

7. Don’t Forget about Balance Transfers

Let’s say you have a high-interest credit card and it has a balance that you’re sure you can pay off in a couple of months, you can move the debt to a card that offer a zero-interest balance transfer.

Just make sure you pay off the debt before the balance transfer ends, or you will be hit with a pretty high interest rate.

If you do this carefully you could save hundreds of dollars on interest.

8. Stop Your Credit Card Spending

You are trying to pay off your debt, so you should consider putting a halt to your credit card spending.

It can be tempting to use your credit card at every stop, so if you plan on shopping, go ahead and remove all of those credit cards from your wallet.

Sure, you may have a card that gives you cash back or other rewards with purchases, but you still need to stop using it.

The trick is to stop spending with your credit cards until all your finances are under control.

9. Delete Credit Card Information from Online Stores

Many people shop online at one retailer, and when they do, the retailer may store your credit card information on their site in order to make the checkout process easier for you (Amazon is one of the online retailers doing this).

In return, this makes it easier to charge your card for items you really do not need.

So go ahead and clear that information. If there is a recurring service you’re paying for, you should consider using your bank debit card.

10. Find Ways of Making Extra Money

Duh, right?

You don’t have to rely on just the money you earn from your job to help you get out of debt. If you can find other ways of bringing in extra money, that will do you a lot of good.

Thankfully with the Internet you can now make extra money from the comfort of your home. The extra money you earn can really help you.

Below are some easy ways to earn extra money working from home that can be done by most people:

Conclusion

As this article has shown, getting rid of debt, regardless of who you are can make you feel successful.

Besides, if you plan on making a big purchase in the near future, like buying a home, then you need to eliminate your debt in order to do so as you will need to have a good credit score.

Hopefully, by following the tips we just gave you on how to pay off debt, you have a better understanding and can put things into action.

Again, this company has paid $25+ million to members: