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When debt is starting to take a hold, it is easy to sink further and further into depression but Alison Brixton from Kent, shows that there are positive ways to lift yourself out of debt and back on the road to financial freedom.

Alison had four credit cards, three store cards and had run up a substantial amount of debt. She could have easily thrown in the towel and let the debt collector do his worst but instead of feeling sorry for herself, she thought up innovative ways to clear her existing debt by November 2008 and to restore her financial independence. Instead of heading toward an IVA - she's now headed toward a debt free future!

Wherever, Alison could see a lucrative opportunity, she took the initiative and gave it a go. During the summer, she invested in two bouncy castles and hired them out at events. When the summer was over, she re-sold the castles for exactly the same price as she purchased them and made a profit of £2,500, which immediately went on her outstanding debt.

She claimed back all of her bank charges which allowed her to reduce another £1,700 of accumulated debt and also switched her utility suppliers to more economical alternatives.

Alison loves a bargain and has a penchant for rare, collectable records. She started purchasing sought after albums at car boot sales and selling them on eBay, this also brought the pennies reeling in.

The simplest ideas are often the easiest way to bring in extra cash, start reducing debt, and prevent you having to enter a serious debt solution. Who knows, you may even have a lot of fun along the way!

While Santa is preparing for his annual stint of popping down the chimneys, now is a good time to start reducing your debt levels as Christmas is coming full steam ahead.

Start working out a healthy budget plan and put money aside for the gifts that your children have in mind. It is also a good idea to set aside a separate fund for your food and drink indulgences over the holiday season. This will prevent you from seeing in the New Year with a mountain of debt problems.

Out of desperation, many people open store cards when the Christmas spirit starts to kick in. Anxious shoppers become immersed in a buying frenzy and somehow think that Santa will bail them out when things get tough.

One good way to save money is to start buying gifts now, rather than wait until closer to the day. This way you can start paying off and managing your debt before Christmas day has even arrived.

If you are shopping online, check that you do not pay over the odds for postage and packing. A multitude of transactions with individual postage costs can make even the smallest of purchases an expensive commodity.

Another way to curb debt is to ensure that you are up to date with all of your bills. Ask your bank if you can have an interest free overdraft for two months from December to January. This will allow you to clear any exuberant debt accrued over the festive season and allow you to remain credit worthy in the New Year.

When you embark on your journey to becoming debt free, like a mile marker in a marathon you have to set yourself goals and most importantly reach them! In a sea of IVAs, Bankruptcy, credit cards, debt and numerous more financial worries, it is hard to know which way to turn. Yet there is a surprising gem of information within all this debt deluge and it comes in the form of debt forums!

Debt Forums have been around as long as the Internet has, however very few people bother or know to look for them. They offer invaluable information when regarding debt and shouldn't be underestimated. On such a forum, you can see first hand the effects of debt on everyone, from people in your local area to people 10,000 miles away. Peoples personal debt views, IVA experiences, Bankruptcy opinions and stories are laid bare for anyone to take what they can from such information.

Again you may be thinking that they don't seem that important, however in a recent study, over 70% of people who were in debt and became actively involved with a debt forum, said they found it one of the most important factors of them finally achieving their goal of being debt free!

The average forum user who actively reads other peoples tales of debt and its consequences, is more mentally involved in reducing their own! By forming, little short of a debt community on-line people who use such on-line facilities feel less alone. They feel like they have support around them and hope seeing other people succeed. More importantly, by constantly reminding themselves about their debt it becomes something they know they must deal with.

Debt collectors are still harassing consumers with threatening phone calls and poor service even though the newly revamped Consumer Credit Act was created to stop these incidences from occurring.

Rebecca Prosser is one of many who has suffered at the hands of aggressive debt collectors for eight years and continues to do so. During this period Rebecca has watched her £5,500 debt escalate to over £50,000 and has suffered severe harassment from the company for this sum. What started off as a small debt has now increased to a massive debt - the amount most people would start considering an IVA or bankruptcy.

Her husband took out the £5,500 unsecured loan way back in 1995. Jonathan made regular monthly payments until he encountered some problems with his salary not being paid directly into his bank account.

The bank responded to this discrepancy by placing severe charges on his account. However, John was not aware of these penalties as he was working abroad and did not have access to his mail. Months later, he was shocked to discover that his original debt had grown extensively. He rang the company several times but was subjected to abusive and threatening comments. The company refused to answer any of his letters and only responded when Jonathan agreed to pay £80 per month on a loan which had swelled to £50,000.

Though the Financial Ombudsman service is now in force, there is very little that can be done for the Prossers as their financial woes started way before April 6th 2007.

If you have debt problems, the Debt Advice Trust can give you free information and advise you on the best debt solution for you.

It is estimated that one in six people could soon find themselves on a debt blacklist as creditors become tougher and refuse mortgages, credit cards and loans.

During 2006, over £7 million was refused by typical lenders but this figure is forecast to rocket to 8.6 million and possibly beyond by the year 2011. Thousands of Britons are already feeling the pinch as they struggle to survive financially from day to day.

Since 2006, house repossessions have risen by over 30% along with a huge increase in county court judgements and defaults. This has urged many building societies, banks and other lenders to tighten their screening process to rule out risky applicants that have the potential to become bankrupt.

