After the recent economic collapse, leading a family as a single mom without any financial help is a very hectic job. At any time you could require financial help to deal with different situations and if you have bad credit, it could hinder your chances of getting the required financial help from any of the traditional financial institutions such as banks. Bad credit is a black mark on your credit report due to insolvency, bankruptcy, missed payments or late payments.
You’ll know if you’re in debt problems when you come across the following situations:
- If your lenders and their collectors are calling you frequently
- If you are taking cash advances from one credit card in order to pay off another one
- If you miss any number of payments or even regularly make late payments
- If you are paying only the minimum payment every month
- If you are paying only part of the bill at a time
- If you are making late payments on monthly expenses for example rent, utilities, home payments or car payments
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If any of the above are “TRUE” for you then you are about to be in bad credit and you have to take serious preventative measures. You can follow these tips to prevent getting into bad credit:
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Make bills payment on time:
Pay your all bills on time to safeguard yourself from late penalties and a black mark on your credit report.
Don’t ever cross your credit card limit:
Spending more than your credit card can lead to high-interest debt as the credit card company will charge you interest from the due date and for every day until you pay which can become very expensive.
Avoid more debt:
If you are struggling to get rid of debt, it’s not a good idea to take more debt as it will be very difficult to make payment for another loan. Don’t take more debt without getting rid of old one or in case of emergency situations like child’s education bills, medical expenses and so on opt for short term loans such as payday loans which you can repay on your next payday. These loans can also help boost your credit score on repayment.
Stop unnecessary expenses:
Don’t buy unnecessarily when out shopping instead make a plan before buying anything. If you’re going grocery shopping make a list and stick to it. Better still order your groceries online and have them delivered to avoid temptation.
Use cash instead of credit cards:
Make use of credit cards only for emergency situations, it will be better to put them in a place where you are not tempted to use them. If you do use your credit card make sure you make payments on time.
Go through your transactions:
Review your transaction and find out which unnecessary expenses you are making regular and where you can cut back.