Credit Card Debt: Reduce and Save

Credit Card Debt: Reduce and Save

RECBL - Real Estate News

Like many Americans, you may be looking for a way to bring down your credit card debt. To help, the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA) offers the following six tips.

1. Pause some spending.
Identify any automated payments that can be eliminated or temporarily paused while you’re paying off debt.

Consider delaying or reducing large annual expenses, such as vacations or holiday spending, for one year. These temporary changes can help you pay off debt faster.

2. Reduce your interest rates.

Take an inventory of all your credit cards, including the interest rates and minimum payments. Next, call your credit card companies to ask if they will waive any late payments or reduce your interest rate.

3. Eliminate your most expensive card first.

Pay the monthly minimum on each card to avoid fees. Apply any left-over money to the highest interest-rate card first. Once this card is paid off, take the amount you were paying and apply it to the card with the second highest interest rate while continuing to make minimum payments on all other cards. Repeat until you have paid off all your credit cards.

4. Create a written budget.

A written budget will help you stay out of debt in the future. Allocate some of your spending to an emergency fund so that you are prepared if a job loss or health crisis arises. Check in with your budget each month.

5. Set financial goals and focus on the long-term.

What is most important to you? Do you want to save for a home or go back to school? Articulate your goals so you’re more driven to reach them. The changes you make in the short term are temporary and purposeful and will help you reach future goals.

6. Toast yourself.

Being debt free is an important milestone that is worth sharing and celebrating. Create a memory - a visit with a friend or a social media post - that you can recall when you are tempted to overspend again in the future.

Source: National Association of Personal Financial Advisors (NAPFA)



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9 Ways to Save for a Down Payment

9 Ways to Save for a Down Payment

RECBL - Real Estate News

(TNS)-You’ve found the perfect house. Interest rates are still low. There’s just one thing standing between you and your dream home: a down payment.

Don’t abandon your homeownership dreams just yet. Here are nine ways to come up with the cash for your new home.

Pay Off Your Credit Cards
Paying bills will help in your hunt for down payment money. When you carry a credit card balance, the ever-accumulating interest charges mean more of your money goes to the card company each month.

Keep that cash for yourself by cutting your debt load. With the "avalanche" method, you prioritize your debts and pay the most on the one with the highest interest rate. Once that’s paid, shift your focus to the next highest rate and so on. You’ll get the most money-sucking credit card bills out of the way more quickly, freeing up more of your income to go toward building your savings.

Ladder CDs to Boost Savings
Once you have a few extra bucks, put it to work making more money for you. Certificates of deposit are low-risk and relatively accessible. But when interest rates are low, the return isn’t always what a saver hopes. You can maximize the earning power of CDs by opening different certificates at varying maturity dates.

For example, instead of buying one big CD, spread your money into three-month, six-month and one-year certificates. Known as laddering, this gives you flexibility to adjust your savings as rates change. Laddering allows you to lock in when rates are high and when rates are not so good. The process keeps you from being stuck for too long with low earnings.

Use Special Programs
There are many programs for homebuyers struggling to save for a down payment, especially for first-time homebuyers. Borrowers in a wide range of incomes, locales and professional groups may have access to aid from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the government-sponsored offices that buy mortgages and package them as investments. Various nonprofit and community groups also lend a hand to buyers struggling to put money down on a home. And don’t forget about assistance from state agencies.

Tap Your IRA
If you’re looking to buy your first home, let the IRS help. Tax laws allow you to use up to $10,000 in IRA funds as a down payment if you’ve never owned a house. If you’re married and you both are first-time buyers, you each can pull from your retirement accounts, meaning a potential $20,000 down payment.

Even better is the IRS definition of "first-time homebuyer." Technically, you don’t have to be purchasing your very first home. You qualify under the tax rules as long as you (or your spouse) did not own a principal residence at any time during the two years prior to the purchase of the new home. In these instances, Uncle Sam waives the penalty for early withdrawal, but you may owe tax on the money, depending on the type of IRA.

Get a Gift
Aunt Edna always liked you best. Take advantage of that favored family status and ask her to make a present of your down payment. Tax law allows gifts of several thousand dollars a year to be bestowed without tax consequences to either the giver or recipient. The gift-exclusion amount is $14,000 for 2017 and is adjusted annually for inflation. The gift exclusion isn’t limited to relatives. The monetary present can be from anyone, so track down a well-off friend now.

Ask for a Raise
No luck finding a benefactor? Then maybe it’s time to ask your boss for more money. Just make sure you do your homework beforehand and base your request for a salary increase on your accomplishments rather than your needs.

Get a Second Job
Boss turned down your request for a raise? Moonlighting could help you earn the extra money. This option makes the most sense for those who are young and not yet fully established in their professional lives.

Look for Lost Money
Do you have any money stashed somewhere? Around $23.5 billion worth of matured savings bonds remains unredeemed, according to the Treasury Department, ignored by owners and not earning a penny of interest. Make sure your bonds and other investments are still adding to your net worth.

You could also have money languishing in an old bank account somewhere. You can file a claim with the Treasury to claim lost, stolen or destroyed savings bonds, or check the National Association of Unclaimed Property Administrators to see if you have any missing money.

Sell Unwanted Items
You likely have some used furniture you no longer use or old clothes that are no longer in style. Sell it to make a few more bucks to use for your down payment.

You can sell your items on sites like Craigslist, eBay, Facebook and Amazon to turn your trash into someone else’s treasure.

(C)2017 Bankrate.com
Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC

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Just Say No to Credit Card Cash Advances

Just Say No to Credit Card Cash Advances

Cash Buyers List News

If you're a little strapped for money, it can be tempting to take a cash advance from your credit card. Doing so, however, will end up costing you more in the long-run.

According to a CreditCards.com survey of 100 cards cash advance terms, credit card cash advances are a costly way to borrow money. The average cash advance APR is 23.68 percent, much higher than the average purchase APR of 15.79 percent. More importantly, none of the cards studied offer a grace period for cash advance transactions like they do for traditional credit card purchases. So when you take cash out, you start accruing interest immediately.

For example, if someone purchases a $1,000 item on a credit card with a 15.79 percent rate and pays it off in 30 days, they’ll pay no interest thanks to the grace period. But, a $1,000 cash advance under the typical terms found in the survey will cost an extra $69.73. That includes the $50 upfront fee, plus $19.73 for 30 days interest at 23.68 percent.

Cash advances are not just ATM and convenience check transactions, either. Consumers should note that wire transfers, money orders, legal gambling purchases and bail bonds are often treated as cash advances if paid via credit card. Additionally, if you hold a checking account with the same bank that issues your credit card, overdraft coverage that comes from your credit card may also be considered a cash advance.

Paying off a cash advance can prove to be problematic for those making just the minimum payment. Generally, card issuers will first apply the minimum payment to lower APR balances before payments made in excess of that go to balances with higher APRs.

Unlike typical credit card interest rates, most cash advances have a flat APR irrespective of the individual cardholders creditworthiness. High APRs are not the only concern for cardholders who use credit to access cash. Only one card in the survey does not charge a fee for cash advances, which is typically $10 or 5 percent of each advance, whichever is greater.

The one thing cash advance borrowers cant rack up: credit card rewards. Cash advances also cannot be used to directly pay off any card balances or loans held by the same bank.​

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