The challenge of tackling a massive credit card debt can seem almost impossible at times. When you look at the many bills rushing in each month and then you start going through that credit card bill, the idea of actually starting to pay that bill down can be overwhelming. And part of the reason that uphill battle to win over debt seems so hard is those almost ridiculously high interest rates credit card companies are allowed to charge.
If you have a credit card debt in the thousands of dollars and that interest rate can get above 15%, that is going to mean that a large portion of your monthly payment is going to go toward the interest. And what that means is that your balance will go down slowly which is very discouraging especially if you are also using the credit card so your balance continues to go up and up and up.
How often have you looked at the average interest rate that the credit card companies are charging you and thought, “I sure wish there was some way I could but that interest rate in half or less”? If you could just get that interest rate down under 10% or even better, that step alone would help you put more of the payment money you pay out each month toward reducing the debt. And if that rate could be locked in so it isn’t constantly being jacked up by the credit card company, then you have a real path toward paying off what you owe once and for all.
There may be a way to actually get a credit card rate you can live with from the credit cards services you already are working with. It goes back to that old advice that your mom or dad might have given that goes – “You don’t know until you ask.” That’s right it is very likely that if you call the credit card company and explain to them the situation, they might have the resources to negotiate a rate with you that you can live with and offer you the same services a credit consolidation company would offer.
It’s good to take a moment and look at the world through the eyes of the credit card company. They are in business to keep good customers who pay their bills. For credit card company, the worst kind of customer is one who is constantly late on their payments or doesn’t pay at all so they have to go through the expense of nagging those customers for the money. And customers who have the resources to dump them because their rates are too high are also a big threat to their livelihood because they depend on you needing them and being willing to pay those interest rates and fees.
So rather than see you dump them or take your debt elsewhere like to a credit consolation service or a second mortgage, its better business for the credit card company to cut your rate and continue to make some money off of your debt. Competition is just as intense for the good customers in the credit card world as it is in any other business. So if you pay your bills and are the kind of customer these companies like, you have a bit of leverage with them that you may not have known you had.
Make sure when you call the credit card company to renegotiate your rate that you talk to someone who can actually change things. And bring some clout with you. Be prepared to cancel your credit cards or move your debt to another card or credit service. If you let that credit card company know you are unhappy because of the rate, they will have some kind of program to keep your business. They aren’t going to tell you about it but its there. And if you are persistent and want it bad enough, you can get the credit card companies to play ball your way and give you a premium interest rate you can live with.
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Avoiding Credit Card Debt

In this modern time where the economy has been such a challenge for everyday people like you and me to keep up, it’s easy to get into credit trouble when your credit bills begin to stack up. So if you are in the position to just start learning the ropes of the world of credit cards, there are a lot of things you can do to avoid credit card debt before it sneaks up on you and keep your nose clean, as they say.
This is an outstanding goal for you if you are just getting your first credit cards. If you know or talk to anyone who is battling tens of thousands of dollars of credit card debt, you know what a jail sentence it can be. Once that credit card debt gets that high, the time it will take even under the best of conditions to bring it down runs into the years if not decades. And for all that time, thousands of dollars of money goes down the drain to credit interest that doesn’t buy you any food, tickets to the movies or new clothes. It just goes away with no value to you at all.
But if you are new to the world of credit, getting a credit card is a good thing. But once you get one, keeping it under control is job one. You will find it amazingly easy to use a credit card once it comes. In fact, the retail world makes it difficult to conduct transactions any other way. You can pay for gas at the pump that way and even charge your groceries at the grocery store. And while all of these great uses for credit are helpful, you can end up with a whopper of a credit card bill at the end of the month. And if you don’t pay that bill off, that is the first step on a lifelong jail term in credit card debt jail.
So there are some guidelines you should follow to both use credit responsibly but also to keep building your credit rating which has a real value to you. Remember that what the credit card companies don’t tell you is that making a charge on a credit card is a loan. Even if you just charge ten bucks to go to the movies, you took out an unsecured loan to finance that movie ticket.
So once you start using a credit card, keep in mind that you will be paying back everything you run up on it. It is NOT free money. A good practice is to save every receipt every month and keep a running tally of what you have spent on credit. Now only can you use that to cross check your credit card, it keeps you honest because each time you add a charge to your credit card, you can update your tally so you know for certain that you will be able to pay it off when the bill comes.
Paying off the credit card each month is the number one best way to keep your credit problems under control. Now it isn’t a bad idea to let a little bit of the debt drift from month to month. This builds your credit history and credit rating which will pay you well down the road when you want to buy a larger purchase. But by staying on top of your credit and what is going onto your card, you will start out with the kind of habits that will lead to a life of good credit use without credit card jail. And that is a wonderful gift to give yourself early in life.