Tag Archives: millennial finances

How Do Debt Consolidation Loans Work?

Most people are panicking about how to stay alive and many are living hand to mouth in the current times, let alone wondering how to pay the next doctor’s bill or clear their overdraft at the bank. A debt consolidation loan combines it all, taking credit cards, accounts, medical bills and other debts and consolidating them into one complete loan. But does debt consolidation really help to reduce the cost of paying off your debt and lowering the interest on your credit card debt? Here is how it works.

Types of Debt Consolidation Loans.

A Home Equity Loan (HEL) is a loan against your fixed asset, namely your house, which is used as collateral or you could apply for an unsecured personal loan from a bank or you could opt for a balance transfer of credit cards which is also usually offered by the bank, whereby all debt is moved to one single credit card account. Important to bear in mind is that your chances of getting any of these loans is lowered when you are already ‘in trouble’ so, the best move is to anticipate future outcomes and strategize before it is too late.

Debt Consolidation Benefits

Researching a debt consolidation loan at Freedom Debt Relief, you’ll find a huge benefit of debt consolidation is having a specific end date, which helps with budget planning and gives you a clear picture of the direction you are going. Moreover, when your debts are properly consolidated, you will pay a lower interest rate and you’ll pay one institution instead of multiple creditors.

Consolidation vs. Settlement

Debt consolidation and debt settlement are sometimes spoken of as if they are the same thing. However, there are some key differences. With debt consolidation the debtor enters into a completely new loan in order to pay off their debt, whereas debt settlement is a situation where the person hires the services of a third-party company that will contact your creditors and offer them a one-time payment in full of the money you owe in exchange for certain concessions.

Meanwhile, debt consolidation involves no communication with your lenders at all, save to pay them off with the proceeds of the new loan.

As you might imagine, not all creditors would be happy with this arrangement, as it would mean writing off a substantial amount of your debt. It also entails forfeiting the maximum amount they might have made off you in interest payments. However, many experienced creditors consider accepting a settlement agreement better than getting nothing at all, which is what could happen if they forced you into bankruptcy court.

Ultimately, if you are thinking about consolidating your debts and streamlining your financial path for the forthcoming five to seven years (this is the minimum average time it usually takes to see the light at the end of the tunnel), you’d be better off taking the safest route of a loan to merge your obligations into one financial instrument. This will make it much easier to settle all the arrears at the various creditors, which, in turn, will give you room to breathe and work out the next steps.

Keep in mind though, all of this is of course assuming a consolidation would work in your favor. Remember the numbers have to line up for a consolidation to make sense for you; otherwise, you’ll just dig a deeper hole for yourself.

5 Fun Ways for Millennial Women to Make Extra money

Making money from your side hustle is one of the biggest blessings of the internet. In this age of the internet, making extra money online is an incredibly easy way if you know where, and how to start.

It is the reason why we are here to discuss the top five ways for you to get started with your side hustle, and earn extra money. Let us look at these side hustle ideas and how you can make it big for you!

Freelancing

If you are thinking of any easy way to make extra money, freelancing can be the thing for you. You can either start as a freelance content writer, a freelance graphic designer, a copywriter, digital marketer, or even social media marketer. (Yes, pretty much anyone can make money using the best social media ads.) When it comes to freelancing, there are hundreds of options that you can choose depending upon your preferences and skills. (P.S. Freelancers have to do their own invoicing – check out the most popular free invoice templates and make yours look great!)

Online Teaching

There are a lot of ways to start a side hustle and earn extra money. Online teaching is one of them. People, especially women are excelling at online teaching and tutoring. So, if you are looking for it, you should definitely give it a shot. To start with online teaching, all you need is a laptop or computer system with a good internet connection.

Investing

If you are looking for a side hustle that can pay you well, you can look forward to the investment market. Investments in real estate pay extremely well, especially when you are highly skilled and possess good analytical skills. So, analytics and investment is your strength, real estate investment is the thing for you! Other investments can be lucrative too, whether you buy Uber shares or something more traditional.

