The Simplest Ways To Get Back In The Black

While debt doesn’t have to be as scary as people make it out to be, it can be difficult to imagine yourself back in the black when you’re languishing in the red. You might not remember what it’s like to not use your overdraft, not to have to rely on credit cards to get you through to the end of the month and to use every iota of change in your pocket to make ends meet. You’re keen to see your way out of the financial rut that you find yourself in. More often than not, life can get in the way of our monetary plans, and we find ourselves on a very uneven keel. One expensive problem in our lives can send us from financially buoyant to well and truly debt-ridden. It could be that your car has been written off, your boiler has bitten the dust, or your house needs some major structural works. Whatever it is that has made your financial situation appear dire, you don’t have to resign yourself to a lifetime of debt. Take a look at these easy ways to get back in the black.

Shift The High-Interest Debt First

You may have an array of different debts encompassing a mortgage, personal loan and credit cards. The chances are that the high-interest debt will be your credit cards. APR on these little pieces of plastic can be astronomical compared to the lower single figure interest rate you are paying back on your home loan. Don’t make overpayments on your mortgage and instead concentrate on making larger monthly payments towards shifting your credit card debt.

An easy way to bring the interest down is to apply for a new credit card with 0% interest on balance transfers. While it may seem counterintuitive to apply for more debt, this is solely to transfer one credit card balance to another. You won’t be spending more or racking up more debt. Once you’ve transferred the debt, every payment you make will go towards paying off the balance rather than any interest making you able to get in the black much quicker.

Once you have slipped into a routine with your credit card debt, it’s time to tackle the personal loan. See if you are allowed to make any overpayments and utilize every spare bit of disposable cash to pay this off. Don’t consider adding to your savings pot without clearing your debts first. Your home loan can tick over as this is set up to be paid over a longer period of time. By all means, begin making overpayments on this lower interest debt once the higher interest loans have been repaid.

Check What You Are Entitled To

You’d be surprised just how often people take out financial products having been given false information. You don’t have to simply chalk it up to experience and wave goodbye to the money you might have wasted on PPI or other insurance products. Instead, click here to see if you can file a case for wrongful denial of insurance. You may have suffered a flood within the home, had a pet fall seriously ill or been involved in a car accident. For all sorts of reasons, companies refuse to pay out on insurance claims. You could recoup some money if you feel like your claim was mishandled and ultimately refused.

If you’ve been on a flight recently and it was delayed for over three hours you may be entitled to some compensation. Many airlines will state that delayed or cancelled flights that are due to natural phenomenon are not their responsibility and therefore they won’t pay out on any claim you make. However, if the plane you were waiting for had a chipped cockpit screen, had the wrong amount of fuel put in it or simply wasn’t maintained correctly leading to a mechanical fault, you could be entitled to a refund. Many companies will take on your case rather than you having to pursue the claim yourself. It’s worth going down this route as there is more chance of a successful claim, they are specialists in their field, and they only take a minor percentage of what you may be awarded.

Hunting For Ways To Make Money

If you are finally getting to the point where things are looking a little brighter towards the end of the month, and you don’t have to keep an eye on your overdraft quite so closely you may be keen to seek ways to invest your money. While you might not have thousands in the bank to invest, you may have a decent amount to withdraw from your savings account that is accruing minimal interest to try your luck in a more lucrative way.

Rather than opting for ridiculously high-risk investments that you can’t afford to lose money on such as cryptocurrencies and Forex trading, why not consider a long-term investment in wine. This doesn’t mean heading to your local drinking establishment to partake in a bottle or two. Instead, you could be selecting the finest vintages and purchasing a case or two. By storing this in a central facility, you might find that your bottles of chardonnay, riesling and shiraz become more valuable as they become more rare. While you won’t be able to make a quick buck, you will be guaranteed a better return on your investment than if your money was wallowing in your savings account.

Trying to find your way out of a weakened financial situation can see you in a Catch 22. You want to claw your way back into the black yet feel the need to apply for more debt simply to make ends meet. While the road to being financially buoyant isn’t an easy one, once you have shifted your high-interest debt and you see your disposable income increase once again, you will have the financial knowledge and experience not to end up in the red again.