Expert Tips for Cutting Credit Card Debt

Credit cards are very helpful and convenient but since they’re so easy to use it can increase your debt fast if you’re not careful with your finances, and eventually it could hurt your credit.

If you have high credit card debt here are some tips that can help you out of this problem.

Prioritize Spending

Create a budget where you map out your basics first, like housing, food, and clothing. After that, go for your debt but you need to pay more than the minimum, always. Be sure to tackle the secured debts first (debts with collateral like a house or a car).

A student loan is also important since a private lender can pursue legal action to collect that loan.

More Money

Now that you know what to tackle first, you can try and reduce expenses and also generate extra income.

Something you can cut out that you don’t need is a streaming service or a gym membership or any luxuries that are not needed. You know what they are, cut them while you pay off your debt.

For some extra income, a side hustle will work, selling anything that you have already, maybe selling something you create with a hobby, or working extra time on your current job if possible (if they pay extra time).

Work on Spending Habits

To keep up all your hard work of paying off your debt you need to also work on not ending up in the same problem again, that means changing your spending habits. Just make sure you distinguish between what you need and just a ‘want’. You need to keep your spending to a minimum while you pay for your necessities and the debt.

Pay More than the Minimum

We browsed this subject at first but this is a very important point that you need to follow to help you clear your debt quicker. Paying the minimum will take you years to clear your debt and not only that but those hundreds of extra dollars you have to pay because of interest won’t help at all. So the faster you pay, the higher your payments, and the less interest you will have.

Pay Your Cards in Order

What do we mean by paying your cards in order? In case you have several cards, it simply means making the biggest payment on the card that has the highest interest rate, once paid you move to the next one with the highest interest rate, this is called the debt avalanche.

Avoid More Debts

As mentioned before, if possible, ignore your credit cards, and put them away so you don’t make unnecessary purchases. Forcing you to buy things with cash makes you more conscious of the money you have. This will help you notice your unnecessary spending so it will be easier to cut back on those purchases.