Managing What You Owe

Obtaining a handle on debt is difficult to do under typical circumstances

. But, when you've just lost a job it becomes almost impossible.

An incredible number of work opportunities have been lost over the past decade. And as they have been lost, the charge card balances of the average family have risen dramatically. When you have little or no funds coming in, it is just about predictable that to thrive you begin to borrow on any credit that you can - your charge cards, your home equity, even your 401K and retirement funds. Now normally, debt is not a negative thing. It is often a good thing. And, in many circumstances, you have to have one. For instance, very few of us can plunk down enough cash to purchase our dream house or car. To do so we have to take out a loan. So all personal debt is not negative. What's bad is an inability to manage the debt.

If your credit debt is out of control, as many of American's are, you have to begin to take steps and make decisions to get them back in line. The initial thing you should do is to try your best to pay off your debt in a timely manner. One thing that pushes so many people behind on their bills is the loan shark type late fees that many credit card companies tack on if you're just a bit late.

You can start by getting your own calendar and marking down all the dates when your bills are due. This helps to ensure that you have them in the mail on time. Why should you pay out an extra $25 dollars or so a month in penalty fees that give you no benefit?

The next thing that you can do is to begin phoning your creditors before they start to send you past due notices. Try to come up with a modified repayment schedule with them. If you've been a good client, and have a very good record of prompt payments, they may be more prone to offer you a break until you are able to get back on your feet.

If, however, you wait until you are behind, they are a lot less likely to desire to negotiate with you. Not all the collectors is going to be prepared to work with you but you won't know those which will until you start to contact them. As a result, take the time to list all of your creditors along with their phone numbers on a piece of paper and begin to give them a call individually. Ask to speak with the account administrator, be honest with them regarding the reason why you are having difficulties making payments, and see what kind of deal you can make. You'll find that some creditors also have hardship programs, that they do not advertise, specifically for working with individuals who are experiencing a difficult financial time.

The terrifying factor with regards to debt is how easy it can get out of control. After they start getting behind in their payments, many people panic and freeze. They avoid messages or calls from loan companies when that's the exact opposite of what they needs to be doing. Frequently the problem of debt is solvable if you can just manage to talk to the right individual.

I am not saying that you will find a pain free experience, because you probably will not. But, many times, your situation isn't as bad as you believe it is. After all, our culture is filled with accounts of millionaires who were broke at some stage in their career.

by: Lane Helmer

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