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  • Ten Easy Ways to Earn Miles and Points

    Ten Easy Ways to Earn Miles and Points

    I am relatively new to collecting miles and points.  When I started, there was a steep learning curve that seemed overwhelming.  It felt like it would be impossible to accumulate enough to make a dent in our travel expenses.  My kids with only first world problems are used to regular travel with the word “Disney”, after all.  I debated whether to even start.  I’m glad I did.  In a short amount of time, I have racked up enough miles and points to cover several first-class flights and multiple hotel stays for my family.  This process requires organization and strategy, but it is well worth it.  There are Ten easy ways I use to earn miles and points without doing anything I consider to be ethically questionable.

    earn miles

    How To Earn Miles and Points

    Table Of Contents

    1. Credit Card Spend

    Credit cards will earn you the most miles and points by far, even if you don’t spend a lot each month.  You can build miles and points very quickly, particularly with a few introductory bonuses.  There is nothing stopping both you and your partner from taking out the same card, even if you are listed as an authorized user on the other’s card.  Keep in mind if you do not pay your balance in full each month, this is not for you.  Any benefit you receive from the miles and points will be more than canceled out by fees and interest payments. 

    The credit cards with the best incentives require good credit.  If you don’t have good credit, work on improving your credit score before you start applying.  A quick google search will tell you generally what credit score you need to increase your approval odds.  NerdWallet is a great free app that breaks down your credit score and makes suggestions to improve it. 

    Organization is key.  When you start accumulating enough credit cards to play Poker, you need to make sure things don’t slip through the cracks so you don’t get into financial trouble or accidentally miss a payment.  NerdWallet keeps a list of your credit cards and their balances, and I also use Mint, another free site, to keep track of all my financial accounts.   

    There are tons of credit cards from which to choose.  You should get a sense of which ones you want in the next year or two and apply in a strategic order.  Even if you have great credit, if you take out too many too fast, you will start getting denied.  I do not recommend listing your partner as an authorized user on your cards because accounts on which you are an authorized user will also be listed on your credit report.  This will look like you are opening accounts twice as fast.  You can both take out the same card individually and receive double the rewards. 

    The requirements of each individual company are constantly changing, so double check before you apply.  There is too much to say about the benefit of each particular credit card for one article, so I am only going to focus on application guidelines and introductory bonuses for a few cards I like for beginners.  You should read what each card offers, like free checked baggage, TSA precheck credits, and airport lounge access, to decide if the card will benefit you long term.  Generally, here are some things to keep in mind as of the time of this writing:

    Chase Cards

    Chase has a 5/24 rule.  If you have taken out or been listed as an authorized user on someone else’s card from any company more than 5 times in the last 24 months, you will most likely be denied.  Note, this is not just five Chase cards.  Any company at all is included in the count.  Apply for Chase cards first.

    Chase has a lot of great products for beginners.  We like the Chase Sapphire Preferred, which as of the time of this writing has an introductory bonus of 60,000 Chase Ultimate Rewards points (worth approximately $750) after you spend $4,000 on the card in the first three months.  We also use airline credit card offers like the Chase Southwest Rapid Rewards Plus card, which as of the time of this writing offers 40,000 Rapid Rewards points (worth approximately $600) after spending $1,000 in the first three months.  If you prefer cash over travel rewards and a card with no annual fee, Chase Freedom offers a $200 statement credit after spending $500 within the first three months.  These are just three examples.  Chase has plenty of other great choices as well. 

    Note, you can typically earn introductory bonuses on the same card more than once if you wait the specified amount of time before applying again.  Check the terms of each card and know how to earn miles with credit card. 

    American Express

    American Express has several great cards.  I have found these cards to be pretty easy to get.  However, they do this obnoxious thing where they take back your introductory bonus if you cancel the card within a year or if they figure out you made ineligible purchases to hit the minimum spend, such as gift cards.  Make sure you do not cancel the card or do a product change until after the annual fee posts the next year.  The annual fee is refundable for up to 30 days after it posts. 

