Ways to Pay off Credit Card Debts
Do you have a pending debt on your credit card (CC)? If yes, you aren’t alone in this. Following a study, Americans have a total CC debt of approximately USD 1 trillion. Naturally you, along with the other Americans, are certainly on a lookout for the best ways to pay off credit card debts. Here, we’ll discuss some of them with you.
- Divide your CC debt into pieces
If you look at your total pending CC dues, the amount will look gigantic. Thus, we advise you against it. You can instead break down your CC dues into little chunks. This naturally happens when you have two-three credit cards. However, when you have only one card, you should divide the whole amount into certain smaller amounts. It will make your repayment process a lot more manageable.
For instance, when you consider the fact that you have to pay back the CC company USD 30,000, it would seem like a considerable amount. On the other hand, if you divide this amount into five chunks of USD 6,000, it looks somewhat manageable. Of course, if you get into the math, there’s no change in what you owe to the company, but as you know, divide the de and conquer certainly make the things look achievable. Irrespective of how you break down the CC debt, always pay back the minimum due amount to avoid fees or penalties.
- Pay the dues of the credit card, which has the highest rate of interest
After you have divided your credit card dues in manageable chunks, you have to shift your focus to repayment now. So, which card debt should you clear first? You can start by clearing off the dues on the card, which charges you a higher interest rate. This is the best way to pay off credit card debts. It is so because the cost on this card is more than others. However, your focus should be on repaying the interest amount and the principal amount. After you have cleared off the debt, which has the maximum rate of interest, you can pay the dues on the CC, which has the second-highest interest rate, and so on. - Clear the dues on the cards with the least balance
If you have two credit cards, on one, the due amount is USD 5,000, while on the other, the due amount is USD 10,000. Now, you should focus on clearing the USD 5,000 balance first. Do you know why? Though it might not be the perfect decision financially, it is undoubtedly great to feel a sense of accomplishment in clearing out the smaller dues. After you have repaid the card dues with the least balance, you can move to the credit card, with the second-lowest balance. There’s one downside of following this strategy. In this, the user has to disregard the rate of interest, which might mean more cost in the future. However, the smaller wins do bring in a lot of peace of mind, so they are worth it.