This is a stark contrast to the frivolous way that finance gurus used to offer money to anyone and everyone in the past. There were very few credit checks and money was offered with little reassurance of a customer’s ability to pay. In some ways, this may be a responsible move away from the easily accessible debt traps for first time borrowers, but for people experienced in getting loans and credit cards it could make things a lot harder should they have a couple of tarnishes on their credit record. For people already close to a debt solution

Many British lenders have now removed their sub-prime mortgages. Self-certification mortgages are also being cut and many loans will increase by 2.5 percentage points. This could add an extra £150 per month to a £100,000 mortgage.

Debt counselling was a word that Brian Day had heard so many times in the past but never pursued until desperation led him to find out more.

He sought the advice of a debt counsellor back in January 2007 to help him to resolve his mounting debt issues. Brian says that he was impressed with the way that the counsellors offered a sympathetic and caring approach to his financial situation. The first aspect of the counselling was to find debt solutions for his current financial situation; the other was to prevent him from falling into debt in the future.

What kind of debt solutions are available?

As Brian’s debt was quite large, the debt management company advised him against debt settlement as he had too many outstanding bills to contend with. He was advised to take out a debt consolidation loan which would get to the root of his financial problems and provide him with a way out.

Before seeking debt advice, he was confused by the many debt solutions available which included debt consolidation mortgages, home equity loans, an IVA and bankruptcy to name but a few. The debt help that he received allowed him to explore the various options available to find debt solutions to suit his needs.

He was also provided with some really handy debt prevention tips which were of great use. He now heeds the advice of not spending more than he earns and always remembers that every debt is important and has to be treated with the utmost priority.

If you have started an IVA, or are considering one after seeking debt advice, you're probably familiar with the role of an Insolvency Practitioner.

Your Insolvency Practitioner isn’t just the person that’s going to help you get an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA), they are going to help make sure you get through an IVA.

Your contact won’t finish once the proposal for your IVA is approved, but continue through the process. So when will you need to contact them?

During your IVA
During your Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA), you need to keep in contact with your Insolvency Practitioner. There may be a month you think you may fall short of a payment, or your financial situation may suddenly change. If this happens you need to contact your Insolvency Practitioner as soon as possible. If you have difficulty paying and do not contact your Insolvency Practitioner, it could lead to a failed IVA.

After your IVA
Once you have completed an IVA, you will need to finalise everything and make sure your records have been updated to show an IVA has been successfully completed and your creditors have signed you off.

As with any debt solution, it is important you seek debt advice first. Contact the Debt Advice Trust for more information and advice on IVAs and debt.

The way that we handle debt and deal with our finances is inherited from our parents.

The most valued piece of debt advice parents give, is to avoid debt at all costs but how much have our parents influenced our spending habits?

When interviewed, over half of Brits admitted that they have spending habits similar to their parents. Many parents pass on good debt advice such as to always check credit card and bank statements, to save regularly, always read the small print on any documents before signing and avoid borrowing money from friends or work colleagues.

Although these financial pearls of wisdom were firmly engrained, two in ten Brits admitted that they never had any savings, were constantly borrowing from friends and were on the verge of major debt problems.

Parents are new to credit card dependency and although their advice is sensible, young people are growing up in a world where credit is accepted as a normal part of life.

Although parental advice made perfect sense, nearly half of those interviewed admitted that they learnt about debt the hard way and their credit file has suffered. However, they have come to learn the importance of keeping a track of bills and paying them on time, of always checking their bank balances and credit card statements and checking the small print on credit card applications to avoid a debt nightmare.

This shows that negative experiences can have a positive effect on the way that we develop our spending habits.

Home-ownership has become an obsession in the UK with hundreds of young couples flocking to tie a financial debt around their necks well into middle age and beyond.

Some couples are taking less than two minutes to agree to a mortgage. The condition of the property, where it is situated and the potential resale value mean nothing in comparison to owning the deeds of a property. The financial situation they put themselves in and putting themselves in future risk of having to undergo serious debt solutions seem to not enter their minds.

As a result, the government have had to take drastic action by introducing home information packs to prevent underhanded investors from buying run down homes, patching them up and reselling them at huge profits to unsuspecting first-time buyers. This will avoid buyers from suffocating with debt problems soon after taking on a hefty mortgage as repair costs could escalate into thousands.

The average house price is currently sitting at £220,000 with interest rates soaring through the roof at their highest ever. APR interest is leaning towards 7% for those who have a good credit rating and 15% for those less fortunate.

As banks are prepared to lend couples up to six times their income, there will be very little change left in the kitty for improvements, a better family life or renovations unless couples risk falling even further into debt by relying on credit.

Debt consolidation loans with less than 6% interest rates have helped many out of debt. However, it has been on the cards for a while now that low interest loans were likely to disappear and this prediction has now come true.

The last remaining loan with an APR of under 6% became extinct quite recently and rates have started climbing as lenders have been unable to afford these lower options.

With growing debt, rising interest rates and an unsteady economy, it was inevitable that these increases would see the light of day. This is making it even harder for those looking for a debt consolidation loan as low interest rates are only awarded to individuals with a good credit rating.

Lenders will not be making much money from a 0.6% increase on the base rate which is currently 5.5%, so it is likely that they will encourage customers to purchase Payment Protection Insurance (PPI) as a means of boosting their profits. Customers should be aware that PPI could force them into debt and be of little use to them as they come equipped with tight restrictions on who can actually claim.

If you have been considering a debt consolidation loan, other debt solutions may be more suitable now that interest rates have increased. It's best to contact the Debt Advice Trust for free, confidential information and debt advice.