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How To Achieve
Financial Freedom
Organizing Your
Debts for Financial Freedom
Recent sets of data released by the
Federal Reserve, the organization that
track and records all monetary affairs
in the USA reveal that Americans owe
more than two trillion dollars on their
credit cards and that the overall credit
card debt for each individual in the
country comes up to more than seven
thousand dollars.
These astounding figures for credit card
debt in the USA are bound to affect
everyone. What then, you may ask, are
the available solutions? You could start
by following the suggestions given below
which will help you effectively manage
your financial liabilities:
Organize your outstanding debt – Begin
by taking stock of each and every
revolving obligation that you have. This
would include all your credit and charge
cards. Tabulate and record your
liabilities based upon installment
schedules, bills etc. Accounting for
applicable interest rates calculate the
exact amount that you owe.
It is important to know the interest
rate on your monthly bills since it is
the continuing cost you incur against an
ongoing debt every month. So it is to
your benefit if you can clear off the
loan charging the steepest interest rate
as early as you can.
So while making repayments try and send
the maximum amount possible to the
lender with the highest rate even if it
means that you are left with making only
the minimum due payments to the rest. In
this manner, once the debt with the
steepest interest has been repaid, you
can follow the same policy for the loan
with the next highest rate of interest.
Negotiate for lower interest rates – try
and maintain an immaculate repayment
history and then call or meet your
lenders and request them to lower your
rate of interest. Since it is costly for
lenders to find new customers, if your
credit worthiness is proven, they shall
always try to retain you.
So, most lenders will allow customers in
good standing to enjoy reduced rates.
However, once they agree to reduce your
rate, ensure that you pay your bills on
time; failing which they could take back
the facility and raise the applicable
rate of interest once again.
Use cash when you can – Since it’s so
much simpler to use a card in comparison
to carrying cash or writing out checks,
most of us get into the habit of using
cards even if these attract charges. So
try and cultivate the habit of writing
out a check and paying with cash rather
than instinctively using the credit
card.
Always keep in mind that a credit card
purchase is not a gift but a loan. So be
well advised when you use the card:
rather not use the card at all if you
can’t afford the liability.
Remember it is better not spending at
all rather than spending so much that it
begins to hurt you.
If you can organize your finances,
minimize your costs and make them
commensurate with your earnings you are
sure to get tour finances in order and
avoid any trouble in the future. If you
set you mind to it, financial freedom is
not that hard a work, and well worth all
the effort.
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