Debt Consolidation

In debt and need some relief? You have lots of company in this situation. Here are some tips on how to help yourself.

1 - Knock Off Using Credit

The place to start is by locking away the credit cards and figuring out how to cut expenses back to function within your income. Work out ways to increase your income and pay cash instead. This is the single most effective action you can take.

2 - Never Commit to Spending More Than Your Company’s Income

You commit your company’s future production to the credit company when you pay for an item with a credit card. That is economic slavery. Evaluate whether or not the item will increase the company’s production of income. If the item will increase the business’ production of income, work out how to set aside the cash to pay for it over a short time period instead of whipping out the credit card. Find ways to increase the company’s income and use it to pay both current expenses and pay off credit debt.

3 - Never Pay Just The Minimum Payment Amount Required

To be really effective, your program should include using 10% to 15% of the business’ weekly income to pay against the debt. Set a goal to pay at least 3 to 5 times the minimum required payment on each credit card and line of credit. Set aside a bit of the payment money every week before the statements show up in the mail. It’s always easier to put aside small amounts over a 4 week period than to find enough to pay a big bill all at once.

Paying more on the highest interest rate card is an effective debt reduction tool you should use in your program. An additional tactic is the lowest balance cards as fast as possible. After paying those lower balance cards off, you free up more cash to use on the high interest rate cards.

4 - Do Not Spend Over The Card Limit Or Make A Payment Late

Never sabotage your debt reduction program by getting hit with $25 to $39 over-the-limit or late fees plus the interest on those fees. In addition, if you pay over 30 days late, that black mark stays on your credit record for 7 years - a harsh penalty to pay.

Recently a Vice President of a U.S. bank appearing on the news stated that more than 24 Billion dollars was paid in interest, late fees and over-limit fees last year on credit cards. Don’t think the credit card company really minds if you pay late or go over your limit. They make billions when that happens.

5 - Find Ways To Cut Expenses

A requirement of a debt reduction program is more cash as fast as possible to pay the debt off. Evaluate what your company income is being spent on and cut back on any expenses that do not contribute to the production of more income. Before you spend, evaluate how much money that item is going to bring back in to your business.

TIP: Don’t ever stop promoting your your business’ products and services to everyone - this is one area you don’t want to stop spending on. Just make sure your promotional spending is bringing more money back in than what was spent.

Correctly managing the money in a business to ensure its survivalguarantee it will survive takes more than a debt reduction program, but this is a great place to begin. There are other steps that can be taken to increase the company’s income, pay bills on time, have cash reserves for emergencies, increase profitability and pay yourself more money. You want that, right?

Sandra Simmons, President of Money Management Solutions, has years of experience helping professionals and individuals manage their income to get out of debt. To learn more about the Money Management Software she created, visit her website and watch the FREE 5-minute demo video at www.MoneyMgmtSolutions.com

- Sandra Simmons

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Ever gotten that gut wrenching fear in the pit of your belly when you thought of working out a budget? Then chances are you’ve never looked up the word in a good dictionary to find out the correct definition, and worked out how you can use that to your company’s financial advantage.

Want some really good News? Running your business on a budget does not mean reducing the quality of the things you buy or not purchasing something your business needs to operate. What it does mean, is that you have to figure out how to make enough income to be able to afford the items your business needs and to keep your spending within the limits of your income.

There’s more good news! The most valuable asset you have is your staff and yourself, and your income earning potential. If you want more money to spend, then work out how you and your employees can be more productive to bring in more money.

Another definition you need know is this: a BUDGET is the sum total of the income it takes for the company to function, and to attain its goals.

Let’s consider the first part of the definition; how much is needed for you and your company to run. Look at your Profit & Loss Statement to find out how much you spent and add the amount you are carrying on credit cards plus interest. Divide the total by 52 weeks, and multiply it by 1.036. The result is your weekly budget. That is the total of income your business has to bring in just to operate plus barely keep up with increases in the cost of doing business. That doesn’t include paying compund interest on credit card debt.

More than likely, you have financial goals you also want your company to attain; That’s the second part of the definition. Attaining those goals must get added to your budget as well.

