The Holidays were great! Parties, vacations, entertaining guests, holiday shopping, buying presents for you…and now the bills have arrived at your Houston apartment.“I can’t believe I spent that much.” “ I thought I was being conservative!” Spending money during the holidays was fun at the time, but now the lights and tinsel are gone and so is the money.
First you need to sit down and calculate how much you owe on your charge cards or how much you spent out of your emergency fund. Then use the debt-snowball method to pay off your charge cards.
- Order your debts from lowest balance to highest balance.
- Designate a certain amount of money to pay toward debts each month.
- Pay the minimum payment on all debts except for the one with the lowest balance.
- Pay the maximum you can on the debt with the lowest balance
- When that debt is gone, do not alter the monthly amount used to pay debts, but pay all you can on the debt with the next-lowest balance.
Cut Back on Expenses
If you need extra money to pay off your debts, pay them off sooner, or replenish your savings, here are a few ways to help you achieve it by cutting your expenses.
- Eat out less and take your lunch to work.
- Buy one less coke or coffee a day. ( 30 x $1.50 = $45 a month savings)
- Rent a movie instead of going to a movie.
- Buy food items at the grocery store that are on sale and use coupons.
- Turn the heat down by 2 degrees and put on a sweater.
- Don’t go shopping unless there is something you must to have.
Stop Using Charge Cards
Put your charge cards away until you have your debts paid off. Don’t leave them in your wallet! Some suggest you put them in water in the freezer, that will literally FREEZE your spending and you will not be tempted to buy something you do not need or cannot afford.
Earn Extra Money
To earn extra money to pay off debt or replenish your savings, volunteer to work holidays or extra hours at work. If you really need the extra income, find a part time job. You could also go through your Houston apartment and find things you do not use or need, take them to a consignment shop or sell them on eBay or Craigslist.
This may seem a little painful, but your goal should be to have your holiday debt paid off no later than the end of May. Then in June, you will have 6 months to start putting aside some savings for next Christmas. Learn how to budget and start now! Put a little aside every month for next Christmas, and then decide on how much you are going to spend based on how much you have saved. May you control your money and not your money control you!
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