1. Simply put, it's easy to reduce credit card debt just as it's
easy to prevent it from increasing and by paying off what
it is currently. But if it's that simple to reduce credit card
debt, then so many people won't have these problems.
Credit card debt could be significantly reduced or finally
eliminated.
2. The first step is to take stock of your situation. What you
can do is list the balance of each credit card, the payment
due date, APR, and reward points earned when you've
drawn up a schedule of all of them. Work out which card is
contributing most to your debt - this will be the card with
the highest APR and the highest balance.
3. Maybe you can make partial payments, cover fees, or
purchase items you might have used the credit card to
purchase with the reward points scheme.
4. Draw up a list of ways to reduce your credit card debt -
consolidation loans are one avenue to explore. A balance
transfer could help reduce your debt as well. This means
transferring your credit card debt to the card that has the
lowest APR. While repaying the debt you already built up,
the best way to reduce your debt is curbing spending on
the cards.
5. Using cash instead of card is another preventive measure
to reduce credit card debt because hard earned cash is
more difficult to get out of the pocket. By not adding more
to your debt, you reduce your credit card debt. Helping
you repay debts quicker is finding additional sources of
income and saving money in terms of other fees and
interest.
6. To control spending on your credit card, you may need
considerable amount of self-discipline since we're used to
using the card when we shop. One drastic solution is to cut
up all but one card which should be kept for emergencies
only. You won't be able to use them and can only spend
available cash after you've paid the bills.
7. Reduce credit card debt the same way you built it up - a
little at a time. For most of use, we've seen our credit
card debt spiraling over a considerable period of time. You
can reduce if not eliminate your debt completely if you
reduce the debt one payment at a time with discipline and
patience.