"He who has faith has... an inward reservoir of courage, hope, confidence, calmness, and assuring trust that all will come out well - even though to the world it may appear to come out most badly."
Debt Management and Consolidation How do you know that you are in DEBT? How do you know that you are really in deep DEBT? Do you think you need DEBT MANAGEMENT or DEBT CONSOLIDATION? This are the questions that most professionals will ask you about. If not, you will ask yourself this ... Debt Management Systems What is a debt management system, and when do you need it? Like any kind of management system, debt help systems can be good or bad. We will take a look at what you can do to manage your debt better. One element is paying off debt, but that's not the ... Sticking to a Debt Consolidation Plan The success of any debt consolidation plan is dependent on how you stick to it. This is of course obvious, but it should be known that though getting out of debt can be challenging, it can surely be accomplished with the right dedication and perseverance. ...
Attaining A Debt Free Lifestyle
Many people have been taught that you cannot get ahead without debt. We are also inundated with advertising telling us we can have anything we want. All we need to do is put it on our credit card. We have become an impatient society, we want it right now. We have lost the ethic of working for what we want. It is not how much money you make; it is what you do with it. By living without debt you can actually have a higher income since you are not paying out interest, you are actually getting paid interest on invested money. All debt is not created equal. We will classify them as good debt and bad debt. To simplify the classification we will say that good debt is a loan for something that you could sell at any time and repay the debt. This narrows down good debt to a home loan and possibly a home equity loan. A bad debt, of course, is a loan on anything that will lose value. Let's take a look at some debts that we would consider bad debt. Home equity loans are in the gray area. They could be considered good debt if they are used to repair or improve your home, but you would be a lot better off to just save up the money for the project. Home equity loans become bad debt when used for purposes other than home improvement or maintenance. In other words a bad home equity loan is for anything that does not add to the value of your house. Do not jeopardize your home by taking out a home equity loan on unnecessary items. One possible good use for a home equity loan is when the interest rates are low. You can use a home equity loan to refinance your mortgage. Home equity loans generally have lower costs than conventional home loans. We consider school loans bad debt. If you finish school, get a good high paying job and then attack the loan like mad, a school loan may work out. The problem is that there are too many things that can go wrong. At best, even if you do graduate and get a good job there are always a lot of other expenses at this time in ones life. You are really behind financially when you start your working life in debt. Auto loans are bad loans that have become common practice to us. We pay interest on a vehicle that will only be worth one half of its original purchase price in five years. Lately it has also been common for us to borrow more than a vehicle is worth. We can trade a car in that we still owe on, and roll that owed amount over into another vehicle. This gives us a loan amount that is higher than the value of the car that we drive away. We have lost our capacity to say NO. Co-signing is a bad debt that usually and unfortunately involves family. If someone cannot qualify for a loan at a regular lending institution, they should not get a loan. The fact that they can't qualify for a loan elsewhere should tell you that they are a huge risk. Use this opportunity to teach them how they can get what they want by working harder for it and delaying the purchase. If you want to get off of the debt treadmill, you must run as far away from debt as you can. You cannot use debt to get out of debt. Even if you do, you have not changed your habits; you must change your lifestyle.
About The Author
John Cook is a family guy who likes to help people get off and stay off the debt treadmill and secure the financial future of their family. You can read more about securing your families finances at his website www.financeforfamilies.com.
Debt News
Global stocks and oil fall on grim U.S. jobs report - International Herald Tribune Global stocks fell while the dollar and bond prices rose on Friday after data showing deep U.S. job losses in December underscored the toll the recession may take on corporate profits and the struggling economy. Oil prices fell more than 5 percent to ...
Verizon Wireless completes $5.9B Alltel buyout - Forbes Basking Ridge, N.J.-based Verizon said it will retain all Alltel employees below the executive level as the company assesses which positions need to be cut or kept under the new arrangement. When Verizon President and Chief Executive Lowell McAdam ...
Dell closes largest non-US manufacturing plant - PC Advisor About 1,900 employees will be laid off at Dell's factory in Limerick, Ireland, over the next year, with staff reductions starting next month, Dell said. The Limerick facility will continue to coordinate manufacturing, logistics and supply chain ...
Ap » Washington - Waterloo Cedar-Falls Courier WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama said Friday that he and Congress will "hone and refine" his nearly $800 billion economic recovery plan, as he seeks to patch fissures with senior Democrats over key features of the still-emerging plan. The ...
Ecuador says plan to renegotiate debt imminent - Marin Independent Journal QUITO, Ecuador—Finance Minister Maria Elsa Viteri says Ecuador will announce its plan to renegotiate nearly 40 percent of its $10 billion in foreign debt before the end of next week. Ecuador partly defaulted on its foreign debt in December after a ...
Teacher retirement official had $110,000 Vegas debt - San Antonio Express News AUSTIN -- A Houston investor who resigned Friday as the head of the board overseeing Texas Teacher Retirement System investments had a $110,000 judgment against him from Bellagio Inc. in Las Vegas for an unpaid gambling debt. Court records show the ...
Fiscal Fitness ’09: One Phone Call, $198 in Debt Savings - Motley Fool Got credit card debt? Relief is just a phone call away. The strategy is simple: Call your credit card company and sweet-talk the customer service rep into lowering your interest rate. A survey several years ago found that more than half of people who ...
Houston investor who quit board had gambling debt - Houston Chronicle AUSTIN — A Houston investor who resigned today as the head of the board overseeing Texas Teacher Retirement System investments had a $110,000 judgment against him from Bellagio Inc. in Las Vegas for an unpaid gambling debt. Court records show the ...
