Step1
- The road to financial freedom is to
have great health so that you are in good shape
to learn.
Step
2 - An open mindset to start learning
and practicing what you have learned.
Step
3 - Investing your time in your
financial & health education so that you
are in control of your life to create wealth to
enjoy a better life.
Step
4 - Enjoy the wealth that you have
created because you have been taking care of
your health.
Step Three: Getting Out
of Debt
I want you to use the notes you made then to create a
plan that will help you put your fears behind you and
get out of debt. One of the worst kinds of debt most
people face is credit card debt. If you can't pay the
full amount you owe right now, here are the steps I
want you to take.
1.Check your credit rating by logging on to
myfico.com.
Creditors use a rating system called FICO (Fair, Isaac
and Company), which assigns a numeric value to your
credit habits. It will cost you $12.95 to do so. To
get the lowest possible interest rate on your credit
cards, you need to have a FICO score between 720 and
850. If you're below 620, you're in trouble, and you
can work with the simulator on the site to see how you
can raise your score.
2.Call your credit card companies.
If your FICO score is good (above 720), tell each one
that if it doesn't lower your interest rate, you'll be
transferring the balance to another credit card
company. To find great rates or better cards, log on
to bankrate.com or lendingtree.com.
3.Ask to have your credit limit lowered.
If you continue to overspend, you can have the limit
lowered to just the amount you would need in an
emergency.
4.Pay more than the minimum amount due each
month by as much as is possible to the highest
interest rate card you have.
When the balance is paid off, apply the entire monthly
payment you were making on this card to the payments
you are already making to the card with the second
highest interest rate. And keep on rolling down like
this until all your debt is gone.
5.Find help.
If you doubt that you can do this alone, contact the
National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) to
find one of their credit counseling services in your
area (800-388-2227; nfcc.org). NFCC credit counselors
are experienced, helpful, relatively inexpensive, and
they can negotiate a lower rate and/or a repayment
schedule for you.
6.Feel proud of yourself.
Taking the crucial steps to put your debt behind you,
so that one day soon you can be more and create more
for yourself.
By Suze Orman
2006 (c) creditplushealth.com
Credit Plus Health By Sean Toh All rights reserved.