Did you know that you’re being deceived? Right now, everywhere˳ On TV˳ In the newspaper˳ On the radio˳ In magazines˳ You’re getting the same message over and over again: “buy now, pay later”; “consolidate your debt into one easy monthly payment”; “get a secure line of credit”˳ Or the perennial favorite, “don’t worry, it’s good debt”˳
The truth is, there is no such thing as good debt˳ Debt is debt˳ It’s money you owe someone, money that needs to be paid back at some point in the future˳ “Good debt” is a misnomer˳ There’s better debt, sure, because there’s also really bad debt˳ But debt is never good˳ Not really˳
We live in a debt-ridden society˳ We’re encouraged to buy things on credit all the time˳ Why? Because it’s a profitable business for lenders˳ They’re not doing it out of the goodness of their hearts˳ They’re in it to make money, and their target is you˳
Of course, it’s hard to live entirely without debt˳ To buy a home these days you almost always need some kind of mortgage, this is true — few people can afford a house outright, especially at the beginning of their careers and families˳ But you don’t have to be in debt for the rest of your life˳ A mortgage is meant to be a temporary debt, one backed by the (normally) stable value of the property you purchased with it˳ It should be for a reasonable, affordable amount that can be paid back within 10 to 20 years of the purchase˳ And you should have some of your own equity in the house right from the start˳ But that’s not what people do anymore˳ They get mortgages for 100% of the appraised value of the house˳ Worse yet, they get interest-only mortgages that leave the principal — the amount you borrowed — untouched˳ Is it no wonder that these people eventually find themselves drowning in debt?
But it goes beyond mortgages˳ A debt mentality pervades our society˳ Once you have equity in your home, for example, the banks urge you to “free up” the money with home equity loans and secured credit lines˳ Use the money to better your life, they say, by renovating the house, taking that big vacation you’ve always wanted, or — here it comes — consolidating your other debt˳
Your other debt? Sure˳ You think the only debt people have is mortgage debt? No, they have plenty of other debt˳ It’s a banker’s wet dream out there today… Credit lines˳ Cash advances˳ Overdraft coverage˳ Automatic credit card limit increases˳ Pay nothing now˳ If you’re not careful, you can build up a lot of debt very quickly˳
And that’s the problem: those debts have to be repaid sometime˳ Rack up too much debt and soon you’ll be worrying about the monthly payments˳ Your peace of mind will suffer, and possibly other things like your marriage and your job˳ Is that the kind of price you’re willing to pay in order to have things you couldn’t otherwise afford?
The solution isn’t debt relief or debt consolidation˳ It’s debt avoidance˳ You should do everything in your power to avoid debt˳ Because too much debt will tear you down, physically and mentally˳
What if you already have a lot of debt? There are things you can do˳ Yes, you can consider consolidating the debt, but that will only work if you’re able to stop accumulating more debt once your current payments are lowered˳ Otherwise, you need to attack your debt using a step-by-step plan that involves paying off the highest-interest debt as quickly as possible, then using the money you free from that debt payment to pay the next-highest debt, and so on˳ It’s the snowball debt reduction method, and it works˳
The key to all of this is willpower˳ Make the commitment today to be debt free as soon as possible˳ The peace of mind it gives you will make it all worthwhile in the end˳
Source by https://ezinearticles˳com/?No-Debt-Is-Good:-Aiming-For-A-Debt-Free-Life&id=346306
