Posts Tagged ‘loans’

Think hard about Debt Consolidation Loans

Thursday, October 1st, 2009

If you are experiencing first-hand experience of debt think very carefully before considering a debt consolidation loan.

It may seem easier to pay off all your debts each month in “one low monthly repayment” but you are really borrowing more money.

So what you should consider is making a list of all your incomings and outgoings (be honest!) each month. If you are able to cover your outgoings including credit card repayments, you should just be organised and try to do this yourself, by setting up Direct Debit etc. After all, this is all a company does for you – takes your monthly sum and gives it to each credit card company.

If you cannot cover each payment and decide a loan is for you, you should think carefully about how much you can afford to pay out each month.

If you look online, try to deal with one company at a time. If you surf loads of websites like me, you will get emails and phone calls for weeks.

Once a company contacts you, they will go through your finances with you, so have a copy handy of the incoming and outgoings list you made.

Good luck with paying off the debts and getting into the black!

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Posted in Debt advice | 2 Comments »

Overdraft, Loan or Credit Card?

Wednesday, September 30th, 2009

The key when in need of cash up front is to take advantage of 0% APR on credit cards and overdrafts. Payday loans tend to be high interest, so often you’ll be paying much more than you’ve actually borrowed, which is not the way to go.

What I’d recommend is checking out Credit Card deals, where companies have 0% APR on new purchases and transfers which allows you to have cash up front without having to repay lots and lots. This is good so you pay back no more than what you have borrowed as long as you keep within the time schedule and purchasing limits.

The same goes for interest free overdrafts. It means that you can take money out from the bank and repay the same value to the bank without paying heaps of interest.

Avoid a payday loan unless you really need the money, as there are many other more sensible ways to go such as overdrafts and credit cards. Otherwise, you’d be in bigger financial trouble than if you hadn’t have paid your bills on time.

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Posted in Debt advice | 8 Comments »

Ways to avoid unnecessary debt

Tuesday, September 29th, 2009

Does debt have to be an accepted facet of contemporary living? For the majority, the sad answer appears to be yes. While this is a reality, there is no doubting the fact that a lot of debt is avoidable.

As consumers we each have unlimited wants and desire things that we don’t really need. It is a good idea to ask yourself if you really need what you are buying before parting with any cash. You may look at your car each day and feel that it would be nice to have a new one, but do you really need one? If it isn’t breaking down or covered in rust the chances are is that it is on your ‘wish list’ rather than a necessity. Most people haven’t got ten grand sitting in their bank account which means that they will need a loan. If you have bad credit you could easily end up paying 27% APR. If you are paying out £350 per month for a car you are buying today you have to remember that you will forego that money tomorrow.

Do you have credit cards? Many of these will be accruing interest at very high rates. If you are only paying the minimum amount each month you will find that your balance will not be paid off for 30 years. Why not take advantage of an interest-free credit card and transfer the balance across? If you keep doing this you will save yourself hundreds, if not thousands, of pounds. If you don’t have good credit, why not pay the debt off with your savings? If you are struggling to keep control of your finances the simple answer is to write to the credit card provider to close down the account or reduce the credit limit.

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Posted in Debt advice | 5 Comments »