Here is an example: a business owner wants to buy a new piece of equipment 6 months from now that costs $4,000. They divide the cost of the equipment by the 26 weeks they have before the target purchase date and learn they have to set aside $153.85 every week to have the cash for the equipment. This gets added to the budget, meaning the additional amount of income they have to put into the bank every week.

Most importantly, if you, the company owner, want to attain the goal of financial independence - working because you WANT TO instead of because you HAVE TO — then the most critical part of the budget needs to be the wealth building money you stash in an investment plan and never spend.

Figure out how much money you would need to have in savings to live without working. Divide that dollar amount by the number of weeks until the time you would like to be financially free. Figure out how to make that much more income each week, and your budget is on the correct path to gaining financial independence.

How badly do you want to be a millionaire in 20 years? Figure out a way to increase the company’s income enough to set aside $961.54 a week in savings for the next 1,040 weeks and you have made it to being a millionaire! The additional interest earnings on top of that will be a fat bonus that more than keeps up with the rise in the cost of living every year.

Today, with computers in every organization this task of budgeting is made so much easier by streamlined and automated Money Management Software, such as shown in this on-line video.. This software functions as a companion to your accounting software for really easy day-to-day operation.

Sandra Simmons, President of Money Management Solutions has years of experience helping business owners and individuals manage their income to achieve financial independence. To find out about the Money Management Software described in this article, watch the FREE 5-minute demo video on the website www.MoneyMgmtSolutions.com

- Sandra Simmons

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It seems that most people search for the ultimate wealth building strategy all their lives. It may surprise you to know that you own half of it the day you are born.

What half do you own? It’s your ability to make income. No matter what your education or skill level, you have income earning power. Ready to find out the good news about that and how it connects you to the ultimate wealth building strategy?

It isn’t how much you make; it’s how you spend it that determines your financial state.

The second half of the ultimate wealth building strategy is what you do with the income that you earn. There is a way to control the flow of money to create wealth. Wealthy people know this money management system.

It works whether you are an employee who works for someone else and you are using the system to control the flow of your personal income, or if you are a company owner using the system to control the flow of your company’s income. It is a very simple system, and it’s now even more simple using the money management software tool called Money Management Solutions Business Edition.

1) SPEND LESS THAN YOU MAKE - Cut your expenses back to operate within your income. It might seem difficult, but having a budget that includes everything you need to run your business is simple with the correct money management software.

If you know exactly how much you are spending to run the business, and where the money is being spent, you can identify areas of waste or even areas where more income needs to be invested to get the income up and increase your profits.

Before using the Money Management Solutions software, my clients UNDERestimated how much money they needed to run their business by 10 - 13%. A very bad mistake when you are aiming for an income target that is too low!

2) SET ASIDE 10% OF YOUR INCOME IN SAVINGS and never spend it. Set aside regular amounts of cash from your earnings for the future - each week pay yourself first and put the money in interest bearing savings toward gaining financial independence.

The majority of company owners pay themselves a salary for their job production inside the business, but then they fail to pay themselves for the hat they wear carrying the full responsibility and risk of of being the business owner.

The ultimate wealth building strategy requires a minimum of 10% of the income be put into savings out of every dime you earn. The Money Management Solutions software system shows you an easy way to pay yourself this extra amount every week, and more besides. Then you just sock it away and forget you even have it. As it increases, move it to places that earn better interest than bank savings accounts. This includes purchasing investment properties you can rent out to earn even more.

3) DO NOT BUY ON CREDIT - pay for things with cash instead. Debt is like a disease that you should avoid contracting. If you already have some credit debt, this money management software package shows you how to get it paid off fast.

If you are ready to buy something that is expensive, our money management software shows you how to put money away towards the purchase every week until you have the cash. For large purchases like furniture and equipment, buy used instead of brand new. Remember, those items depreciate in value from the very minute you buy them.

4) LOOK FOR WAYS TO MAKE MORE MONEY - the cost of operating a company increases about 4.5% every year, so you need to make more money just to keep up. How much more do you need? The money management system helps you figure that out and make adjustments so you always have the current figures.

