Deep in Debt
If debt gets out of hand it can be crippling and settling it should be your top
financial priority. Remember that debt is not only about owing your friend N$1
000.00 but it also refers to your clothing accounts, your car repayments and any
other money which you have borrowed and are paying interest on.
If you do not manage to get yourself out of debt you may be declared insolvent –
this will affect your financial health in the future. Debt is serious and
if you are struggling to get out of it Get Advice.
You are in debt if you have:
- High credit card expenses
- Lots of accounts
- Unpaid bills
- Personal loans
How to get out of Debt
You need to fully understand how serious debt is and make a personal commitment
to extricating yourself.
- Assess which debts are the most urgent i.e. which is going to result in legal
proceedings or black listing?
- Assess which debt is costing you the most.
- Even if you cannot pay the full installment pay what you can – every bit helps
keep interest accrual at bay.
- Debt consolidation. Speak to your bank about debt consolidation. The chances are
that the interest rate on one account will be less than the cumulative interest
of all your accounts.
- Talk to your creditors. Most companies want their money back and will be happy
to assist you in developing a repayment plan. Should you choose this route you
will only have one chance to prove yourself trustworthy.
- Try to avoid selling policies and investments if you can. If you have to sell
something rather sell your unit trust investments than your policies which will
generally have onerous penalties
Find out more about managing debt.
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