any ideas on how to pay off credit card debt fast? i will never get it paid off at the rate i am going?

Question

i have some credit card debt.. i have great credit and dont want to ruin it but it seems that i will be paying till i am 90... i dont use them at all. but the balances i do have are taking forever to pay off.. can anyone help?

Answer 1

Great for you that you are no longer using them and you are thinking about preserving credit :)

Option #1 is to call and ask if they can provide a better interest rate for you. Often times they play hardball, so be persistent with them.

Option #2 is to enroll in a Debt Management Plan. Make sure they are certified by the NFCC (National Foundation of Credit Counseling), registered with the BBB, and licensed in your state for debt managment. Basically DMP programs have relationships/contracts with credit card banks to get you lower interest rates. You pay the debt off in full and the balances are paid off more quickly as you are paying on the principal.

Be aware of debt consolidation companies and debt settlement companies, those are typically bad news.

I wish you the best!

Answer 2

First take your cards out of your wallet. Put them in a box and wrap them like a birthday present. Do not unwrap them until your first birthday after they are all paid off. Do not apply for new cards. Take a look at your income and your expenses. Write down how much money you make each month. Then figure out how much money you spend each month. Make sure you include things like rent, utilities, cell phone, car/transportation, food, clothing, entertainment, etc. Find out the difference between how much you make and how much you spend. Hopefully, you make more than you spend. If you don't you need to adjust your spending so that your expenses go down. (eat at home, get a cheaper apartment, etc.) Next you need to figure out how much you need to spend on your credit card bills. Call each card number and find out the minimum monthly payment on each card and the interest rate. Add the minimum monthly payments to your list of expenses. These must be paid every month. Take the remainder of your monthly income (what ever is left) and pay it towards the card with the highest interest rate first! Also you should ask your credit card companies if they have any balance transfer specials. You might be able to lower the interest rates and consolidate on to one card. Going to a third party is not a dumb idea but you don't have that much debt. Use this as an opportunity to learn how to use credit wisely and budget -- going to a 3rd party won't help you with that.

Answer 3

Shred, burn or place credit cards in a safe deposit box. Notify the credit card company not to send any more cheques for balance transfers or loans. Live within your means. Instead of going to the movies, rent a movie and watch with friends. Eat meals prepared at home and not from a box. Always make a list before going shopping. Prepare a menu. Purchase only what is on the list. Make a monthly/ weekly budget and allot money for utilities-food-auto-etc. Keep cash for each week and when the money for the items and the week is gone, that's it. Buy items from Goodwill and yard sales instead of new, but depends on the item. Start eBaying anything you have but don't really need. Pay extra on the credit card with cash advances first. Pay the lowest card off first, then you have additional money to pay on other cards. Do things for yourself that you usually pay others to do. Allow yourself to spend $10 at a dollar store once a month if you really are a shopaholic.

Answer 4

The only way to pay them off faster is simply to pay more. Pay as much as you can against your highest-rate card, get that gone, then do the same to the next one, etc...

If you really took a step back at how you spend your money now, most people can easily find another $50-200 per month to pay down debts. This means skipping the starbucks, the lunches out, etc... Find some way to not spend $3-5 every day that you otherwise seem to do. At the end of the month, you'll have another $100-150 to put towards a card.

Answer 5

Just make sure that you are not paying only the minimum balance. If you continue to pay only the minimum balance then it will take you until you're 90 lol. Always try and pay more than the minimum, I'm not going to say how much exactly because it all depends on your own finances and what you are comfortable with. Also anytime you have any extra money that you may not need just dump that on your debt. The more money you put on it the less money you are paying in interest. Good Luck with everything.

Answer 6

See if you can transfer the balance from one account into another with a lower rate. I just did this today from an account with a 5.99% rate to one with a 1.99% rate. It will save me $70 in interest over 7 months (after the fee to transfer), which doens't sound like much, but it is a start. I will then transfer it again in Early September to another acount with a low rate. Also, if my minimum payment is $100, I try to pay $150 it adds up. If you can lump all your accounts into 1 single payment on one account (hoping you have one card with that high of a limit), it actually pays it off faster as you are applying the payment to the single account instead of paying minimums to 3 accounts.
The other option is finding a lower rate personal loan. Banks like Bank of America have them at around 8.9%, so if you have credit cards with rates higher than that, this may be a better option.

Good Luck

Answer 7

Getting bogged down by the credit card debt is very easy. Many people remain blissfully unaware when their credit card debt spirals out of control. And when they find it out, the situation has become unmanageable.

The easiest method of determining you exact status of your credit card debt and your monthly repayment is to compute your monthly income and then calculate the maximum you can pay into your credit card account. Then divide your earnings by your monthly credit card payments. If you find that at least 15% of your earnings are used to pay your credit card debt each month, then your chances of getting trapped by huge credit card debt are high. Besides this debt cannot be eliminated easily.

If you are in the unenviable condition, the best solution is not to use your credit cards and trim your expenses from other areas. This idea may be alien to many, but it is the beginning of the path of saving plenty of money. One of the areas where you can save money is your grocery expenses. Though we all need food to live and some amount of expenses in this area is inevitable, the way in which we spend money on food items, can reduce our monthly bills drastically.

Answer 8

Sign up for a card that has 0% on balance transfers for a year. Transfer as much as you can to the new card and cut it up (any purchases you make will accrue interest until the transfered balances are paid).

I SWEAR by this. I transfered 3 high interest cards to Washington Mutual almost a year ago. I have $300 left to pay by May. I took my time to pay it off...sometimes 10%, sometimes the minimum. NO FINANCE CHARGES!

Answer 9

Just put as much extra as you can towards paying it off. If you are only paying the minimum then you will never get it paid off but just try and put an extra $100 a month towards it. Cut up the cards so you won't be tempted to use them again.

Answer 10

WRITE a budget for every penny you make and spend on anything. Cut it to the bone. Until you pay off the debt, you DON'T HAVE a life. If possible, get a part time job for extra income. EVERY spare dime goes toward the debt. This is not easy, but it is the fastest way to pay off anything.