Stanley’s plan on Debt and Credit

About.com: Pittsburgh has published a list of Top 10 New Year’s Resolutions and “Get out of Debt” stands at #7. It’s so refreshing to see people taking finance seriously. Hope, unlike most, this resolution won’t be forgotten soon, especially when there is a community like Debt Consolidation Care.

For me, getting a home loan is the first priority in this year and I will do everything to get it approved. I don’t have much in debt. I have a credit card debt which I have been paying regularly. No more loans apart from the mortgage that I have planned.

What about others? I am sure all of you have taken some resolutions. Please share it here.

Technorati Tags: get out of debt, debt consolidation, new years resolutions

Sarah, a graphic/web designer, musician and single mom according to her profile at SomeWhereOverTheDebt, treats her blog as a means of earning money. As a result her blog becomes a useful tool on her journey to become Debt Free. Know more about her at About SomeWhereOverTheDebt.

Blogging is no more a hobby; it is emerging as a profession. This is the right time to take full advantage of your blog. So start posting regularly; 1 post per day is not a big deal. It will add to the credibility of your blog and open doors of opportunity for you.

Technorati Tags: blog, blogging, debt free, money

We take so many oaths every year that we would not indulge in unplanned shopping, our New Year Resolutions always contain the point “we would follow a tight budget this year”. But we forget all these promises soon!

But I am a good boy this year. I planned my budget from March 2007. I allotted certain amounts to be spent every week. I have been trying to follow it since then and also making some savings out of it. Let’s see my progress here:

As I allotted $500 per week, you can easily speculate I have saved quite a few bucks in 2 months. Hope I would be able to continue this in the coming months also!

Technorati Tags: budgeting, debt, credit

I was so excited to post my ideas in the Christmas Budgeting Forum when I first saw it. All I can say is this is a great idea. Also this is the right time to start thinking about Christmas Budgeting. There are people who plan for Christmas through out the year. They think how many paydays they have before Christmas and save little amounts from the paycheck. These little amounts get bigger shape at the end of the year

I am not a chess-player. I do not think before making a move. However, I start planning for Christmas from September/October. This helps me spend more and avoid stress. I must say that the post made by Ashley was too good. She has posted some Tips to Reduce Stress – a must read for all.

I was talking with a friend yesterday. He is going through a hard time. I have informed him to discuss his problems in the Christmas Budgeting Forum. Once his problem is posted here, it becomes a problem for all the community members and they give their effort to solve it out. And the problem gets a realistic solution quickly.

Gifts play a vital role in the budgeting. While surfing the web, I have found some good resources on Christmas Budgeting and I have posted it in the forum also. It not only speaks about financial planning and budgeting, but it also says how to select gifts and minimize cost.

No, I am not against of gift-giving and Christmas shopping. But I always speak for budgeting as a good budget keeps us debt free. Read my previous posts on:

• Christmas gifts are always precious
• Community proposes December to be the month for Budgeting
  

Technorati Tags: christmas, budgeting, christmas budgeting

Yes it hurts to see people judging gifts with its usefulness and price.

Author Patrick Moore tried to make some good points in his article Stopping Shopping at Christmas. I do feel that I need not buy precious gifts for my fiancée to show my affection to her. She can feel it very well that how much I love her; however, I will buy one for her this Christmas. And I will shop for my parents, my brother, my grandma and for my friends too. They won’t mind nothing if I don’t buy anything for them, but I don’t want to miss the million dollar smile on their face when I present them with the gifts.

Patrick commented about the story of O. Henry:

Both hair and watch are gone, making the gifts all the more poignant.

However, I feel that both the gifts became sweeter and that’s the essence of the love: sacrificing your greatest possession for your love even when it is not necessary.

And we should not forget about txtreasure also. She has a great family, lovingly kids who are caring and considerate. Buying gifts for them is not a compulsion but it’s a kind of happiness that all the mothers would cherish. And what community did for her is simply great.

Also if we go through the What was your best present ever? thread in DebtCC forums, we can easily understand that gifts are not evaluated by money, usefulness nor the height weight and length; but the way it is presented.

I can’t help but defer Patrick Moore on his article about Christmas gifts. When I had no money, I used to prepare cards by my own and sent them to my friends! I will buy Christmas gifts in future also. And I am ready to cut my budget on other accounts to buy Christmas gifts. It’s not a stress, it’s a relief.

Right time to make such an announcement, thanks Stella for taking the initiative. People often spend a lot during festival season and end up incurring more in debts. Now, with 4 or 5 credit cards in pocket, it’s not a big deal to splurge in excessive shopping, sometimes beyond our capacity.

I can remember of a Press Release covered by PRWeb last year that offered some valuable tips on cutting your expenses during holidays. Budgeting is very important, not during the festivals only, but through out the year. One who saves each month can spend more on Christmas shopping.

Even I think, students should have some compulsory budgeting lessons in school that would help them build up a better credit. I will be searching for more budgeting resources this month and will share it with the community. Hope this effort would make all of us financially sound. All the best

Technorati Tags: budgeting, shopping, christmas, community, december 2006