Though paying off debt is a long and arduous process, it's well worth it in the end. The snowball method can help you pay off your debts faster, by putting extra money toward your smallest balance first. Here's how it works:
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You can use the Snowball Method to pay off any kind of debt, but it works best for small debts that carry high interest rates. You'll want to list all your debts from smallest (highest interest rate) to largest (lowest balance) in order of interest rate, then balance, and finally minimum payment.
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Now you have a list of your debts, the interest rate for each one, and the minimum payment amount. It's time to put them together and see what your total debt is.
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Now that you’ve done the hard work of figuring out how much money to put in your savings account, it’s time to set up an automatic savings plan. This way, you don’t have to worry about remembering to transfer money each month—it will happen automatically on its own!
There are two ways that you can do this: by using a separate savings account or by using a free automatic savings app like Mooch. If possible, I recommend using both methods because they each have their own strengths and weaknesses. This will help ensure that no matter what happens with either method, your debt payments will still get paid on time every month.
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Now that you’ve made the decision to pay off your debt, it’s time to decide exactly how long it will take. The snowball method doesn’t require you to pay off your debt all at once and in fact, most people will not be able to do so. Instead of aiming for a single payoff date, set smaller goals along the way—these are called milestones—that will help motivate you each month when making payments.
For example: If your goal is $20,000 but there is no way in hell that you are going to have a spare $20K lying around tomorrow (or even next week) then set smaller goals such as paying off one credit card or car loan per month until everything is gone. As each product gets paid off move on up the list and repeat until every single bit of debt has been eliminated from your life!
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Now, let's talk about how much you'll be able to pay. Some people choose to pay all their bills by the same amount each month, but there are many other methods of payment. The snowball method involves paying off the smallest debt first and saving money for later on in your payments. This can help keep you motivated as well!
It’s also important to know how much you can save each month. It might seem like a lot at first, but once you start saving money and working toward your goal, it will feel like second nature!
Once you have an idea of what your budget will look like with these two things in mind—how much is owed per bill per month and how much money will be available for savings each month—it will be easier for us to make a plan that works with those numbers, so let's get started!
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We're excited to see you making progress toward getting out of debt! As you can probably tell by now, the snowball method is an excellent way to get started with your plan. It's easy to use and even more effective when paired with other strategies like tracking your expenses or automating payments. If you're looking to automate your budget and savings goals try our free budgeting app Mooch. With just a little bit of time and dedication, we know that you'll be able to pay off those pesky bills in no time flat!
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Practical advice on how to create a budget even when you have little or no money to start with, such as by finding ways to cut expenses, creating a spending plan, and using tools such as a virtual cash envelope system.
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