Search Results for: blog paying off loans

Do Debt Consolidation Loans Work?

Consolidation loans, or consolidation of debt may work for you in your goals to get out of debt. Consolidation has some benefits, but it also have some risks as well. Find out if consolidation loans would work for you. To consolidate your debt, you would take out a new loan that covers the cost of all of your pressing debt. The new loan pays off all of the others, leaving you with one loan. This consolidation loan must still be paid off, of course. Consolidation loans can make it a little easier to keep up with your debt, since it … Continue reading →

5 Steps to Getting Your Car Paid Off Early

Paying off your car loan early will save you hundreds of dollars in interest charges, eliminate a monthly expense, and increase your credit score as your rate of debt to income goes down. Plus, you’ll get a real sense of accomplishment knowing that your car is completely yours, free and clear. 1. First do your homework Review your loan paperwork before you start. Most car loans are simple interest loans. That is, the interest accrues during the life of the loan, so paying it off early will save you a lot of money. In a precomputed interest loan, on the … Continue reading →

Paying Down Debt

Who doesn’t want to live a debt-free life? Shelling out hundreds of dollars in interest each year on car loans, credit cards and mortgages is not exactly the financial situation most of us strive to be in. Paying down debt is an arduous process, but it can be made tolerable if you follow a few simple steps: Step #1: Carefully examine the details of your debt. Look at your balances and APRs affiliated with credit cards. In addition, review mortgages or other loans to fully understand the financial parameters you are working with. Step #2: Make a list. Write down … Continue reading →

The Two Ways to Pay Off Debt

When it comes to paying off debt, there are two ways to approach it. The basic rule for paying off debt is to apply extra payments to reduce the amount that you owe and to reduce the expenses that you are incurring in interest. The more principal that you pay, the less interest that you will owe. This is the real secret of paying off debt; keeping more money in your pocket. If you only have one bill or bit of debt, then the process is easy: simply pay as much as you can toward that debt. But, most of … Continue reading →

Don’t Pay Off Your House!

I had the most interesting conversation with a lawyer last night. He was telling me and my husband some ways to improve our credit scores and how to prepare for home ownership, and he said something that made both my eyebrows go up. He said that we shouldn’t be in too big of a hurry to pay off a house once we get it. Pretend there are two families, and they each buy a home for $200,000. Family A makes the regular monthly payment, and Family B puts every penny into paying it down faster. Some time goes by, and … Continue reading →

Don’t use credit cards, but still take loans?

A blog called I’ve paid for this twice already explains that anything purchased with credit cards is paid for again in interests, and maybe multiple times by the time the credit is paid off. Many of use have realized this and stopped using credit cards, but how many of us still take out loans and buy items on credit. Any kid on non-secured debt sucks extra money out of your pocket. Furniture loans, are financed by the stores and often through high risk programs that charge 10% or more interest for the honor of buying a sofa or entertainment center. … Continue reading →

Meet a Families.com Blogger – Debbie Vasen!

Today our featured Families.com blogger is Debbie Vasen. Debbie, I haven’t had the chance to visit with you before now – thank you for taking the time to join me. I’m excited to get to know you better. How long have you blogged for Families.com? I started around May of 2007, so about nine months. What topics do you blog about? Currently, I just blog about Money. What is your favorite thing about blogging for Families.com? From a writer’s standpoint, I like that it keeps me writing every day. As far as the Families website goes, I love the connection … Continue reading →

Calculate your Payoff

Is one of your New Years resolutions to pay off some debt? This is a great goal! There are some different philosophies about how to get there, let’s learn about some of them. Debt costs us money from the interest we are charged. Let’s use an example… you have $1000 in debt with an interest rate of 20 percent a year; you are paying $200 a year for that debt. You have $100,000 in debt at 5 percent a year; you are paying $5000 a year. Then you have $10,000 in debt where you pay 30 percent for a cost … Continue reading →

Single Parent and Paying for College–For Once, a Plus

I have written in the Parents Blog about the process of getting my eldest daughter (the first of three children who are working to finish the high school years) graduated from high school and on to college. In addition to all the forms, paperwork, and other details–we are, of course, scrambling to figure out how it is going to be paid for. While I have managed to save a few thousand dollars apiece for each of my kids over the years–it isn’t much and it will probably only pay for a year’s worth of books! What I am finding, however, … Continue reading →

Paying Ahead

Have you ever paid extra on your loans? Generally people just simply add extra money to their check and figure that everything is going to work out fine. One common misunderstanding is that the people need to specifically apply the extra to the principle of the loan. This is the most effective way to pay down your debt quickly. If you are considering doing this you should speak to your bank and make sure that the following three things are not happening. 1) Some banks simply take that money and apply it to the next payment that you make. This … Continue reading →