Look through your sales receipts and figure out what items or services are selling the best and figure out how to sell more of the profitable items. If an item or service is not generating enough profits for a good return on your investment, consider discontinuing it. The secret to making more money is pretty simple if you put your attention on it. The ultimate wealth building strategy helps you evaluate every financial decision you make with an eye on the return on investment you will receive for the initial investment.

5) USE YOUR MONEY TO INCREASE YOUR INCOME - After paying your ultimate wealth building strategy the 10% into savings and paying your bills, use any money left over in ways that increase your ability to make more income.

Why is it vital for you to have enough control over the flow of money? It is the energy and life blood of a business. It is necessary to channel it through the income generating areas first to keep it running smoothly. Everything runs better when adequatecash is available. Our Money Management Software guides you towards making the correct decisions about how to use your income to generate more profits and build wealth.

Seems easy, right? And it is. The ultimate wealth building strategy is easy to learn and implement, and this money management wealth building software can be used just an hour each week to help you gain your financial freedom. It does take some personal commitment and discipline to make it to the goal of financial freedom so you never have to worry about money again.

The really good news is that you have control over this system. Done correctly and consistently, the end result is always having lots of cash on hand, all bills paid, and plenty of money in savings to finance what you really want to do with your money; not just pay bills. How well you control the flow of your income will be a determining factor in how well your business and your family will survive in the years ahead. Properly applyingthese five steps will ensure that this wealth building strategy works for you.

Sandra Simmons, President of Money Management Solutions has years of experience helping company owners and private individuals manage their money to achieve financial independence. To learn more, visit our Money Management Software web site, and watch the FREE 5-minute demo video on the website.

- Sandra Simmons

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The world of finance can be a little bit of a tricky one if you happen to be one of those millions of people who are not yet completely familiar with all of the many nuances of credit, debit, finance, mortgage and other similar terms. Nevertheless, we all know how important it is to be well-informed (as far as money is concerned) in order to be successful. This article will help you understand the importance of credit cards, loans, financing etc.

Credit cards are a hit everywhere in the world. And there is substantial reason for them to be hit. After all, credit cards have made it possible for us to buy clothes and accessories, travel in airplanes, pay hotel bills and buy gasoline etc., without having the need to carry bundles of money with us. Some twenty years back, this would seem like a dream.

A huge array of options exist for those looking for a new credit card. You are certain to find one that meets your financial situation. For example, a person running a company might opt for a high ceiling on spending. This item is known as the “credit limit.” Many cards are offer a limit that is automatically raised, actually giving a soft ceiling. We will now discuss the debit card, and how it is unique.

With a credit card, you have the option to settle a bill for products or services on credit. On the other hand, you can’t make use of a debit card without having enough cash in your debit account to cover the cost of a specific item. The marketplace really runs on credit cards today. Just think: you can buy whatever you need or want even if your pockets are totally empty of cash at the time!

However, student credit cards may sometimes offer you even those facilities which the conventional credit cards do not provide. For instance, the interest-rates applicable on student credit cards are often less in comparison to business credit cards. There are many banking institutions (private and public) which offer these credit cards to students. One of the criteria for a person to apply for a student credit card is that he or she must be a student of any recognized institution or university.

Cash back credit cards may also be applied for. Some of these credit cards offer as much as 3% cash back on certain fixed amounts. It’s important to select a credit card that best suits your budget and other needs. Furthermore, students should consider a student loan consolidation program if they intend to have their studies financed. Prior to applying for any of these student credit cards, it’s best to read other consumer reviews.

Credit cards are popular across the world, and for good reason. They allow us to purchase goods and services without having to carry cash. Depending on your personal needs, there are many types of credit cards to choose from. For example, student credit cards often have lower interest rates than conventional credit cards or business credit cards. To qualify for student cards, applicants must usually be a student at a recognized college or university. Students should also consider a student loan consolidation program if they wish to finance their studies. Cash back credit cards are another type, which offer as much as 3% cash back on certain fixed amounts.