    My favorite American Express card for beginners is the Hilton Honors American Express Surpass Card.  It has an introductory bonus of 130,000 Hilton Honors points (worth approximately $650) after spending $4,000 in the first three months.  It also gives you a free weekend night if you spend $15,000 on the card in a calendar year, as well as several other benefits. 

    American Express has a once per lifetime rule for introductory bonuses, so wait to apply until you see an offer you really like.

    Barclays

    Barclays is a tough nut to crack.  Apply for this one early, and don’t bother if you have taken out a bunch of other cards recently.  If you can get to this one early enough to get approved, the Barclays AAdvantage Aviator Red World Elite Mastercard offers 60,000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles (worth approximately $960)  after you make any purchase and pay the $99 annual fee. 

    You can earn the introductory bonus multiple times if you wait the requisite amount of time.

    Citibank

    Citibank cards are pretty easy to come by regardless of how many cards you have taken out recently. 

    For beginners, I like the Citi/AAdvantage Travel Rewards card which offers 50,000 American Airlines AAdvantage miles (worth approximately $800) after spending $2,500 in the first three months.  I also use the Citi Premier which offers 60,000 Citi ThankYou points after spending $4,000 in the first three months.  The value of Citi ThankYou points varies depending upon how you choose to redeem them.  I generally use them to book rental cars through the travel portal, but there are several options.   

    You can earn the sign-up bonuses more than once on these cards as long as you wait the appropriate amount of time (listed on the individual application) to reapply. 

    Capital One

    Capital One tends to decline people who have taken out a lot of cards recently.  You should apply for these cards on the early side.

    I like the Capital One Venture card.  This card has a purchase eraser that allows you to erase any travel-related expense on your statement with your points, so it is very flexible.  At the time of this writing, you earn 50,000 bonus miles (worth $500) after spending $3,000 in the first three months.

    You can earn sign up bonuses on Capital One cards more than once.

    2. Throw Your Debit Card Away

    You should be using your credit card for everything.  Your debit card should be reserved solely for taking out cash for Tooth Fairy money.  When you use a debit card or cash when you could use a credit card, you are flushing miles and points down the toilet. 

    3. Use the Best Credit Card for Each Purchase

    After you hit your minimum spend, pay attention to the percentage each card pays for certain categories.  We cycle through a handful of cards for various purchases.  One card will pay more at grocery stores, while another will pay more for gas.  Make yourself aware of the general spending categories and try to maximize your earnings.

    4. Check Your Accounts Regularly for Offers on Current Accounts

    Most credit card companies offer extra miles and points for shopping with certain vendors.  There is typically a section called “Just For You” or something of the sort when you log on to your account.  Check the offers to see if you were going to shop there anyway.  If you were, go through a shopping portal and use the corresponding credit card to make the purchase.

    5. Credit Card Referrals

    Like all those credit cards you have recently taken out? Refer your friends.  Several credit card companies offer incentives to refer people, and there is generally no restriction preventing you from referring your partner, even if your partner is an authorized user on your card.  My husband and I constantly refer each other for cards we were going to take out anyway.  Be aware credit card companies sometimes send a 1099 for the value of the referral points if the value exceeds a certain threshold. 

    6. Register for Miles and Points Loyalty Programs

    Loyalty programs are free and require almost no effort.  Anytime you travel, you should make sure you have joined that airline and/or hotel’s frequent traveler program and make sure that the trip has been added to your account to earn frequent flyer miles.  It costs you nothing but ten seconds of your time.  Familiarize yourself with the rules of the loyalty program.  Some programs’ points expire after a certain period of inactivity, but there is almost always a way to reset the clock without traveling.  I use the free AwardWallet earn points app to keep track of my miles and points and their corresponding expiration dates.

    7. Dining

    Several airlines and hotel chains have dining programs like Aadvantage Dining.  All you need to do is register your credit card with the site and dine at one of the restaurants.  The points generate automatically.  When you register for the first time, there is often an extra introductory bonus in addition to the normal points earned.  Here is an example of one of these programs.  You can register for as many programs as you want, but the points will only apply to one.  Dining at one of these establishments is a great way to reset the clock if your points are about to expire.