Virtual Assistant

If you are good in the assistance work and want to make money from your hobby, you can work as a remote virtual assistant and make money. You can either choose to work part-time or full time depending upon your schedule which can be relatively reflexive as long as it is okay with whomever you are working with. All you need to get started as a virtual assistant is a laptop, headset or cell phone, good communication skills, and a flexible schedule. Virtual assistants are making a good career in their areas, and you can do it as well.

Blogging

There is no denial in the fact that blogging is one of the most heated areas when it comes to getting started with a side hustle. If you think that you have the potential to create a niche audience for your blog, you can easily make an entire paycheck. To start with blogging you can do advertising and affiliate marketing. It also makes it possible for small blogs to stay in the business, and become a successful side hustle.

Building a side hustle is essential to living a millennial life and getting the best out of it. There are a lot of career options, just as we discussed in the above points, that you can take up as a side hustle and build your empire today. All you need is a will to live a better life!

5 Ways Smart Money Management Makes Life Easier

Surviving in an ever-changing world comes with many different financial changes. One of the most important for many families today is learning how to develop smart money management skills. Since the best budgeting strategies can make a big difference in living from one paycheck to another and making life better in every way, you may want to look at the following ideas as you make your own customized plan.

1. Learn What it Means to Adopt a Frugal Mindset

When you are living on a tight budget, one of the best things that you can do for you and your family is to adopt the frugal mindset. With this mindset, you will have many opportunities to buy what you need, while also saving money, too.

Additionally, there are a lot of excellent tips online from consumers all over the globe. Many of these tips can help you and your family to get started right away. For instance, before you decide to buy the latest new technology for someone in your household, you can explore the wide range of options available to you. In some cases, you can save money by renting the item, borrowing it, or making a decision to re-evaluate the need for the new item altogether.

2. Set Aside Money for Dividend Stocks

In addition to developing a new way to think about your spending, you may also want to consider the possibilities of investing inmonthly dividend stocks. Now that you have learned to save money by being more frugal, you should have a little leftover to create additional wealth from the stash that’s stored away.

You can accomplish this goal or objective by setting aside a specific amount each month to invest in monthly dividend stocks. In this way, you can also build several different avenues to enhance your portfolio and have money that can be used for many years in the future.Morningstar and The Motley Fooloffer stock recommendations but have significant differences. Each offers investment advice, including newsletters and websites with educational content and the latest research.

3. Set Financial Goals for the Future

To make sure that your family can live the life that others only dream about, you need to set some financial goals early. It really does not matter what these goals are during this present time, you can create a financial pathway to achieve anything. From buying a new home in the inner city to paying for your child’s college education, you need to set these financial goals in advance, perhaps even consulting with afinancial managementexpert, so that you can chip away at it a little bit at a time. If you do not set these goals in advance, the high cost that it takes to get what you want may be out of your reach during the most opportune times.

4. Utilize the Best Available Financial Software Tools

The age of writing your expenses down on a hard copy paper ledger is not only a part of the past but may even hinder your progress. Since balancing a budget properly and tracking finances can be very time consuming, you should change your methods of recording your finances. Therefore, when you are looking around for the best resources available, you need to pay close attention to the alternatives in this industry. For instance, when you are shopping the internet for the best software for budgeting your income and expenses, here are some features that can help you with accuracy and expediting the process.

  • User Friendly – Software that is simple for anyone in the family to use for budgeting.
  • Easy Accessible – Software can be accessed via your computer, mobile phone, laptop, and etc. These programs must also be available everywhere a user goes via the internet or wi-fi connection.
  • End to End Solution forPersonal Budgeting– The software product that you purchase should include a wide variety of essential features and capabilities, including online real-time information, print out capabilities, reporting, tracking, and other critical capabilities that make-up a robust budgeting process. You can try out apps such asMicrosoft Cloud Access Database Hostingto keep an eye on your expenses. Learn more about it fromDaaS providers.

5. Pay Cash – Avoid Interest

Whenever possible, pay cash for the items that you want to purchase. By paying cash, you can eliminate the high costly interest attached to credit card debt. Even though your credit card may have a low-interest rate, these little extra amounts can add up to large sums of money over longer periods of time.