- Angela Mercer

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Thinking about doing your own hardwood flooring? Before you learn how to install hardwood flooring, you need to choose the type of flooring you want first. You have many options when it comes to hardwood flooring. Some of it can be installed the old-fashioned way, and some of it just snaps in place.

Laminates and snap-together hardwoods have their own instructions, which will come with the flooring. If you want to install traditional hardwood flooring, you’ll want to follow these steps.

You need to put down the flooring base first. You want the subfloor to be dry, clean, and level. Before you begin, remove the baseboards.

You want the wood to get acclimated to your house first, so whether you pick up the flooring yourself or have it delivered, time it so that it all gets stacked somewhere in your house for a few days or so. Unless you let the wood adjust to your home environment, it won’t fit properly. This is because wood reacts to different humidity levels and temperatures by expanding and contracting.

While you’re figuring out how to install hardwood flooring, determine which direction the floor joists/supports run. Once you do that, mark the position at the base of the walls so you have a handy reference. Obtain some 15-pound asphalt felt and put down a layer on top of the subfloor.

This does a few things for you: It protects the flooring from moisture and minimizes squeaking and creaking. This is especially important if you’re installing the hardwoods in a kitchen or bathroom.

To indicate the position for your first board, mark the centerline of your room. As you install the flooring, be sure to leave a gap of 1/2 inches at the walls.

To avoid marring and indenting your wood with your hammer, make sure to use a nail set when you finish hammering in each nail. The first three boards or so should be nailed in by hand, even if you’re using a pneumatic flooring nailer. This will keep them from shifting.

As projects go, learning how to install hardwood flooring isn’t a difficult task. But it is a precise project, and it will take time.

Make sure to visit How to Install for more tips on everything from How to Install a Window to How to Install Shingles.

- Christine Julianne

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This concise article will reveal to you some of the problems with credit counseling programs. These are the facts that result in a failure rate of in some cases over 80% of the debtors who enroll themselves in these programs. People should be aware of these facts before they get themselves into a credit counseling program to ensure themselves they are deciding on a sound financial move.

1. A great number of the consumer credit counseling companies are started and funded by the actual credit card issuers themselves. They serve as a sort of middle man for the credit card issuers to collect the debt amount owed.

2. The consumer credit counseling companies work for and represent the credit card issuers; they do not work on behalf of the debtor. The credit card organizations stateto the credit counseling company the monthly minimum payment requirement, and the interest rate. There is no middle ground at all on this.

3. The consumer credit counseling companies will lower the APR, however they cannot actually lower the original balance. The standard interest rate on one of these programs is around 13% which is more in the middle than actually being a low interest rate. By not reducing the original balance they are not really a form of debt relief, this is just an sped up payment program.

4. You will end up actually paying more than the original debt amount, due to the monthly fees, APR and reduced monthly payments which drastically increases the amount of time you are going to be stuck in debt.

5. It can have a short term adverse impact on your FICO credit score and is made a record to the public on your credit history, during the time you are in the program.

6. Getting a home loan while on a consumer credit counseling program becomes very hard, on the edge of being impossible.

7. Here is the kicker and read carefully. If you fall past due only one payment while on a credit counseling program you will be booted off and the credit card companies will not allow you to sign into another program for a year. Which will put your bills right back to where they were before, high interest and all. This is the reason why upwards of 75% of the clients enrolled in these programs fail out.

Sit back and really think nice and hard about this for a sec. They put you on a credit counseling program that may be up to 5 years or more. As everyone knows or will come to know life has its good times and its bad times. If you find it pretty tight to be on the program in the first place you will fail off. Any volatile financial problems as little or large as they may be could contribute to you going past due just one payment and getting kicked out of the program. You need to sincerely think about how unwavering your finances and income security are before you enroll into a online consumer credit counseling program to avoid being part of that 80%. The bottom line is those individuals with a considerable sum of debt such as $20,000 or more should really lean more towards credit card debt settlement than credit counseling. Credit counseling is more reasonable for individuals with lower sums of debt that do not have much of any problems staying current in the first place. If you are seeking to reduce your debt and get out of debt fast, then credit counseling is just not for you.