    8. Shopping Portals

    Shopping portals are an easy way to earn miles and points for purchases you were going to make anyway.  Register with a portal, then just click through to the store’s website.  The prices are exactly the same and you can use any promo codes or discounts at the store you would like.  The number of points earned is based upon the purchase price.  On Swagbucks’ shopping portal, for example, you’ll find online RedBubble coupons, Michaels coupons, and other promo codes and deals for thousands of merchants. Another example of a shopping portal can be found here.  This is another great way to reset the clock if your points are about to expire.

    9. Surveys

    You can take surveys to earn miles and points with some loyalty programs.  An example of how to earn airline miles without credit card can be found here.  The earnings are quite low for the time invested, like less than minimum wage, so I don’t recommend spending any real-time on these unless you are just hanging out on the couch anyway.  It is another way to reset the clock. 

    10. Retention Offers

    When the annual fee posts on your credit card, it doesn’t hurt to call the company to ask if they have any retention offers available.  Sometimes, they will give you an incentive to keep the card, such as a statement credit or the ability to earn extra miles.  If you decide you don’t want to keep a card, at a minimum, ask for a product change to a no annual fee card.  This will keep the account open so it appears you are holding onto your cards long term.  Credit card companies don’t want customers who are going to take the introductory bonus and close the card.  If you have a bunch of accounts on your credit report that were only open for a few months, it will look bad for you when you apply for new cards.

    Final Thoughts

    Earning miles and points is work, but it can also become a fun hobby.  The miles and points we have accumulated over the last couple of years have saved us thousands.  It is important to stay organized and apply in a strategic order to maximize your benefits.  While it may take a substantial amount of time to manage miles and points, it is worth it. 

    earn rewards

    Related Posts:

    Andy Masaki

    Andy Masaki

    Guest Author

    Andy is a blogger at Penny Less Dad and a financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.

    • 11 Greatest Hacks To Get Your Family Finances In Shape

      11 Greatest Hacks To Get Your Family Finances In Shape

      Do you ever think to yourself that you know you need to make a change with the way your family finances are operating? You recognize your way of doing things isn’t working anymore, but you have no idea where to start.

      You are not alone. This is a topic that a lot of people out there really want to know.

      Millions of people feel the same way.

      Managing family finances is not an easy task for many people. Especially if there are reasons that your current situation is changing.  Budgeting for a new baby, moving, kid going to college, etc.

      family finances

      Keep reading to get some helpful hacks to get your family finance situation going in the right direction.

      Personal finance is a hard topic to ask anybody else because that can be a little invasive. So it’s super difficult to find out where we are on the spectrum.

      Are we doing well at managing our own family’s finances compared to other people? Are we really far behind on where other people in the same age range are with managing family finance? There are some easy basic solutions to managing your family’s finances. That way you can be sure you are on a great path.

      Success of how well you are managing your family’s finances is measured solely on if it is working for you or not. Nobody else can tell you exactly what processes to use when managing your monies. 

      Every household is different, but there are a lot of guides that help a ton. Being knowledgeable of the do’s and don’ts of great money management skills will go a long way for you.

      How To Get Your Family Finances in Shape

      Here are some hacks to help get your household finances in shape.

      Table Of Contents

      1. Implement Basic Math

      This is an important step in money management. Honestly, I do simple 1st-grade math for every month, to manage my family’s finances.

      I have a spreadsheet of our bills. It includes:

      • The bill
      • The amount of the bill
      • The day it drafts out of our bank account

      When the bills come in my email or in the mail, I update my spreadsheet right away with the amount due for that bill for that month. The spreadsheet is actually on my iPhone.  I use Google Drive and sync it to my phone so my spreadsheet is readily available for edits.

      Then I simply add up all the bills. I get a total. This is your total expenses.

      Then I total our income for the month.

      Now I subtract. Subtract income minus expenses. Voila!

      That is the magic math that I use. Works like a charm and works every time.

      It’s quite an easy concept.

      Don’t forget when you are adding up your bills, to include your gas, groceries, eating out and savings account additions.

      Those are bills too ya know 🙂

      2. Use Averages

      A lot of people forget that expenses such as gas, eating out, groceries, etc, are large bills that “go out of your bank account” every month.

