Reducing credit card debt is usually a consumer’s first step towards financial freedom. Credit card companies entice consumers in with low introductory rates; cash advance checks and other gimmicky promotions. What consumers don’t realize is that they are at the credit card company’s mercy. If you reduce credit card bills, you will free up your finances for retirement, college and other savings venues.

Consider liquidating certain savings account to pay off your credit card debt. Do not liquid retirement funds as the penalties are prohibitive. If, however, you have a savings account earning 1% interest, use a portion of those funds to pay down on a credit card charging a higher interest rate. Do not completely liquidate your savings as you will want access to non-credit card funds in the event of an emergency. Track your progress in a visual manner. Put a pie chart up on your refrigerator and update it every month. As you see your progress daily, you will be more motivated to stay on track to reduce credit card debt.

Use unexpected income to boost your credit card bills. If you receive unexpected income, instead of considering it a ticket to splurge put the total amount of the unexpected income onto your smallest credit card balance. This will help expedite the card’s payoff thus reducing your overall credit card debt load.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 at 12:23 am and is filed under Credit Cards. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.