The national debt in the United States has reached an all-time high record of $22 trillion in February 2019 and this surely is an indication of worsening of the nation’s overall finances and debt situation in particular.  One of the most badly affected groups is single parents, in this ever-increasing debt problem.

Living just on a single income and bearing all the expenses independently of kids could be a challenging task for many single parents. Kids could be a really expensive proposition. A single parent would have to provide with not only the basic requirements like food, shelter, and clothes but also, school and college education, school supplies, medical expenses, extracurricular activities, and other expenses.

Sometimes due to abandonment by the partner and divorce, a single parent would be compelled to bear all the expenses fully. Under the current financial scenario, a single income is often not adequate for running a family smoothly without falling into serious debts.

College education for kids is quite pricey. You are aware that parents are constantly helping their children by funding a college education. You simply do not wish to shirk the responsibility of giving your children a sound start to their careers. However, we are witnessing how parents are running into massive debts by helping their kids. Numerous single parents are saddled with a huge amount of debts as a result of their children’s student loans. As per https://www.forbes.com, a recent survey showed that 55 percent of the parents who had co-signed or taken out a loan for their kid’s education have ended up with over $40,000 in terms of student loans. That seems to be a tremendous amount of money for adding to your balance especially when retirement is just a decade or maybe two decades away.

Super-Efficient Debt Management Tips for Single Parents

When single parents do not have sufficient money for making ends meet, many of them would be turning to credit cards for getting through the month. This situation could culminate in insolvency without a substantial increase in income or effective modifications in lifestyle. A decrease in overall expenses and a boost in income could prevent the accumulation of credit card debt when single parents seem to be in a cash crunch situation. Here are some smart ways of staying on top of your debts if you are a single mom or a single dad.

Determine the Total Amount of Your Debts

Create a comprehensive list of all your current debts. You must include specifically the names of all your creditors, the exact amount you owe, the due date and the precise monthly payment that is supposed to go toward each creditor. When you see such a list, you could get a quick glimpse of your debt situation and you could remain aware of your entire financial and debt scenario. You cannot just chalk out a list and completely forget about it. You must consistently refer to this debt list from time to time and once you start paying the bills each month, make sure to update your list. This should be projecting the changes in the final debt amount. Browse through nationaldebtreliefprograms.com for perfect debt-associated solutions and professional guidance.

Promptly Pay All Your Monthly Bills

You must stick to paying all your monthly bills on time. Delays in monthly debt repayments could make things more difficult for you and you would find it harder to deal with your debt. You would need to pay an extra amount as a late fee every time you end up missing a monthly payment. Suppose you miss a couple of payments consecutively, your finance charges and interest rates would shoot up. It is best to utilize a calendaring system either on your smartphone or computer. It is best when used for setting an alert for reminding you much in advance of your due date. Once you have by chance missed your payment, it is best not to wait for the next upcoming due date for sending your payment. You must make the payment at the earliest possible, as any delay could be reported at once to the credit bureau. In order to avoid impacting your credit profile adversely, it is best to make the missed payment at the earliest possible.

Try Paying More than Your Minimum Balance

You must make it a point to stay on top of your debts by not only making the minimum monthly amount due every month on all your existing credit cards. Simply sticking to paying the minimum amount due every month would imply paying off generally 2% to 3% of your outstanding balance. This would be prolonging your debt payoff strategy. According to experts, you must fortify your resolve to pay off everything by constantly making weekly payments instead of making monthly payments. Alternatively, you could consider doubling your minimum monthly payment, for instance, if you are supposed to pay $100, you could pay double the amount for getting on top of your debt effectively and quickly.

Make the Most of Balance Transfers

Suppose you are having a high-interest credit card that has a balance which you are sure to pay off completely in just a few months, experts recommend transferring the debt to another credit card which is offering 0% interest balance transfer. Simply pay off your debt well in advance of the balance transfer expiry. If you could exercise wisdom and care, you could save lots of money in terms of interest.

Stop All Credit Card Spending

If you wish to prevent the accumulation of overpowering debts, you must necessarily stop carrying your credit cards around while shopping. It is best to leave them back at home while you indulge in shopping. You must stop spending by using credit cards even if you would be earning cash backs or some other rewards on your credit card purchases.

Conclusion

You must, first of all, understand the symptoms that are screaming the fact that you are suffering from overwhelming debts and need to exercise caution and seek expert assistance. You must understand the symptoms and seek professional assistance from renowned and reliable debt relief agencies. Along with the above tips, you may opt for effective debt settlement or debt consolidation options and try to understand their implications to manage your debts effectively and quickly. Single parents must be doubly cautious and must be vigilant about their financial situation and debt issues.