      Be sure to include these on your spreadsheet.

      So many times I hear people say they don’t know where their money is going because there is more month than money.

      This is a big reason why. They aren’t accounting for the eating out, groceries and gas.

      I know for me, these alone are large expenses for the month.

      In the beginning, when I was trying to figure out a system that worked for our family, I used a simple tactic that really helped a lot. I still use it from time to time now. At the end of each month, I would add up all our purchases in 3 categories. 

      Eating Out, Gas, Groceries. 

      Then, I wrote those numbers down and would do that again at the end of the next month.

      After a few months, I took an average. So, I took the number in each category, and added them up and divided by how many months I had a figure for.

      That is the number to this day, that I use on my spreadsheet for bills.

      I don’t look at my individual bills as much anymore. I primarily used the add function on my spreadsheet. I just need to know how much money is going to exit out of my bank account that month. And then, I subtract expenses from our household income. Now I know what we have leftover.

      Like I mentioned before, don’t forget to put a savings account on your list of bills. That needs to happen.

      3. Contribute to your Savings Account Automatically

      Contributing to your savings account is one of the most important things that you can do for your family’s financial situation.

      It does not have to be a lot of money that you are putting in. It just has to be something. That way you are in a good habit of putting some money away.

      When it comes to a time that you can put a higher amount away, you will already be in the habit.

      A lot of times, people do not necessarily put money into savings. They leave it in their checking account and just keep a higher balance in there.

      Keeping your savings separate, and in a different account is a good practice, and it’s something you should think about if you are already not doing that. 

      Some banks allow you to automatically draft money from your checking account into your savings account.

      You can pick what day of the month the draft happens, and what amount. It’s great because it’s out of sight, out of mind. You don’t have to consciously log into your online banking to make a transfer. It is automatically going to happen. 

      credit cards

      4. Pay more than Credit Card Minimums

      This one is self-explanatory. If you can swing it, pay more than the credit card minimums. That way your principal balance will start to come down.

      A lot of credit cards have such high-interest rates, that when you pay the minimum, you aren’t making much headway on the actual balance.

      If you can, open a 0% credit card and transfer your balance to it. Just beware of high balance transfer fees. 

      5. Have a ‘No Spend Day’

      I love these days, but they do not come around often enough!

      If you can eat all your meals at home one day, you are doing great. 

      Plan a place to have quality family time for your family that doesn’t involve spending money. Maybe take a walk, take a ride in the car, etc. 

      There are a lot of ideas out there. If you can have a few “no spend” days, you will want to repeat it and that can only help your family’s financial situation.

      CNBC has a motivating article on how someone saved a ton of money by having “no spend” days.

      Just do not be fooled into thinking you can spend more on another day because you saved money on a different day. Lol.

      6. Unsubscribe from Retail Emails

      When you are trying to manage your family finances better, temptation with enticing retail emails does not help. All it does is make you want to buy!

      Their marketing teams really do a good job of making you want to shop when you open their email. Or even if you see their store name in your inbox, it still tempts you to want to shop.

      I recommend unsubscribing from a majority of them. If you want to shop, you will shop. 

      You do not need a constant reminder of the sales, deals and beautiful products every time you open your email. You are trying to get your family’s finances in shape, and this is a good practice.

      7. Cut out extras

      Sometimes you have to come up with some creative financing. If you see on your spreadsheet that there are some items that you could remove from your spreadsheet, that would be a great feeling.

      So do it. Give your money management a makeover and slash unwanted expenses.

      Is it gourmet coffee and eating fancy lunches at work that’s becoming a hefty bill? 

      Is it credit card payments? If it’s credit card payments, open a 0% interest credit card and balance transfer for a small balance transfer fee. That way you are making headway on your principal balance.

      Is it too high of a grocery bill? There are tons of ways to cut money spent at the grocery store. You just have to meal plan, write out your shopping list and don’t shop more than once a week.

      Once you see what all your bills are, on paper, then you can get a good idea if you are impulsive spending on too many extras.

      After you establish if you are spending too much on “extras“, then you can cut some of those indulgences out. Just until your family’s finances are managed better. Then you can add them back in, as you can.

