According to the Citizen’s Advice Bureau there is an frightening amount of us seeking their guidance regarding Debt Management.

Their statistics show that each day England and Wales generate an extra nine thousand five hundred cases which find their way to them. The CAB also tells us there has been an increase of those seeking help with housing and benefit problems. Something like eight thousand two hundred per day need guidance urgently.
This data certainly reflects the UK’s economy and how it is still early days as far as things improving.

We are coming out of a recession but despite this, some of us have to face the cold light of day. It is apparent some of us are still struggling and powerless to cope with the ever escalating pressure on our finances and household budget.
Fuel bills are escalating, but wages are not increasing sufficiently and it’s that time of year again for the council tax, rent and/or mortgages to go up.

And don’t forget we have had quite a nippy winter, the coldest for some time. Those winter bills need to be paid and something tells us they will not be cheap!

The unease is, whilst there are better days ahead, we don’t fall into the temptation to borrow even more to tide us over. Credit Card Debt, remortgaging the family home or getting an additional loan from the bank are all ways that will defer those better days to come.

We may think this is the soundest way as far as having a Debt Management plan is concerned and in selected cases it could be an option. But before we plunge into extra debt we may want to mull over the alternatives.

Credit cards are not all bad. Look for credit card transfers that have a 0% interest rate for a fixed time. Try to budget accordingly so you pay it off before interest is charged. This will negate the need to pour our precious funds into paying off interest and permit us to put that money to better use.
It can take a lot of focus, research and budgeting but it is worth all the effort. If we calculate the benefits it soon becomes noticeable how we can improve our debt situation.
Take a credit card that has 19.95% APR and say we have a £1000 on it. Well that is £199.50 interest we it will be necessary to pay on top of that debt, or £16.63 per month.

Now if we were to transfer that Credit Card Debt to a card that has a 0% interest rate for six months then we save £99.95. That has to be worth considering.

An alternative way we may free up disposable income is by Debt Consolidation. By lessening our monthly outgoings and not having to agonise about lots of creditors we become able to cope with our finances. Debt Consolidation also cuts the risk of having to take on more debt.
These are just a couple of ways we can improve our own personal situation. It is all very well the claim that things are lookin up if we don’t play our part and take charge for our own finances.
If we do then we can take advantage of coming out of the recession and not just be observers of it.

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