{"id":1897,"date":"2020-04-20T06:48:52","date_gmt":"2020-04-20T13:48:52","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.cashry.com\/blog\/?p=1897"},"modified":"2023-01-04T07:57:36","modified_gmt":"2023-01-04T15:57:36","slug":"top-smart-money-steps-for-couples-in-debt","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.cashry.com\/blog\/top-smart-money-steps-for-couples-in-debt\/","title":{"rendered":"Smart Money Steps for Couples in Debt"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Smart<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Life is expensive and sometimes your income just doesn\u2019t keep up with your spending. This can happen for a lot of different reasons. Sometimes an expensive emergency has come up that is just not affordable. Sometimes job situations change and that impacts salaries or bonuses or tips. The cost of housing or utilities might have gone up. Maybe you had to buy a new car because the old one was getting too expensive to repair. Sometimes debt happens all at once and sometimes it just gradually creeps up higher and higher. If you\u2019ve gotten to the place where your debt has become too much to handle, here are some smart money steps for couples to take.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get Organized<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

You can\u2019t create a plan to attack your debt without knowing exactly how much you owe. It may seem overwhelming but it\u2019s time to gather up all the statements, all the unopened envelopes from bill collectors<\/strong> as well as information about how much money you have in your own banking or investment accounts. Collect pay stubs as well so you can get a good handle on how much money each of you are earning on average. Once you have all the numbers in front of you calculate what you owe and how much you have.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is more than one way to look at debt<\/strong>. Some couples in debt will want a grand total of what they owe \u2013 everything from car payments to student loan debt to the retail contract for the living room furniture. Others will want to visualize the debt in terms of what is due each month. In many cases it is helpful to do a little bit of both. That way you are aware of how much you owe, but you\u2019ll attack it month by month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But beware<\/span>: it is difficult to pay off high-interest debt, like credit card debt, by only paying the minimum payment that is due each month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Make an Honest Assessment<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Now that you have the numbers in front of you it is time for a little honesty between you and your partner. Will you be capable of chipping away at this debt simply by paying the bills, or do you need to take bigger steps toward debt relief? <\/strong>One way for a couple in debt to move forward is to assess the depth of your debt problem is to create a budget.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Budget is Your Financial Snapshot<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

A budget will help you understand how much money is coming in and how much money needs to go out<\/strong> each month to meet your obligations. You can create a budget in the way that is most useful for you. You can write \u201cin\u201d and \u201cout\u201d in two columns on a piece of paper<\/strong>. Another possibility is to open a spreadsheet <\/strong>and fill in the numbers while the program does the actual math. If you like things a little more technological and visual there are many apps<\/strong> out there that will let you work on a budget and they will turn it around in bright and bold colors on pie charts and graphs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How to Create a Budget?<\/h4>\n\n\n\n
1. Honest Assessment<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Your budget begins with an honest assessment of your average income and what you can expect it to be in the months ahead.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2. Line up your financial obligations<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Then you have to line up your financial obligations. This isn\u2019t just your debt. This includes the ordinary life expenses you face each month like housing, utilities, transportation and food.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3. Evaluate your monthly payments on debts<\/h5>\n\n\n\n

Then you evaluate your monthly payments on the debts you owe. While you are in the beginning stages of creating a budget you can enter the minimum amounts due to keep your payments up to date knowing that you intend to increase the payments when your budget allows <\/strong>to pay off the debt as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hopefully putting a budget together helps a couple in debt put the amount of money owed into perspective. Maybe it feels more overwhelming than it actually is, and you see how you can make lifestyle changes <\/strong>that will help you significantly pay down debt during a set period of time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maybe you didn\u2019t realize how much money you spend on weeknight takeout dinners? Or you don\u2019t have to pay for cable television and a full menu of subscription services. Has it been years since you asked if you qualify for a cheaper car insurance rate? When you have a clear picture of where your money goes, it is easier to adjust categories. If you want to pay an additional $100 on a month to clear a high-interest credit card within a year\u2019s time, the budget allows you to see where you can pull that $100 from.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this budget you should definitely try to include saving money. Opening a saving account to invest even a small percentage of your monthly income might help you with debts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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