      No shopping

      8. Check it off

      Once a bill comes out of your bank account, put a checkmark next to that bill on your spreadsheet.

      This way, you can easily add up how much more money is going to go out of the account that month. This is nice because, at the snap of a finger, you can have a number for how much more money for bills will exit the account.

      There are many times I have wanted to know at a moment’s notice, how much more money will leave my bank account this month. With the spreadsheet, I can easily add it up quickly.

      This is quite handy around the holiday shopping season, and knowing what not to waste money on.

      9. Pay Yourself First

      This is a good practice to adopt. This means that putting money into your savings account every month.

      You work so hard to pay other creditors, so why not pay yourself?

      A savings account is so valuable because it is there as emergency funds. 

      How nice of a feeling is that?

      So how do you put money into savings when you already come up short in the month?

      Pay yourself first, meaning put your savings account as a bill on your excel spreadsheet.

      This is the second item on my own list, next to my mortgage. No need to overwhelm yourself thinking that if you can’t put $50 away then there’s no point.

      If you can do $10, do $10 and don’t eat fast food one day.

      You will start to get into a great habit of putting money aside and not spending it. As you get better at managing household finances, you will be able to put away more.

      Saving money takes practice. It’s just like anything else!

      10. Pre-Spend Your Money

      Huh? Let me explain.

      When you use a spreadsheet to see what your monthly bills are, add them up and get a total dollar amount.

      When you see that total dollar amount, that is essentially “pre-spending” your money. You already know where some of your money is going to, for that month. This is so very important that you take a look at this.

      Otherwise, you have less of an idea where your money is going during the month.

      financial planning

      11. Meeting with a Financial Planner

      It is always a good idea to meet with a financial planner to manage your household finances. They will make recommendations for investment accounts, retirement, college savings accounts, etc, based on your situation.

      You are never too young or too old, to take this step.

      Don’t think that because you may be lean on money during the month that you can’t still partake in putting money into retirement or college savings.

      There is always a way to put a few dollars away. 

      You can find a financial planner by:

      • Word of mouth
      • Asking your friends
      • Searching the internet

      I strongly recommend a financial planner. They will help you with things that you were not doing on your own. Check out this article from the balance.com on how to find the perfect financial planner.

      family finances pinterest

      Related Posts:

      Andy Masaki

      Andy Masaki

      Guest Author

      Andy is a blogger at Penny Less Dad and a financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.

      • How To Stretch Your Budget When You Are A Single Parent

        How To Stretch Your Budget When You Are A Single Parent

        Not everyone can get along well, being a single parent.
        Responsibilities are beyond normal understanding, and the mental strength required is unparalleled to stereotypical parenting!

        With that being said, single parents must have a firm grip over their finances, and track their income minutely, while factoring each and every section of savings and expenditure. And for doing so, one should have a stretchable and handy single parent budget!

        This post is meant to describe the aspect of getting hold of a budget that you can stretch as per your own terms while being a single parent!

        So, here are some points that you need to go through if you want a flexible and stretchable budget to function at its best.

         How to stretch your budget 

        Always have those extra savings for unexpected expenses

        No matter what budget you are aiming to use, an additional savings vault is always necessary for tackling all sorts of unexpected and unplanned expenses.

        The biggest reason for having this savings structure is to fight medical expenses and obviously any type of uncalled for situations that pop up in our lives every now and then. Examples can range between anything from your child’s surprise announcement of a school trip, to your car breaking down one sunny morning.

        Using credit every time for compensating these emergency expenses might not be profitable! So, whatever is your income, you should be focused toward building a separate savings amount.

        And, don’t mix it up with your general savings!

        Habits are important before you plan to stretch a budget

        Budgeting is good, but it can’t help you if your financial habits are lame and gross. A good money personality is a primary requirement for achieving financial freedom.

        You must have the mentality to double your savings as much as you can. And, staying away from debts should be an optimum priority.

        If you constantly fall into debts and have the tendency to rely on debts every time you run low on cash, instead of skipping the expenses altogether, then no budget can save you.

