Finance Median

You can eliminate credit card debt through three simple steps and the sooner you get started, the better for you. They are steps that are easy to follow and with some discipline, you will discover that credit card debt relief is definitely possible.

Step One: Do not use your credit cards

Many people want to get out of debt but get more into it, thanks to continued indiscriminate usage of their credit cards. You cannot make meaningful progress in reducing credit card debt if you continue to make use of plastic money. The very fact that it is convenient and easy to use makes it the bugbear for everybody in debt. Popular reasons like you need plastic money for emergencies are nothing but just excuses and they are the sole contributors behind your current state. The irony is that you have ended up so much in debt using these cards supposedly for emergencies that you do not have the money for a genuine emergency.

A glance through your card statement will tell you where you are spending money consistently and those are the ones that you need to immediately take cognizance of. So subscriptions to gaming sites, clubs have to be either discontinued or you can pay them in full, thus eliminating the credit option.

You may also try and speak to your card company to negotiate a lower interest rate or a more flexible repayment plan. Do not terminate your cards as it can affect your credit score. Keep the cards but do not put them to any use.

Step Two: Set up a fund you can tap into when needed

Once you decide to stop using your cards, you have to ensure that there is a pool of money to dip into for real exigencies and you can create such a fund only through immediately putting away surplus money into this kitty. You can do this while continuing to make your minimum payments and the surplus money can be generated by foregoing eating out, buying nothing new and cutting off unnecessary expenses till the accumulation of some serious money in this fund. The best way is to start small and put away $25 to $50 every week religiously and maintain this discipline for the amount to get accumulated.

Step Three: Adopt the Snowball method to get free debt relief

Stopping credit card usage and having put away a decent sum in an emergency fund, you can now get down to the business of getting free debt relief and for that you can opt for a couple of methods. The first one is the popular Dave Ramsey method where, you begin by paying off the least amounts and then keep repeating this till you are able to settle many of the small ticket items. That will give you the confidence to tackle the major ones subsequently. The other one is to take the highest interest liabilities on priority and settle them so that you restrict your liabilities of the future.