Steve Bis is a debt analyst with the US Consumer Advocate, which practices debt relief.

- Steve Bis

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Builders aren’t the only ones seeing stock prices slump from the weakening real estate market, mortgage lenders are seeing shares begin to sink as well. There are many mortgage lenders in the Kings Bay Georgia market. Another issue with predatory lenders is that they charge very high monthly payments, knowing that the borrower will not be able to pay them and thus, force the owners go into foreclosure.

On the other hand, if you plan to keep your refinanced mortgage, you would do better with a lower rate, even with paying points. One downside of using a mortgage broker is that your mortgage loan will be sold to another lender immediately after closing. Many companies offer hard money loans, and if they can’t finance you, you should have no problems finding hard money lenders that will back you and your business.

Lenders are starting to see a gloomy outlook as the real estate market continues to weaken. In general, if your home loan sum is greater than 80% of the value of the property, you will need LMI. Mortgage lending software is one of the commonly used software in financial lending organizations such as banks, and other financial institutions.

The software automates all processes related to mortgage lending such as loan application (form 1003) and loan transmittal (form 1008), underwriting (e mail loan approvals and tracking conditions), loan approvals (closing documents and loan funding), and post closing (shipping, trailing docs, insuring and file room documentation). The Council of Mortgage lenders on Monday stated that the in January the gross mortgage lending stood at 23 billion pounds. At this point, a mortgage lender will closely examine each of your open accounts to establish an overall credit pattern.

Bankruptcies on the increase, extended mortgage terms of up to five times salary, and a housing market which will just not slow down - these are all simmering in the background, ready to explode at some point, unless the wreckless nature of the consumer is some how dampened over the coming months. It is possible to find many mortgage companies who offer mortgage plans online. You can find a second mortgage almost anywhere.

For the best information about free mortgage leads visit our website for more information on california mortgage lead

- Calvin Joness

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If you happen to be an individual who is experiencing stressful nights and losing sleep due to your credit card debt, then logically you are contemplating all of your avenues on how to resolve this predicament. You may have talked to a few different companies or spent tireless hours researching the web to decide whether to go the avenue of credit card debt consolidation or credit card debt settlement.

What it truly comes down to is the debt situation that you are currently experiencing. If you don’t have a extremely large amount of debt and aren’t having an extremely difficult time paying it off then credit card debt consolidation could be a more suited fit for you. What the credit card debt consolidation establishment will do is reduce the APR on your accounts, and institute a manageable payment program in which the company will spread out the payments to the creditors for you. At the end of the road you will be debt free, however the process usually takes around 5 years and you do have to pay back the entire amount plus interest. But you will in the end be free from the handcuffs of debt.

Now will credit card debt consolidation be the right avenue for all, absolutely not. You won’t in reality see too much of a reduction in the amount that you must put out each month. So for people who are having issues keeping up or have fallen past due, debt settlement may be a better avenue to take. The most viable candidate for debt settlement is someone who is around $15,000 in the whole or more and are experiencing real hardship keeping up with the minimums. Seeing that in debt settlement you’ll have a reduced payment you pay out each month because you won’t be paying back the debt in its’ entirety.



Basically the dissimilarity comes down to this, going with credit card debt consolidation you pay back around 120% of what you owe, which is a far cry away from the amount you would be obligated to pay through the minimum payment structure. However it’s also a large difference from the amount you’ll pay back with debt settlement. With going through credit card debt consolidation it will also take you close to 5 years to be free of debt. Debt settlement will look to save around 40-50% of what your current balance is and be out of debt in 2 years or less, depending on how fast you can raise the money necessary to negotiate the settlement.

Steve Bis is a debt analyst and research assistant with the US Consumer Advocate, which primarily practices in credit card debt relief.

- steve bis

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Credit card debt and other unsecured debts have turned into a severe problem for the greater part of families in America . So many people have become to acclimated to just utilizing their plastic card to get whatever it is they want, whenever they want it, without truly having the cash to pay for it. Below I am going to list the top three reasons that Americans end up becoming so stuck with credit card debt.