        Stretching a budget is a mere terminology, as your income is fixed, and all you are doing is expanding and contracting expenses as per your needs.

        Therefore, debts are definitely something you should not indulge into.

        So, what can you do with debts?

        You need to use credit cards, only in cases of emergency, and for buying objects that will profit you over time.

        The same gets applied to personal loans and other forms of unsecured debts. And, make it a commitment, never to take out payday loans, even if you are having tough times and are running cashless!

        Payday loans are traps, and it’s very difficult to get out of them, as they have incredibly high-interest rates, that surely drains out heavy amounts of cash, from a consumer.

        Learn to compare debts based on their character and interest rates. Not all debts are equal, and not all debts are good to have in your money portfolio.

        Secured debts like mortgages and all are considered to be investment vehicles, but credit cards, payday loans, and other unsecured debts are typically deemed as unprofitable and waste of money.

        Therefore, prior to starting out with a budget, you need to materialize some good money behaviors, like:

        • Using cash for most of your purchases and transactions.
        • Keeping those credit cards locked up, only to be used for emergency purposes, and for replacing other high-interest debt tools, like when possible transferring your payday loan debt into credit card debt, or paying off medical bills, and all.
        • Teaching your kids about money management from an early age, and not influencing an expensive mindset.
        • And, last but not the least, maintaining the continuous act of saving money, even by squeezing out pennies from a low income.

        Follow a budget, that really works out as planned

        Any random budget does not provide enough options to stretch it as you want. Most of the budgets come in a fixed format, that might not be manipulated too much. And, if you manipulate, then the budget won’t function well or will become a different budget altogether.

        Like, say for example, you are using a 50-20-30 budget, where 50% of your income is to be kept for normal monthly expenses, 20% is for savings, and the rest 30% will be used for luxury or other emergency expenses.

        Even though you can manipulate the percentage figures, but increasing one section will decrease the other two. One month, if you increase the savings percentage, then you have to reduce the monthly expense section or the luxury/emergency expense section.

        It might look that it’s not a big deal, but as the month progresses, you will be facing severe difficulties.

        Hence, the best budget for you will be something that is not limited by percentage figures, or fixed allocations.

        single parent

        The best budget for you is the Zero Based Budget

        In this budget, there are no fixed percentages or a stable format that will be controlling how your income gets distributed to the various expenses or monetary obligations for a month.

        In this budget, you will decide what expenses you wish to have for a month, and how much amount you will dedicate to each of them.

        The name is Zero Based Budget because it brings down the difference between your total income and total expense to zero.

        This is how the budget works. Based on the idea from a previous month, you will be listing down all the expenses you might typically have in the current month.

        Any expense that you feel is not mandatory; you can skip it out easily by not listing it in your expense sheet.

        To remember, you should also consider savings as a part of your expenses, since that will also take out a portion of your income. So, define set amounts for each of the expenses, and sum it up to see the total expense amount you got to deal with, in the month.

        If this amount is higher than your income, then you need to reduce your expenses or lower the dedicated amounts for each of the expenses.
        And, if the total expense amount is less than your income, then you can plan anything you want with the leftover.
        If the amount is equal to your total income, then revise your budget once again, and finalize it for the month.

        Once the budget gets fixed, you cannot derail from it, unless an emergency expense pops up!

        Oh! Well yes! I guess I already told you at the beginning of the post to always keep a dedicated amount for unplanned expenses beyond your normal savings behavior. Pay attention to that.

        You can’t expect to tackle a heavy unplanned expense with one savings vehicle, or a stand-alone income!

        You are a single parent, and you probably have only one stream of income. In that case, you should never skip the unexpected savings amount. And nevertheless, you should always try to earn more with side hustles.

        More is the income, and less headache will it be for you.

        That’s all you had to know about following a stretchable budget. Use it as you want, but be sure to revise your budget each month for better results.

         

        Related Posts:

        Andy Masaki

        Andy Masaki

        Guest Author

        Andy is a blogger at Penny Less Dad and financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.

        • How To Get Out Of Debt Fast

          How To Get Out Of Debt Fast

          Do you feel like you just can’t get ahead with your debt? You work so hard all week long to earn a paycheck, and it never seems like it’s enough to clear your debt. It can be a very deflating feeling. You need a get out of debt plan.

