Did you open several credit cards in the past five years when it was easy to get credit
? Are you regretting that decision now? I am sure you would not be the only one that took advantage of the easy credit. The unfortunate situation is that many lenders have also had a change of heart and have reduced credit limits, raised interest rates and even closed accounts and many of the people this happened to were making their payments on time.
If you are carrying credit card balances, you are limiting your life. You should be living on cash and you stand a much better chance of not having debt and being financially stable. Many credit cards now carry interest rates that are between 20%-30%. On just a balance of $1,000 your will pay approximately $200 to $300 per year on just that small balance. It is no secret that many people are carrying much more than $1,000 on their credit cards.
You cannot control your debt while you are still charging. It is imperative that you get rid of these cards. They say for the sake of your credit you should leave the accounts open, but only if you are not going to use them. Put the plastic in the drawer and use cash. Find out where you money is going. Keep a journal of everything you buy in the next month. If you are eating out and buying lattes every day, you are spending money that could be used to pay your debt.
Figure out what you can do to expedite the repayment of your debt. Many people that have debt often have an excess of material things. Lighten the load and sell some of them. Not only will you feel less burdened, but you will have extra money to put towards your credit card payments. If you just can't seem to figure it out on your own, contact a nonprofit debt management company and get some help. These companies are in the business of helping people get out of debt and they are not in the business to get rich.