Are you struggling with debt? Trust me, I know how that feels. I spent years spinning my wheels and not getting anywhere with my debt. After I got married, my husband and I got serious about making our debt a priority. In 3 ½ years, we’ve destroyed $93,000 of debt. In this post I’m going to share with you my top 5 tips to pay off debt fast. They’ve been working for me, and I’m sure they can work for you too!
5 TIPS TO PAY OFF DEBT FAST
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What could you do if you didn’t have to spend so much money on your debt payments each month? Here are 5 tips to help you pay off debt fast.
MAKE YOUR DEBT A PRIORITY
It’s not easy. There are so many directions that our money can go. And paying off debt isn’t fun.
But life will be better once you get rid of your debt.
You’ll have more money and you’ll be able to spend it on things that are more fun. But, you’ll be debt-free much sooner if you make your debt a priority.
This will look differently depending on your specific circ*mstances. For my family, each month we pay our essential bills, and then we pay as much as we possibly can to our debts while leaving enough left over for our grocery budget and basic needs.
We live simply. We don’t buy expensive things. Sometimes we can’t do the things that our friends are doing.And it’s not always easy.
But we are committed to destroying our debt as soon as we can.
And someday, our debt will be gone and we’ll be able to spend our money on other things. We’re doing everything we can to make that day come as soon as possible.
Read more aboutmy debt story here.
You can kill off your debt too. But you have to make it a priority.
CHOOSE A DEBT STRATEGY
There are 2 main debt strategies: The Snowball Method and The Avalanche.
You can find out more about these strategies in my post 2 Ways to Pay Off Debt: Which one is right for you?
And if neither of these debt strategies seem quite right for your personal debt situation, consider the third debt payoff strategy that no one is talking about.
When my financial situation changed, I realized that my debt strategy had to change too. So, we switched from the debt avalanche to the third debt payoff strategy.
I encourage you to really look into and consider all three methods.
If you’re married, talk it over with your spouse.
Once you decide on the method that’s right for you, commit. Dedicate yourself to a plan, and stick to it.
But don’t be afraid to reevaluate your plan if your financial situation changes.
FOCUS ON JUST ONE DEBT AT A TIME
For a long time we were making a big debt mistake that was holding us back from paying off our debt as fast as possible.
We were spreading our extra payments out between all of our debts.This seemed like that would help us pay off our debt faster, but it wasn’t.
It’s way more effective to just focus every extra dollar (beyond minimum payments) to on one specific debt until it is eliminated.
Are you making the same debt mistake? Read more about it here.
CUT BACK ON YOUR EXPENSES
Then devote those savings to your debt!
It’s plain and simple, the more money you can throw at your debt, the faster you’ll be able to pay it off.
There are so many ways to cut back on your everyday expenses. It takes some work and effort. Sometimes it takes sacrifice. But after a little while it becomes second nature.
Check out my Expense Cutting Workbook for a step-by-step guide to cutting your expenses.
Here’s the important part though: Make sure the money you save actually goes toward your debt!
Don’t spend it on other things. Send each dollar you save straight to your debt.
CHALLENGE YOURSELF TO COME IN UNDER BUDGET
Then, devote those savings to your debt!
So, it goes without saying that before you can do this one, you need to be able to stick to a budget.
But once you’ve mastered that, keep going.
Try to come in under budget by spending less than you planned.
Cut back a little bit at a time. Read about ways to save money on food and groceries here.
Then, just like in tip number 4, make sure the money you save actually goes to your debt.
PAY OFF DEBT FAST
Being in debt is not fun. The best thing you can do is to pay it off as fast as possible. These tips are a great place start.
So, make your debt a priority. Then, learn about the 3 choices for debt payoff strategies and decide on the one that’s right for your debt.
Make sure that you focus on one debt at a time. Cut back on your expenses and try to come in under budget so that you have extra money to dedicate to your debt.
You can do it!
Psst… Want to save even more? Hop on my email list here. It’s my favorite place to give you money saving tips and insights that I just don’t share anywhere else. Plus you’ll get lots of free financial tools just for signing up.
Don’t click away so soon. Keep reading! Here are some of my best posts:
7 Frugal Habits that will save you Thousands
A Third Debt Payoff Strategy no one is talking about
How to do a Spending Freeze
How to Get Paid for Shopping Online
