Top 5 Tips to Staying Debt Free

We discuss five ways to help you avoid unnecessary debt and stay debt free.

Calculate your disposable income

Many people live from month to month without ever looking at their finances in detail. They spend their money until it runs out, then wait for the next payday and repeat the cycle.

Don't fall into this trap. By calculating your disposable income you can find out exactly how much you've got available after all your food, accomodation and bills have been paid. This will help you budget more efficiently and stop you spending more than you can afford.

Try our income and expenditure calculator to see how much disposable income you have each month.

Don't buy things on credit

It seems obvious but the trend nowheredays is to buy now, pay later. Unfortunately this encourages people to buy things they can't always afford and adds interest to the cost of products and services.

Instead of buying things on credit try saving a bit of money each month and wait until you can afford the products you want. This will save you money and help you avoid getting into more debt.

Look ahead

Don't let debt take you by surprise. Annual costs like car tax, school uniforms and birthdays can creep up on you if you're not prepared, putting your finances under pressure.

We suggest you look ahead 3 - 4 months and make a note of any payments that will require attention. You can then put some money aside each month to ease the pressure when the payments are due.

Pay for things on time

By missing payments or making late payments you will often receive penalties from your finance provider. These can build up rapidly and leave you with serious financial difficulties.

Always know when, to who and how much you have to pay each month. Make a note of every payment you need to make and budget so you can afford to pay them.

Expect the unexpected

One of the things that can push people over the financial edge is unexpected cost. From car repairs to sudden unemployment there will always be unforeseen circumstances that affect peoples lives.

Although it's impossible to predict what these costs will be it doesn't mean you can plan for them. Put a bit of money aside each month so that when the unexpected happens you can deal with it immediately.

If you do have financial difficulties speak to a professional immediately. The longer you leave it the hard it will be to fix your problems.

Any information you provide will be kept completely confidential.