2020 Plan: Debt Elimination or Bust
Dec. 24, 2019
The year 2020 is not just the start of a new year. It kicks off a whole new decade as well. That makes it doubly perfect for saying good-bye to your debt-incurring ways and dumping the debts that have dogged you for so long.
You may think, “Sure, that sounds good. But how?” Read on and you’ll find out.
Cut the fat
You’re obviously bleeding money somewhere, so examine just how the money is flying out of your bank account into someone else’s:
All those Starbucks coffees. You may need your caffeine fix, but you can always pre-make a pot and carry it to work in a thermos.
Kick cable to the curb. Your cable bill can run upwards of $100 per month. You can watch most of your favorite shows using a single subscription service. Amazon Prime gives access to free shipping. Hulu can be a free or very cheap add-on to your existing Spotify account. Cut the cord.
Give up the gym membership. You live in Southern California where it rarely ever rains. There are parks and beaches within a few miles of every neighborhood. Get back to nature and out of the gym for your exercise routine.
Start a side gig. Teach music lessons to children. Drive for Uber or Waitr. Monetize a blog. Become a personal shopper. Rent a room to a college student. Babysit. Keep the books for a small business. There are all sorts of ways to bring in more bucks while retaining your day job.
Shop secondhand. You can find great deals on designer duds shopping the gently-used clothing racks of consignment stores and secondhand thrift shops. You can also accessorize on the cheap and repurpose the outfits you already own.
When it’s gone too far for that
The above suggestions are all good places to start. But for many California debtors, they alone will be insufficient to drag them out of the quagmire of indebtedness. For these debtors, it’s time to turn to the nuclear option — bankruptcy.
While filing for bankruptcy should not be your first solution to mounting debts, it is a powerful tool in your arsenal of weaponry to fight the debt monster. To learn more about the options you have, consult with a La Mesa bankruptcy attorney.