If you’re saying to yourself “I’m in debt” and worrying about it or wondering what you can do about it then you need help and you need to take action now! Debt is like a lot of life issues – they don’t get any better if you just ignore them. Tackle the problem head-on now and you will be gald you did in a few years time.
I’m In Debt – What Should I Do?
The first thing you need to do is work out how much debt you have. Gather together all of your credit agreements and credit card statements and write down a list (or put it in Excel) of all your outstanding debts, with the current balance (if you know it) and the monthly repayments.
Next get your bank statements and write down a full budget of all of your regular monthly expenses (this is the easier part) and try and identify as much of your other spending as you can (food, entertainment, clothes, gadgets etc).
From the bank statement or recent pay advice get your total income from all sources (including benefits/second jobs etc.)
What Next?
Take a look at your budget and compare your total outgoings with your income – is there money left over that you could use to pay off your debts or is there a deficit that is being funded by increasing debt? Start thinking about how you could reduce your expenses.
That’s it for now. In a future post I will explain more about changing your budget and spending habits and what solutions you should be considering for your debt problem.
Tags: Debt Advice, Debt Problems, Debt Solutions
July 27th, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Just had to comment to say that this really is some sound advice…
Taking one step back and looking at your finances as a whole (income/outgoings) and then working out a reasonable budget is the first step you need to take when dealing with your debts.
July 27th, 2009 at 1:07 pm
Hi Natalie
Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
My advice isn’t rocket science, but it’s so important it’s worth saying over and over again!
Neil