Credit Cards

Updated on November 15, 2009
J.C. asks from Carol Stream, IL
7 answers

My husband has been taking care of the bills for are whole marriage. Now I am finding out we have some credit cards with high balances and interest rates that is making it impossible to pay them off. Any advice.

Thanks.
J.

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D.N.

answers from Chicago on

If you can, review the past year of APR for the cards and see if there have been changes without notification. The new bill requires notice before they can increase but I have always gotten a notice before they changed the rates. One time we did not get any notice and I argued with the company. They lowered the rate a bit. The card issuers are raising everyone's rates and lowering balances like crazy even if you are their best customer. If you are a cardholder, you can call on the account and negotiate.
BTW, closing the accounts can impact your credit score so if you plan to make a major purchase in the next few years, you might not want to close them as they are paid off.

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S.X.

answers from Chicago on

i've heard where people have a huge amount outstanding they can negotiate a lower amount, or at least that's what debt consolidation companies do. you can get a lower rate usually when you ask.

or hop credit cards w/no interest on balance transfers. hard to find but still out there!

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B.Z.

answers from Chicago on

If you haven't already done so, call the credit card companies and request a lower rate on existing balances and ask them to remove the fees. If they don't, close the credit card. I don't know how far companies are going nowadays to keep you as a customer, but in the past a company would lower the rate as a minimum gesture.

Shore up your savings and consider the benefit of paying off certain balances. If you are willing to risk your credit rating, you may ask to negotiate a payoff (also called a "settlement"). You will have a deadline in the near future to payoff a percentage of the total balance. Once this transaction is complete, you never have to hear from them again AND you just gave that rep a little bonus for getting the settlement!

I wish you the best!

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A.R.

answers from Peoria on

I don't know all the details, but if you call a credit card company they could probably tell you... but Pres. Obama did something where if you owe a certain amount and are behind on your payments for I think it is 4 months then the credit card companies are supposed to offer you a lower rate. It is something you have to meet requirements to get. My BIL was on the opposite end. He bought a car with a crefit card and owed about $4000 on it. The credit card company jacked up the inteerest owed on it to I think he said 30% or something like that. When he called and asked them they told hm about the Obama plan, but since he paid his bills each month, etc.. he didn't qualify for the low interest rate.

Make out a budget and spend money on only things you NEED. (food, winter cloths etc..) Cut out any extra wants but not needs(my hubby's weakness is movies. He loves buying movies, but if we don't have the extra money-no movies)I know this is harder with Christmas coming up, but things will be on sale which may help with Christmas gifts. Also remember that kids don't need tons of gifts.

My huband and I had to sit down and write out: ok we have "x" amount of money that comes in at the end of week 1. At the end of week 2 we get "x" amount of money. By then bills "a" and "b" are due. We also need $30 (for example) for gas at that time. At the end of week 3 we get "x" amount and bill "c" is due. At that time we need $100 (again for example) for groceries. At the end of week 4 we get "x"amount and bills "d" and "e" are due and also another $30(for example) for gas again. And see how much extra money you have at the end of the month. (remember you're cutting out "extra things"). See if you can open a savings account and put a certain amount of money in it each month for any emergencies. We have an account that we put $50/check ($200/month)into. Then take 1 cc and decide this one needs to be paid off first. My FIL once suggested taking the one with the lowest balance, b/c if you can get that paid off it makes you feel like you're making progress. Pay the minimum on all other cards except that one. On that one pay as much extra towards it as you can afford each month. When it is paid off close it. Then go to the next one and do the same thing. Pay all the minimums except that one and put as much extra money towards that one as you can afford. When you get down to your last card (or the one with the lowest interst) keep just that card. That way you have only 1 cc, but you have it if you need it for emergencies or something like that. Most ccs have a credit limit, so you can only get into debt that much.

Also, when you go shopping, like for groceries, make out a list of what you need and get ONLY those things. I make out a menu for a couple weeks and then I know what I need for dinner each night. That cuts down on trips to the store for one thing and end up coming back with 10.

Another thing we do (since we don't have any debt on our cc), is if we want to buy something we say do we have the money for it now? Sometimes the answer is no and we say ok we can wait to get that. Sometimes the answer is yes-great we can get it. Sometimes the answer is not right now, but by the end of the month we will. In that case we charge it on the cc, but pay the entire thing off with the money at the end of the month.

You don't have to cut out extras forever. Just for a while. Once you have everything paid off, and have some extra money you can get some extras again.

I hope this helps you, or gives you some ideas on something you can do and live with. Feel free to message me with any questions and I'll give what advice I can to help.

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S.E.

answers from Chicago on

You can all your credit card company and ask for a lower rate or any deals they may have. Second you can apply for a credit card with lower rates and do a balance transfer. You can sometimes get zero rate for a few months. If you have a home equity account you can use this money to pay off the high interest rate cards because home equity interest in much lower. The best advice is to get away for using credit cards. You can never get them paid off if you continue to use them. Take it from someone who is working on the same problem. I stopped using credit cards on purchases other than gas for my car (which our business pays for). If I don't charge my debt goes down not up.

S.

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A.J.

answers from Rockford on

When it comes to credit cards there is not solution. You may have to file bankrupcy.

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J.C.

answers from Chicago on

buy the Dave Ramsey book or get it from the library. I have heard wonderful things about this book. Also NEVER let someone have that much power when it comes to affecting you too, you must know whats going on.

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