Finance: It’s Not the Size of Your Bank Account

It’s Not the Size of Your Bank Account

Written by Stephanie Yeh

You might think that if you win repparttar

lottery or get a huge raise, all your problems will be solved. Sounds logical, right? Well, it might sound logical, but it isn’t. Having a bigger bank account will not make all of your problems disappear. Why? Because money is nothing more than a giant magnifying glass. Any problems you have with money only get bigger when you have more of it. There are people who earn $150,000 a year who have huge money problems because they have never learned how money works.

So, if you are want to implement another top wealth creating habit in your life, learn how money works while your bank account is still modest. Deal with any out-of-control spending habits, plus any fear of loss, fear of risk and fear of money issues you might have. If you start small, you’ll be able to make a lot of mistakes without it costing a bundle.

You see, if your bank account is large, chances are that you will want to play big with your money—buy large things, invest large sums and take huge risks. If you’re not well-educated about money, though, or don’t have a lot of experience yet, huge risks can equal huge loss. But if your bank account is small, you’ll be more inclined to learn how to handle your money carefully and frugally, which minimizes your down-side. Sam Walton, founder of Wal-Mart and Sam’s Club stores, always proclaimed that if he controlled his expenses (i.e. kept it small), he could afford to make a lot of different mistakes.

Shocking Facts - What Debt Settlement Companies Don't Tell You

Written by Denise Hall

If you're thinking about using a debt consolidation or debt settlement service to help you get out of debt faster and save money on your monthly payments, make sure you do your homework before choosing a company. There are definitely shams and scams out there.

First let me say that debt consolidation is *not* repparttar same as debt settlement/negotiation, which most people don't realize.

Debt settlement companies charge hundreds of dollars as an initial "admin fee" to set up your account, plus a monthly service fee. The fees vary depending on repparttar 112572 company and repparttar 112573 amount of your debts.

Such companies take your money every month, but don't make monthly payments to your creditors! Instead, they put it in a trust account, negotiate your debts with your creditors, then make a lump-sum payment when there's enough in your account to pay a creditor in full.

That can take *years* depending on repparttar 112574 amount of debt you have with each creditor. Meanwhile, you can be sued by your creditors and your wages can be garnished! (Or just don't make payments to your creditors. You'll end up in repparttar 112575 same spot without paying someone to help you get there!)

Settlement companies don't ask your creditors to stop all interest, late fees and overlimit fees from accruing. That means while repparttar 112576 negotiations are ongoing, your bills will continue to grow! So if you're sued and a judgement is brought against you, you'll owe more money than before!

And shoddy companies, which there are alot of, don't tell you *any* of this up front. I call it "getting permission by ommission" because they simply don't tell you how their program works *before* you sign an agreement with them. Or after, for that matter. But if you ask repparttar 112577 right questions, eventually you'll figure it out. (Or when repparttar 112578 crap hits repparttar 112579 fan. Whichever comes first.)

Let me give you an example of how debt settlement works.

Let's say you have $20,000 in unsecured credit card debt. You owe $10,000 to one credit card company, $6,000 to another and $4,000 to a third. You agree to a 5 year plan where you pay $250 a month to repparttar 112580 settlement company. (After all, $250 a month for 60 months is only $15,000, so you're saving $5,000 and you'll be debt-free in 5 years, right?)

The admin fee will cost you $750. Your first 3 monthly payments go towards that and nothing gets put into your trust account until your 4th month.

The settlement company keeps $50 of your $250 payment each month for repparttar 112581 service fee. That means $200 a month is being added to your trust account.

Most debt settlement companies claim to be able to negotiate your debt for about 50% of what you owe. So let's use repparttar 112582 lowest credit card debt as an example.

If you owe $4,000 and your creditor agrees to accept $2,000 as payment in full, it will take 10 months at $200 per month to have enough in your trust account to pay off just that one credit card.

But remember, your first 3 payments to repparttar 112583 settlement company only paid repparttar 112584 admin fee. That means your first credit card settlement is 14 months *after* you started sending them money.

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