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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation

Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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You Can Start Saving a Lot of Money By Following These Simple Steps

Willpower, the well-meant angel on our shoulder, has an extremely tough job to tend to. It’s the over-seer of so many things we’d rather forget: our budget, eating plan, or exercise routine. Despite how hard it works to keep us on the right path, it usually can’t stand up to our whims and cravings. Saving money isn’t easy. It’s something we all struggle with. When it comes to money, the result of our ability to silence our willpower is an instant gratification mentality and a financial foundation that is rocky at best. Fortunately, there are other ways to save money that don’t require a constant battl. Here are a few. Make it automatic Decision fatigue is real. It’s something the majority of us

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Ask the Readers: Will higher interest rates make you save more money?

This article is by editor Linda Vergon. Interest rates are expected to rise later in 2015. What will you do with this information? You could make the case that you haven’t missed much if you didn’t keep your money in a savings account over the last few years. But still, we all need liquid funds to one degree or another – and the sooner the interest rate goes up on those balances, the better. So will higher interest rates make you save more money? Well, they could, but not if you don’t have the money to begin with. A strange dichotomy seems to exist right now. “Total indebtedness is now almost $12 trillion in America,” as William Cowie pointed out in his recent article “What is your

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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The World’s Sexiest Looking Credit Cards

We all already know what the most exclusive credit cards are: the Amex Centurion and Chase Palladium. Have we ever stopped and wondered who did the best in designing the aesthetic looks of their cards? We’ve examined hundreds of credit cards and compiled a list of the sexiest looking cards. We’re not judging these cards by how exclusive they are, but rather how much effort and time was put into the design. So without further adieu, here are our top picks of the world’s sexiest credit cards.  The Ritz-Carlton Rewards Visa It’s clean. It’s simple. And brings sexy back. The lion and crown logo represents the British royal seal (the crown) and the logo of a financial backer (the lion). This

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Should I Settle My Credit Card Debts? Caution: It’s a Long Road Ahead

Thinking about settling your debts? Hang tight- it may not be the best option for you. If you’re reading this, you probably have some questions about the debt settlement process. I used to work for some of the biggest debt settlement companies, and I can tell you right off the bat that you should tread with caution. Debt settlement can be an effective approach to paying off your debts, but what exactly are the ramifications? Misleading Advertisement on saving 50-60{7dabfd103aa443fce219eea47f0f346a11a54ce587a1a0cbb74f06b9f7a304ca} of your debt Have you seen advertisements stating that you can knock out 50-60{7dabfd103aa443fce219eea47f0f346a11a54ce587a1a0cbb74f06b9f7a304ca} of your overall debt amount? Seems too good to be true, right? It’s not uncommon for companies to settle your debts for as low as .20 cents on the dollar, but here&#

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Have Fun this Summer Without Wrecking Your Budget

Summer is around the corner, and when the temperature starts rising, your expenses usually do the same. The summer season could easily be the death of your budget, but it doesn’t have to be. It is about enjoying life and being able to afford different experiences while still maintaining financial health. You should not have to choose between summer fun and sticking with your budget. It is about moderation and also doing some research. Not everything in life is free, but many things are. And if it is not free, simply start building it into your budget. Everyone needs a budget. You may not like one, but it gives you a track to run on and understand ways to control your financial life.  If you know what

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Cheap Mother-in-law Birthday Gift

In keeping with the cheap gift ideas of late, here’s another one to add to the mix. My mother-in-law’s birthday was last Thursday. She’s actually flying into town today for the long weekend (yay!), so we’ll be taking her out to dinner one night while she’s here. But we also wanted to do something on her actual birthday, so I had the girls make another super cheap craft that we mailed to her last week. This was actually an idea I saw when I was in Michael’s craft store for something totally unrelated. This was right before Mother’s Day and they had a whole display of crafts for kids to do for/with their Moms. One of

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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12 ways to celebrate Memorial Day this weekend

This article is by staff writer Lisa Aberle. (From time to time, we look into the subject of frugal travel and vacation ideas. Holly Johnson’s post on How to save money on family vacations is one example. This year, we thought it would be fun to find some frugal and interesting ways to celebrate Memorial Day around the country. We’d love you to share your tips for a frugal Memorial Day weekend in the comments!) Memorial Day is when, collectively, we remember the men and women of the armed forces who died while serving our country. Virtually every town and hamlet across the nation has something planned to honor our nation’s heroes, so it shouldn’t be too hard to find some kind

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Talking About Money With Friends Can Be Difficult, Here’s How You Do it

No one likes a friend who brags about being rich or constantly complains about being broke. The Miss Manners in me never liked to speak about the specifics of my money problems.  After all, we’re all taught that mixing friends and money is never a good idea. But what would change if we were more transparent in everyday conversations about the realities and problems we all face: credit card debt, student loans, paying bills and taxes, saving for retirement, and managing investments? Would friendships really end? Money problems and disputes can end friendships, but the actual cause of money being an uncomfortable topic for discussion is usually buried in emotions attached to how society values people. Perhaps the greatest evil of capitalism is that it makes people

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Too busy to cook? Check out these 4 meal planning services.

When it comes to meal planning, I’ve had a lot of starts and stops. I put a calendar on my fridge with the idea that I would fill it with dinner ideas every week. I stopped updating it in February. I also worked on compiling favorite recipes into a DIY cookbook only to have it sit on the shelf collecting dust. Nothing has managed to stick. Then, I recently stumbled across several websites that offer meal-planning services for rates I could actually work with. Problem solved. Here are a few I found particularly intriguing. Relish How it works: Every Thursday you are prompted through email to visit the site and peruse the newly posted recipes in order to build your menu plan for the week. Don’t

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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Dorm survival guide — what to splurge on, what to skip

This article is by staff writer Honey Smith. If you are headed to college this fall (or know someone who is), then you may also be headed to life in a dorm. Like many things, living in a dorm can be an expensive proposition, but it doesn’t have to be. Sometimes you can avoid the expense completely — one good strategy for this is to live at home and attend an online college or local community college for your associate’s degree. However, not everyone is lucky enough to have a college close enough to home to make that a feasible choice. Additionally, not all parents are willing or able to house their adult children. And I think I will shock precisely none of you by

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Debt Management, Relief & Consolidation
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They Call It “Personal” Finance For A Reason

I recently wrote an article for Debt Roundup in which I questioned the wisdom of paying off your mortgage early and it generated a number of thoughtful comments by readers on both sides of the argument. Some people recognize that mortgage rates are at historic lows and they would rather put their money elsewhere in the hopes of gaining a better return on their investment. If your mortgage interest rate is only four percent and you can earn ten percent in the stock market you will be more than doubling your rate of return. On the other hand, others were quick to point out that investing in the stock market does not guarantee profits and you could just as easily lose money.  Paying down your mortgage balance

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