Services & Debt ReductionYou know which
debt to pay off first (highest interest debt or smallest
debt), and you understand that your return is better if
you put your money toward debt reduction instead of into
savings. There will be more money available for
investing, retirement and emergency funds once you're
debt free. You know that there is no time like the
present to start saving, and that every extra dollar
that you can squeeze from your budget will make an
impact in your debt.
So why are you still paying someone to pick up
your trash, mow your lawn, or wash your car? These are
just a few examples of convenience services that while
they do save you time and effort, are taking away from
your ability to get out of debt as quickly as you could
otherwise.
I know it is not convenient to load up
your trash and recycling into your vehicle and deliver
it to the recycling center or garbage dump yourself, but
it will save you money. In fact some of that recycling
that you are setting out on your curb every other week
can actually make you money that you can put toward your
debt. It seems trivial to take your bottles and cans to
the recycling center and get a few dollars for them, but
compared to the monthly cost of paying to have them
picked up for you, it's not so trivial.
Most of
the trash that you are setting out is food and paper.
Paper is recyclable, and food should be an excellent
place to try to maximize efficiency, thereby eliminating
a lot of waste. I personally am saving just over $200
per year by taking my own trash away, in addition to the
small amounts made from recycling.
Having a
gardener is something that a person or family who is
trying to get out of debt really shouldn't have. A grass
cutting service is a gardener of sorts. If you have any
debt at all, you really should not pay others to provide
services that you can do yourself. This is especially
true if you also are paying for a gym membership to get
exercise since you can get plenty doing this yard work
yourself.
I am not saying that you need to learn
skills in order to provide for yourself; if your roof
leaks you do not need to learn to repair it, but you do
not need to pay one of the grocery store clerks to carry
your bags to the car if you are physically able to do so
for yourself. Do you really need to receive the daily
newspaper delivered to your door?
The pizza is
rather expensive itself let alone paying for the driver
to deliver it. I know that it is more convenient and you
may not have much time after work to prepare your own
far less pricey meal, but you can think about paying for
convenience after you have paid off your
debt.
You get gas and it only costs an extra $5
to get your car washed, so what is the harm in doing
that? You only pay for this service eight or ten times a
year, what harm can that be? Every time you think about
getting that not so expensive car wash, you should send
that $5 to help reduce your debt instead. While you are
washing the car yourself, you can take solace in the
fact that you are trying your best to pay off your debts
and get back on the right side of the financial tracks.
The more things that you do to help, the easier it will
be to stay on track after you are debt-free.
THIS CONTENT IS FOR INFORMATIONAL PURPOSES ONLY. THIS
IS IN NO WAY GIVING ANY LEGAL ADVICE OR REPRESENTATION.
THE INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN WAS COMPILED FROM
VARIOUS ARTICLES. FOR ANY LEGAL ADVICE OR REPRESENTATION
SEEK YOUR OWN LEGAL
COUNSEL.
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