How to get out of the cycle of debt
According to an article by Timothy Egan with the title “Newly Bankrupt Raking In Piles of Credit Offers,†if you recently filed for bankruptcy due to financial difficulties or were forced to do so due to medical bills, then the banks are not going to leave you alone. In fact the new laws are designed to put millions of Americans in a “continuous debt loop through their credit cards,” according to Egan. So if you are not already getting dozens of credit card offers, get ready for them. And the reason the banks that lobbied for change in bankruptcy laws is the same reason they want you to borrow more. Thomas Riggins calls these hapless Americans as “permanent debt slaves to the banks.”
So what can you do to get out of this cycle of debt?
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Seek help from a personal finance professional, not one of those non-profit credit-counseling companies (that advertise aggressively on television – they are essentially fronts for crooks), but someone you can trust, who only works for you, and can get you to learn the basics of personal finance.
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Consider options like debt consolidation, refinancing, student loan consolidation, etc.
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Find simple ways to cut back on your expenses, for example, gasoline, heating, entertainment, etc.
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Don’t spend what you cannot afford to pay in cash (literally – it is OK to charge it but you should pay your balance in full each month).
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