1. Buying Impulsively and Poor Spending Habits!

Buying on impulse shows lack of self-control. People will simply see an item in a shop and charge it on their plastic, all due to that they cannot show some patience in getting, whatever item it is they want to purchase, with no regard as to whether they have the income for it then or not. Credit cards feed into impulsive buying that is what the cards are there for to keep happy our need for instant gratification. You know there is a saying “patience is a virtue” if some debtors adopted that principle debt would not be a problem for them.

Weak spending routines run along the same line as buying on impulse. Some debtors just spoil themselves far to often in life. For example, somebody might end up at a restaurant, and instead of ordering a hamburger and fries, they get the filet mignons, the appetizer or two, the happy hour special, and the ice cream special. And of course charge it on their credit cards. Don’t take me out of context every once in a while splurging isn’t bad, but for some individuals it’s an everyday occurance. And these uncontrolled spending routines can build up to a mountain range of debt in a rather fast time period.

My Advice: Next time you are at a store, any kind of store, and you are going to make a purchase with your plastic. Think twice about the items you are about to purchase and think to yourself “Do I really need these things?”. If you see yourself purchasing something that is more of a want then a need put it back, and promise yourself when you have “real money” not a credit card, to come back and purchase that item for yourself without charging your card. The essential point here is to differentiate between wants and needs, your food is a need, your shampoo is a need, the video game is a want, the brand new pair of shoes are a want. A tune up for your car is a need, a supercharger for your car is a want.

2. Obtaining Too Many Credit Cards!

This is the next large problem to debtors getting into major debt problems. People simply just can’t say no to the credit card offers they receive. Debtors get solicited in the mail saying your pre-approved and your line of credit is 5k. For some people this is too much to take on and they will graciously accept every card and almost instantly use them.

My advice: Just throw these offers away! You don’t need them. Think of each one of these card solicitations you get in the mail as a large financial time bomb waiting to blow you out of the water. The only way to cut it off is by placing them right into the trash. Learn to refuse the new credit offers you don’t need them, this cannot be stressed enough.

3. Cash Advances!

This is an extremely tremendous factor in people stacking up debt. It’s to easy to go to the automatic teller machine and withdraw cash against your card. Becoming very addicting to debtors and becomes a big reason why they accumulate such large debt amounts.

My Advice: Stay away from cash advances. This basically is almost the same as just purchasing on your card, because you still get charged interest and rack up debt.

Steve Bis is a debt analyst and research assistant with the US Consumer Advocate, which primarily practices in credit card debt settlement.

- Steve Bis

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More Americans today are falling deeper and deeper into debt with their credit cards. As a result many are searching out methods to reduce credit card debt. Debt settlement has become a very popular form of debt reduction due to the two major benefits of a settlement program. Which are the benefits of saving a lot of money and time.

In a debt settlement negotiation one can expect to reduce their debt up to 50% of what is owed.Unlike a credit counseling program where only the interest rate can be reduced. In a debt settlement program the actual balance owed will be lowered. Thus resulting in a major saving of money.

By lowering the amount owed by so much the amount of time until one is debt free will be decreased significantly. Most debtors will find themselves out of debt in 36 months. Which is way less than it would take someone to be out of debt by making only minimum payments.

Those that have found themselves starring down the barrel at bankruptcy, may find debt settlement to be their knight in shining armor.Making minimum payments at 100% of the balance owed averages around 38 years to pay off. Besides the fact that over four times of what a debtor owes will be paid in interest alone over the course of the time it takes to pay the debt down. Through debt settlement people can become free of debt much quicker than they would have while savings in most cases thousands of dollars. While settlement is a great avenue to become debt free it is not for everyone. Debtors must be in a legitimate hard financial time to qualify for most debt settlement services. The fastest way to see if you would qualify for a debt settlement program is to contact a reputable BBB registered debt settlement company.

Steve Martin is a debt analyst with the US Consumer Advocate, which practices debt settlement.

- Steve Martin

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