Eliminating Credit Card Debt

I want to start off this conversation by saying don’t fall for those credit card debt elimination company schemes.  Before you even think about resorting to outside help try these steps that have really helped me.  I denied my credit card debt problems for years even though I was several thousand dollars in debt.  Ignoring the problem only drove me deeper in debt and lowered my credit score.  So here is how I got myself back on track. 

The first thing that you should do is gather all of your credit card bills and make a list of all of your debt.  It’s important when you’re doing this to capture your interest rate, balance, and minimum payments.   Next you should rank your cards by the highest interest to the lowest interest rate.  Call the credit card companies with the highest interest rate and ask them if they would be will to lower your credit card interest rate to fall more in line with your lower rate cards.  This may be a long shot but it definitely doesn’t hurt to ask.  They will lower the rates on occasion so go ahead and ASK! 

After you rank your credit cards you should total up all of your minimum monthly payments.  Paying only the monthly minimums will cost you dearly.  Here’s what I did.  I paid the monthly minimums on every card with the exception of the card with the highest rate.  I put all of my extra money on the card with the highest interest rate.  Paying off the high interest card first will save you a lot of money in the long run. 

Once you have paid off the credit card with the highest interest rate, apply the same technique toward the card with the next highest rate.  It will take some time depending on you debt level but if you continue to pay more than the monthly minimum and stop  using your card for new purchases you will eventually eliminate your credit card debt.