          You are paying minimum balances on your credit cards, and the amount owed never seems like it’s going down. What gives?

          There is 1 main step that you can do, to start tackling your debt and paying it down. I am going to show you all about that one step and how you can use it to get out of debt.

          If you want to know a few other tactics that you can use to start eliminating your debt and some strategies you can use to pay off your debt and prevent it from happening again, then keep reading.

          First, let’s lay the foundation of healthy ways to handle your household money. Without a solid game plan and foundation, you will still feel like you are spinning tire with your finances.

          How to get out of debt fast

          Surefire Ways To Get Out of Debt Fast On Your Own

          Here are some great ways you can get on an effective path to clearing your debt.

          Understand and confront your debt

          The most important step in laying a foundation to pay off debt is to understand what all you owe.

          There is no easy path to managing your debt if you do not have an understanding of what all you have outstanding.

          Here’s how you can start to organize your debt:

          • Make a list of everything that you owe and how much
          • On your list, include the interest rate
          • Write down your minimum payments
          • Write down the due dates
          • Take the time to look up your usernames and passwords to your credit cards and loans so that you can get the information you need.

          If you take the time to write this all down in front of you, it will allow you to see the big picture of your situation. It could also alleviate some feelings of overwhelm because you can see it all in one spot.

          Take the initiative to pull your credit report so that you can see who all your creditors are and how much you owe.

          Get organized to get out of debt quickly

          Now that you have a good understanding of what all you owe, you can organize what day of the month you pay them. This will help you avoid late payments because you won’t forget to pay it.

          • Update your email address on your accounts that you owe the balances to. This will help those companies stay in touch with you so that you don’t miss any important communications.
          • Take the time to go through your statements and be certain that there aren’t any errors as far as charges.
          • Have a good plan as far as what day you make your payments. You can coordinate with when you get paid.

          Beware of doing all this work to make a good list to get organized, and then not ever referring to it again. You need to look at your list from time to time.

          It will also feel empowering when you get to change the amounts of your debts on your list. You should do that about every 3 months.

          Use a calendar system so that you do not forget to pay some of these debts per month. You can set them up online for automatic payments, or do one-time payment every month, etc.

          Using some kind of phone reminder, or written down on a calendar somewhere is going to be imperative.

          If you forget to make a payment, do not wait until it is due again next month. By that time, it is possible that the creditor already reported it to the credit bureau.

          Instead, make the payment as soon as you remember.

          How to get out of credit card debt

          How to get out of Credit Cards Debt

          Take a look at all your credit cards that have balances on them, and see which one has the highest interest rate.

          The one that has the highest rate, is the one that is eating up a lot of your hard-earned money.  The higher the interest rate, the harder it is to get rid of the balance owed.

          What do I mean by that?

          This means that more of your money that you pay on this card each month, is going toward a lot of interest instead of the principal balance. Ugh! Not what you wanted to hear huh.

          Thankfully, there are some steps you can take to tackle this debt. Credit card debt can be tough to get under control. Actually, managing your family’s finances, in general, is tough. There are some easy basic solutions that do exist, for how to manage your family’s finances.

          Let’s talk about that 1 step that is instrumental in getting rid of credit card debt.

          Tackle Your Card that has the Highest Interest Rate

          A great plan to tackle credit card debt is to go after the highest interest rate card that you have.

          In the long run, if you end up making payments on a smaller interest rate card, you are still making headway. However, you are then not taking full advantage of how you could be using your money.

          It is better to tackle that high-interest card and get that taken care of.

          Make the minimums on your other cards, and go after the higher rate card as aggressively as you can.

          You will save a lot of money by knocking out this high-interest card.

          Tip:

          Attack one credit card at a time. Pay the minimums on other cards and put all extra money you have, aggressively onto the highest interest rate card.

          Request A Lower Interest Rate

          Call your credit card company and ask them to do a review of your account and request a lower interest rate. A lot of times, you are due for an account review anyhow, and you can potentially secure a lower rate with the company.

