So you want to get out of debt. Congratulations. To make your journey easier and to help you on your way, here is an easy to follow checklist to guide you on your journey. Getting out of debt can be broken down into some very simple steps to make the process easy, obvious, and help you to do it yourself. ... Read More »

It is painful for me to watch people make the same ignorant and stupid mistake time and time again when getting out of debt. And what is the number on mistake that screws up their financial future in an effort to repair their financial past? Keep reading to find out. People make all sorts of emotional decisions when faced with ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I currently have $34,411 in credit card debt, with most cards being close to the limit. In addition, I have $23,422 in an auto loan. My gross pay per month is $5772 and my net pay per month is $3259. My living expenses (including rent and car payment) are about $2300 a month. My monthly payments for my ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I am in financial turmoil right now and I am extremely stressed out to the point of being sick because of it. I work a full time job, but I don’t make enough to support myself. I do have some physical restrictions due to the physical nature of my job and having it take its toll on my ... Read More »

People ask me questions every single day about how to get out of debt. Problem debt is a chronic problem that faces many at any one time. If you are facing debt, you are not alone. Normally the worry of debt is hidden by the perception everything this is alright. If there is no stress, fear or worry, there is ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I have 4 credit cards totaling $29,000. Need more reasonable payments and lower interest rate. I recently had to take a pay cut and had surgery with 6 wks unpaid and I am now between 60 and 90 days late. I had a lawyer and was going to apply for bankruptcy but now my father has passed and ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, 60K in credit card debt. Annual salary approximately 130K. Able to make minimum monthly payments on all cards, but never significantly reduce overall debt. My credit card debt ranges from Nebraska Furniture Mart to Home Depot, Macy’s and Chase. Now that I make more money, I can pay the minimums, but I want to get rid of the ... Read More »

How do you get out of debt? It’s a question lots of people are asking these days, and the reality is that the answer depends on what type of debt you have. For example, you may need a different strategy if you have 3 maxed out credit cards than if you have a student loan and medical debt. But not ... Read More »

When people come to the realization they want to get out of debt fast or quickly they traditionally run into an emotional slap in the face and then want the pain of the debt to vanish – pronto! This leads them to fall for just about any old get out of debt scam or blindly believe the claims made by ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, I owe $52,000 in credit card debt. I want to know if Debt Settlement, Debt Consolidation, Debt Counseling etc….Do any of them work? I do not want to file for bankruptcy. I have not missed any payments but mostly minimum payments. In the mail I get all kinds offers for Debt this and Debt that. It has been ... Read More »

Have you ever noticed in the real world, not the TV world, that paramedics don’t generally run to take care of patients? I was a rescued patient recently and it got me thinking about the logic behind why they don’t run and why. If paramedics aren’t running then there must be an exceptional lesson to be learned there and one ... Read More »

Below you will find links to how to get out of debt guides I’ve written that give specific advice on how to deal with a number of debt related situations. If you’d like me to write a “How To” guide on a debt related subject I have not covered, just post your suggestion in the comments below. As new guides ... Read More »

“Dear Steve, Credit card debt totaling about $50,000. High interest rates. Payments made on time but I want to consolidate and lower interest rates. I have 2 credit cards with high interest rates (17%+). One is about 17K and the other nearly 10K. Both are not willing to lower their interest rates even though I pay regurlary every month. At ... Read More »

As a consumer debt expert I deal with questions from readers on a daily basis about how to get out of debt. It’s a short and simple question that becomes easily overpowered with a lot of emotions and information that clouds the issue. Getting out of debt can be broken down into these major steps: Understand How You Got Into ... Read More »

The other Saturday I went to the drag strip with some friends of mine. It’s an annual event for us. We’re a bunch of car enthusiasts who get to spend a day with some truly amazing equipment. For those of you who are not familiar with drag races, here’s a brief explanation. Each race is a two-car competition to see ... Read More »