Monday, September 15, 2008

DEBT MANAGEMENT

Here are the steps of Oprah Debt Diet which can also be found at http://www2.oprah.com/money/debtdiet/st ... main.jhtml

PHASE 1
Give yourself one month to complete these steps—you can do one a week!

Step 1: How much debt do you really have?
It's time to get real about your debt. Do you know how much living with debt is costing you?

Step 2: Track your spending and find extra money to pay down debt
Time to cut back on the extras. Use David Bach's Latte Factor® calculator to find big savings where you least expect them! It is time to start paying you.

Step 3: Learn to play the credit card game
Think $10 a day won't make a big difference in your debt? Think again! With this plan you can pay off $8,000 in credit card debt in just 3 years.
* Note: Step 3 Part 4 has been revised.

Step 4: Stop spending
Making small changes can help in a big way. Use these tricks to help you spend less and save more.

PHASE 2
In the second phase of the Debt Diet, the steps become more detailed and have more long-term goals.

Step 5: Create a monthly spending plan
Use the monthly spending plan worksheet and calculator to create a budget that you can stick to—and save with—every paycheck.

Step 6: Take big steps to grow your income
Whether it is selling your assets or getting a second job, sometimes you have to make big choices to get out of debt.

Step 7: Prioritize your debts and raise your credit score
Confused about which debts to pay off first? Here's a plan to pay down your debt while actually improving your credit score!

Step 8: Understand your spending issues…and save!
Take this quiz and get to the heart of why you spend. Then, find out how to resist temptation and build an emergency fund.