To make a plan for getting out of debt, the first thing you need to do is figure out who and how much you owe. Start by getting a copy of your credit report. Your report will contain all of your financial obligations from institutions that report to the major credit bureaus. Your credit report might not contain all your debts, so you should also use recent statements from your creditors to complete your list.
On a single sheet of paper write down the name of each creditor, total amount owed, monthly payment, and interest rate for your accounts. Depending on your goals for getting out of debt, you may want to consider only bad debt, such as credit cards and small loans.
Your list, for example, might look like this:- Visa credit card, $780, $47, 11.9%
- Macy’s credit card, $1515, $89, 18.9%
- Bank of America loan, $900, $55, 7.8%
You can use this Debt Worksheet to create your get-out-of-debt plan.
How To Read Your Credit ReportGood Debt vs. Bad Debt
