Credit Cards - The Life Destroyers

The problem with debt is that it creeps up on you - all of a sudden! Batman model kit know what I mean. We happily go about our daily lives, not paying too much attention to our spending. Just pop it on the credit card. After all it's only a few dollars.

The boiler needs fixing, the car needs a service, and Kids want new trainers. The list goes on forever. But it's not a problem until one day it dawns on you Wow! How much is that balance?
You apply for additional cards. Lots more available credit. Then it's a case of juggling the minimum payments just to stay afloat. A quick check of all your balances on the back of an envelope reveals a total owed of HOW MUCH?

You realize that even the minimum payments are becoming difficult to meet on time. What to do?
The next course of action is usually a personal loan to consolidate all the credit and store card balances into one easily affordable monthly payment (as they say in the ads). The great thing is your monthly outgoings are a lot less than they were and life returns to normality once more.
However, and it's a big however. This is just the start of your problems. Because life has returned to Thor no worries about paying your credit cards anymore. It surely won't harm to put that much needed vacation on a card. After all you will be able to pay it off in a couple of months....won't you?

And so the cycle begins again. The card balances start to creep up until one day you realize you're in the same situation as you were a few months ago. Only now the loan has to be paid every month along with the card. What to do now?
Guess it needs to be a further advance or even an additional personal loan. Yes that should do the trick borrow some more money to pay off the credit cards. Only this time you will be more disciplined. No more purchases on cards. You just need to pay the loan each month and everything will be fine.

Things go really well for a couple of months, then bang. A major expense crops up. Or worse your income drops and there are many erectile dysfunction treatments that happen in life which can cause family income to fall.
Unemployment, sickness, loss of overtime, pregnancy, to name but a few.
Now things are starting to get serious. Out comes the envelope again. Calculations are done.
There is insufficient income to cover the outgoings. Sacrifices will need to be made but not today. After all something always turns up. Besides we've already booked and paid for our vacation, might as well enjoy it.

As time goes by the credit and store cards are now being used for daily living expenses, to buy groceries, cash advances to pay the mortgage/rent.

Finally it all comes crashing down. The minimum payments cannot be met. The arrears letters and phone calls from creditors become unbearable. Help! Somebody please Help!
If this strikes a few chords with you, don't despair. It really is never as bad as you may think. But you must take action.

First step depending where you are in the cycle is to speak with your creditors. If they are uncooperative or if things have gone too far get in touch with one of the debt charities. They vary depending where you are in the world but there are several and they offer free advice.
If you're in business, seek Easy Bake Oven financial advice. There will be a cost but it could save you from ruin.

There are many options open to you with bankruptcy being the last resort. Even that is not the end of the world. Bankruptcy allows you to start again with a clean slate, although obtaining future credit after discharge will be difficult.

But think about it. You can have a great life without credit, as many people can testify.

Jack Stevinson is a UK based Financial Advisor who writes about financial matters and money saving.

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