Debt Consolidation

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Author:
Gary Tallon

Debt consolidation is becoming an increasingly popular debt management tool used to help people get a handle on their debts. The principle of debt consolidation is simple: take out one low cost debt consolidation loan to pay-off all of your creditors, leaving you to handle just one loan repayment amount per month at a manageable rate to suit your finances.

Free debt consolidation advice is available from a variety of sources, including the Internet. Finding free debt consolidation advice specific to your circumstances though is not always easy, with some free debt consolidation sources giving apparently contradictory advice on debt consolidation matters. But, regardless of the approach you take to debt consolidation there are some basic rules that we should all follow to insure that the debt consolidation product we end up with is right for our situation.

Free debt consolidation advice

Free consolidation tip #1

Add up your debt: Before jumping headlong into a debt consolidation program you'll first need to work out what the total sum of your debt amounts too. Check the outstanding balances of all your credit cards, store cards, finance agreements and even your bank overdraft. For the purpose of debt consolidation do not include your mortgage.

Free consolidation tip #2

APR: Find out the APR that you are currently paying on your various debts. This will give you an idea of the amount of interest that you are paying on each part of your debt. If you add the APRs together and divide by the number of different credit cards, store cards etc. on which you have an outstanding debt then you will come up with the average APR that you are being charged. Don't be surprised if this is 15% or more.

Free consolidation tip #3

Work out your income vs. expenditure: Make a personal income vs. expenditure budget. This should include a column showing all money coming into your household on a monthly basis and another column showing all expenses that are going out each month. You'll need to factor in new purchases on credit cards, store cards, as well as all of your direct debits and monthly, quarterly and annual bills. Ignore current interest paid out on outstanding debt balances.

Free consolidation tip #4

Analyse expenses: Consider each of your expenses in turn, and ask yourself if you can reduce the cost of this expense. For instance, by changing your gas

About The Author
Gary Tallon is a finance writer of over 10 years experience, writing in various fields including life insurance and personal loans.

A Quick Note From The Publisher... If you like the article above, you may be interested in the following article which is also related to Debt Consolidation... Ease Debt Burden At Low Cost Through Personal Debt Consolidation Managing debts is a major concern of almost every person who is in the habit of using credit card for every purchase and taking loan very often. Debt consolidation is their priority as otherwise financial crises approaches fast on them. Personal debt consolidation is an effective tool in the hands of debt ridden people. Personal debt consolidation is done on taking a fresh loan of lower interest rate and the borrower pays off all debts immediately through the loan. As previous debts are of higher interest rate, monthly outgo towards previous debts gets eliminated and lot of money is saved. The borrower now pays monthly installments to just one lender instead of paying to different lenders. So the idea behind personal debt consolidation is to merge all debts in one new loan and lender. Loan availing is considered as an effective and result oriented solution to personal debt consolidation. The loan can be taken in secured and unsecured versions. If the secured loan is applied for, borrower is required to furnished collateral like home, jewelry, valuable papers, vehicle etc. With the loan fully secured, loan providers are willing to offer any amount at lower interest rate. For availing secured loan for personal debt consolidation ensure that equity in collateral is higher for greater loan. Personal debt consolidation can be achieved at lower interest rate in case of opting for a secured loan. If borrowed amount is kept lower then equity and extensive search for right lender is done, the loan can be availed at reduced interest rate. The loan can be paid back as per borrower’s convenience as repayment term ranges from 5 to 30 years. Unsecured loan for personal debt consolidation is normally availed by tenants or non-homeowners as there is no need for securing loan...