          If you do not take the time to call and ask them, then it will never happen. A credit card company will usually not mail you a letter to tell you that they lowered your rate. So, you have to take the initiative and call and ask them. The worst that can happen is that your request is denied.

          If you succeed in this and get a lower rate, then you are well on your way to getting that card paid off! Even more of your monthly payment will be going toward your principal balance now, Woot! That’s the goal!

          Check out this article that has a great script for what to say when you call the company to ask them to lower your rate.

          Tip:

          Don’t assume a credit card company won’t give you a lower rate. Take the initiate and call to ask them.

          Don’t Use Your Cards

          Have you ever heard the expression, cut your cards? Ok, well, cut your cards!

          If you are trying to get rid of your credit card debt, then do not use them anymore. It will defeat the purpose of making your payments. Most credit cards have such high-interest rates, that it’s hard enough to get your balance to come down after making a payment.

          If you continue to make purchases on your cards, then any payment you make is going to be negated by a purchase. So, don’t do it! It is so easy to be an impulsive spender, and just “put it on the card”. We have all done that.

          Since you are trying to get your credit cards under control, you have to make some adjustments to spending habits.

          shopping

          Change the habits that got you into debt

          A really good place to start getting out of debt is to stop doing whatever it was that got you into debt. For some people, it was not avoidable. But for others, it was definitely avoidable. If you are in the category of, it could have been avoided, be honest with yourself about how it got like that.

          Then change those behaviors.

          Keep accounts in good standing

          We all understand that there is only so much paycheck to go around. It is difficult to repay balances that have already gone to collections.

          Keep the accounts that are in good standing, good. Those are the ones to focus on and where to apply money to.

          If you try to pay the collection items and charge offs first, then you risk not having enough money to make payments on the accounts that are good.

          Then what could happen is that those good accounts start to have late payments and such.

          So, focus on the good accounts over the ones that are already not good.

          Cut Spending

          There are some ways that you can adopt more of a frugal lifestyle in order to help get out of debt.

          Here are some ideas for what you can skimp on:

          • The cable. We live in a society where so many movies and tv shows can be found online now. Why not cut the cable bill and use that money to put towards paying your monthly debts.
          • Eat at home more. Meal planning and grocery shopping should be your new best friend. I know so many people say they are terrible at meal planning. If you just spend 20 min every Sunday to pick out what your family is going to eat for the week, you can make a grocery list and go shop. Then you can cut the eating takeout expense.
          • Save with coupons. Take the time to use coupon apps on your phone to help you find deals in your local grocery stores.
          • Break up with expensive habits or hobbies. Tobacco use, gourmet coffee, fast food, lottery tickets. Whatever it is, stop doing it for right now so that you can help yourself get out of debt.
          • Find free ways to have fun. The library has DVDs, books and tons of other stuff you can sign out. For FREE! If you join your local community email list, they are always advertising free things going on in the community.
          • Have as many “no spend” days as you can. Pack your lunch for work, cook dinner at home and don’t spend money on anything else that day.
          • Explain to your family that you are on a budget. Once you explain to everyone in the house that your spending is going to change, they are more apt to get on board.
          • Tell your kids no. Once you explain to them that the family is on a budget, don’t buy them whatever they want, whenever they want.
          • Shop for clothing at discount stores. Plenty of towns have consignment shops or other awesome places to shop that is for a fraction of the cost of a department store.
          • Use Facebook marketplace to find free stuff. People are always posting items for free. Take advantage of it.
          • Sell some stuff. You can sell some items in your house that you could spare. Hit up online resources or even have a yard sale.

          Hopefully, you have some tools in your tool belt that are going to help you tackle your debt. Being in debt causes a lot of emotions such as overwhelm, frustration and a whole slew of other ones.

          Just be sure that you are working hard and smart to correct your situation, and you will come out great.

          Keep your financial goals in front of you and it will strike great motivation for you to keep plugging away.

          Andy Masaki

          Andy Masaki

          Guest Author

          Andy is a blogger at Penny Less Dad and a financial writer associated with the Oak View Law Group. He is a debt expert and a member of several online forums where he shares his advice as well as tips to lead a financially independent life.