Test Yourself If You Need Credit Counseling
Wednesday, April 13, 2011, 2:00 AM | Leave Comment
Many people, when they are in debt or getting into it, think they can fix their debt situation by themselves. They try to trim back on spending and keep a close eye on their accounts if they have the willpower to do it. Some people have the willpower to shed pounds on their own while others require the help of a personal trainer. Similarly, a time comes that people need a credit counselor or financial adviser to help them in the dire situation of debt they may be in.
So, how and when do you find out that you really need a credit counselor? Below is a simple test to know it:
- Your credit card balance is rising month after month.
- The above can happen when you are only paying the minimum amounts required on your accounts, or maybe less than the minimums.
- When you get cash advance from one credit card to pay bill on your second credit card.
- You are at or near the limit on each of your credit cards.
- You consistently charge more each month than you make in payments.
- You are working overtime or second job to keep up with your credit card payments.
- You don’t know or worse you don’t want to know how much you owe.
- You have received calls or letters about delinquent bill payments from a collection agency.
- Your credit cards are no longer used for the sake of convenience, but you use it just to survive.
- Your paycheck is not enough so you dip into savings or your IRA to pay your monthly bills.
- Your spouse is not a free spender and you start hiding your expenses from your second half.
Once you come to know that you are having problems and are getting into debt, increasingly heavier debt, then you must do something about it.
However, no matter how many financial advisers and credit counselors – normally one is enough – you seek help from, it’s your own mindset that eventually can save you from any future financial disaster.
With your own determination, starting today, you will be able to get out of the debt you are in. If you have kids, just look at them. Do it for them, not only for your own survival but theirs as well.
Get help sooner rather than later. It can and will take months or years off the process of getting out of debt.
Before you go to a credit counselor, do a thorough analysis of your family’s personal finances. For example, make sure you write down the amount for the following:
- How much money you have saved.
- How much you owe.
- How much money you have coming in each month.
- How much money you have going out each month.
In a Nutshell
Such an analysis will help you assess how much trouble you are in and how much assistance is required. In the end, getting organized may be all the help you need.
