Tips on Getting Out of Debt after the Holidays.

By: Penny-Ann Lupton
We all do it at least once, we say we're going to stay on budget this Christmas and then we blow the budget and put everything on our credit cards. This isn't unusual, people all over the country have done it and it's not only our faults.


Retailers make it much easier to get approved for credit cards, in fact, how many of us have gone into a store and been offered a discount on a purchase if we apply for a credit card. Not only do they provide easy access to credit cards and encourage us to use them, but also they advertise very expensive toys and electronics all over the television. Remember when you were young, the cost of the average toy for Christmas was around $30- $40, well those days are over. Kids now a day are asking for cell phones, iPods, video game systems and many more gifts where the average price is from $200-$500.


There are a few options available to you if you want to get out of debt. The first option is good if you only have a small amount of debt on a few credit cards, you can consolidate your debt into a credit line. By taking all of your high interest credit cards and putting them onto an unsecured line of credit, you will pay a much lower interest rate, which will allow you to pay off the debt faster. The trick to option one is to make sure that you cut up the credit cards you consolidated so that you are not tempted to use them again.

If you have amassed more than just a little debt, another option if you are a homeowner is to consolidate your debt into a secured line of credit or a home equity loan. What this means is the bank will allow you to borrow against the equity in your home at an even lower rate. You will save even more money on interest and you can pay down this debt a lot faster, but again make sure to close the accounts of the credit cards you consolidate so you are not tempted to use them.

There is another option available to homeowners but it is strongly recommended that you speak to a mortgage specialist first. This option is a refinance of your current mortgage. This option is not always the best thing for everyone but for some people it can allow you to incorporate all of your debt into your mortgage so you only have one payment every month. If this is something that you are considering it could save you thousands of dollars, and if you follow a good plan after you refinance you could pay down your mortgage even faster. Again I stress, make sure you eliminate the credit cards you are consolidating and you speak to a specialist who can analyze your particular situation and help you to decide whether or not this is in your best interest.

Consolidating the debt will help you to get out of debt much faster and much cheaper. This is not the only solution because you want to make sure you don't get into debt next year, and the only way to do that is to make a good budget. Make sure you write up a good budget and stick to it every month, write down all of your cash spending so you can keep track of it.
In addition, a good way to make sure you don't get into debt next Christmas is to add up all of the receipts for your Christmas shopping this year , this will give you an accurate amount of what you spend on Christmas not just what you hope to spend. If you take that amount and divide it by twelve, it will give you a monthly amount you can add to your budget. It 's much easier to add a small amount every month to your budget than put it on credit cards and try to pay it off later. Putting away a monthly Christmas budget into a separate savings account every month will allow you to buy all of the gifts you want and do it without getting back into debt.




About The Author:
Penny-Ann Lupton is a registered mortgage specialist working with Mortgage Alliance, she is dedicated to always finding her clients the best rates available! Quick Mortgage Approvals.ca is a website designed to help people find the mortgage products in their best interest. Mortgage Alliance has access to over 50 lenders and the best part is there is no fee for this service!