10 Painless (and Not So Painless) Ways to Wipe Out Your Credit Card Debt

By Eva Maria Norlyk

With the economy in a slump, there never has been a better time to take a close look at your credit card debt. Credit card debt is generally the most expensive type of debt to carry and, it’s the most risky. Being highly leveraged with credit card debt amounts to flirting with financial disaster. As far too many consumers have discovered, all it takes to push you over the edge is for a card issuer to increase the interest rate and/or monthly minimum payment due, and you might no longer be able pay your monthly credit card bills.

How do you get the extra money to pay down your credit card debt? The most effective way is to look for ways to reduce your recurring expenditures, or preferably, eliminate them completely. This generally involves making some lifestyle changes to cut back on your fixed monthly costs.

There are two ways to reduce recurring expenditures: One is to stop paying for things you don’t really need. The other is to stop paying for things you think you need, but actually, really don’t need. The first extraction is relatively painless; the second, well, let’s face it, will need a shot or two of novocaine.

5 Painless Ways to Zap Credit Card Debt

Most people are being robbed by recurring credit card charges for services they don’t really need, but which they have gotten used to or have forgotten to cancel. To make sure you’re not one of them, here are some things to look for.

1. Monthly Subscriptions—Do you have magazines lying around the house, which you never find the time to read? Book club subscriptions you don’t need? Online subscriptions you signed up for months ago and rarely ever use? Zapping monthly subscriptions can easily free up $50-100 a month, or more.

2. Memberships to Health Clubs—For people with credit card debt, a monthly membership fee to a healthy club is a luxury they can’t afford. Walking is free; exercise DVDs and online fitness downloads offer great variety and can be used over and over.

3. Credit Card Late Fees. Can you hear that Ca-Ching! sound? That’s credit card companies raking in late fees to the tune of billions of dollars a year. If you think that late fees amount to little more than bad planning on your part, think again. That $39 fee quickly runs into hundreds of dollars each year.

4. Credit Monitoring and Reporting—Services offering a free copy of your credit report and daily credit monitoring might sound like a great idea. However, when that seven-day free trial turns into a $14.95 monthly subscription fee, you’re paying almost $180 a year for a service few people will ever need. Instead, get a free copy of your credit report once a year at www.annualcreditreport.com. If you feel a desire to check your credit report more often, you can purchase a copy from one of the three major credit bureaus for less than what you pay for one month of credit monitoring service.

5. Cut Your Utility Bills. Saving on utilities can free up a surprising amount of money to help pay down your debt. The simple act of turning off lights and other electrical devices when not in use can cut your electric bill by as much as 10-30%. Most electronic devices burn up electricity even when they are in stand-by mode. This includes computers, TVs, DVD players, printers, modems, and satellite dishes. Instead of simply turning them off, unplug them from the outlet when not in use. Other ways to cut your utility bills is to turn the temperature of your hot water heater down; take shorter showers; and install a programmable thermostat to regulate the heating in your house.

5 Really Painful (But Effective) Ways to Cut Your Credit Card Debt

Published: November 8, 2009