More Creditors Than Friends? 5 Steps To Fix Your Finances
Debt isn’t anything to be ashamed of. Hundreds of thousands of Canadians have naturally accumulated debt as a byproduct of living their lives, and many more will acquire even more debt this year..
It’s when you have so much debt that can’t be paid back on time that you begin to become inundated with credit collectors. Some people will even claim that they have more collectors than friends calling their phone, which means that it’s time to start considering taking steps to fix your finances.
Here’s the process that you should take to begin trying to settle your debts and to fix your finances:
1. Stop Spending
The first and most important step that you should take is to stop spending money that you don’t need to spend. Things like credit cards and payday loans should be off-limits in all but the most dire of emergencies.
If you have a problem with refraining from using credit cards, then you might consider locking your credit cards in a safe.
2. Live Below Your Means
Cut costs where you can so that you can begin accumulating money to pay back your debts.
You should try to cut your costs back as far as possible, as this means you’ll be able to save more money in a shorter period of time. Couple this with the fact that most debts accumulate interest that increases as you pay closer to the minimum amount to see why you should try to pay back more sooner.
3. Start Paying Down The Small Balances First
The logical step to reducing the number of creditors trying to contact you is to pay off the ones with the lowest balances first. This will hopefully eliminate one creditor at a time until you’re left with only the substantial debts you might have.
4. Contact The Parties You Owe
If you know that you owe something, then you should make every attempt to get in contact with the parties that you owe money to. You can begin working out payment arrangements with them, which should hopefully reduce the amount of collection calls.
5. Consider Debt Consolidation
If you have multiple outstanding debts or you need help determining what you actually owe, then you should contact a Brampton debt consolidation firm such as Paddon & Yorke Inc. They should be able to check how much you owe, work out payment arrangements for the parties you owe money to, and to help you understand how to better manage your financial assets so you don’t get into another financial crisis.
Don’t Let Outstanding Debt Ruin Your Life
Even if you can manage to ignore the phone calls, you’re still legally responsible for the debts that you owe. Ignoring the collection calls will never make them go away, and you may one day be served with legal action.
The only way to recover from the burden of financial debt is to begin taking the proper steps to fix it. The sooner that you do that, then the sooner you’ll be able to enjoy the quiet of your own home without having to worry about collection notices.
Category: Family Finances, Financial Planning
