Know Some of the Most Effective Debt Management Tricks and Credit Assistance for Single Moms

Financial difficulties seem to be a serious issue that is known to plague several single moms. While raising kids with just a single income, any financial emergency could culminate in debt issues that could take you to the brink of bankruptcy. We know that many single parents spend their lives with the trauma and stress of financial crises before seeking help or looking for available options.

There has been a reduction in benefits because of welfare reform and that has complicated the issue further for numerous families. In this context, you must understand that the higher living costs have actually impacted single-parent families most drastically. The rise in the overall living costs often comes with pay freezes so disposable income for most families is severely squeezed. Single moms are especially vulnerable in this respect as they need to manage household expenses with just one single source of income, relying often on benefits.

Single moms have to deal with lower credit scores, debt, and even bankruptcy as opposed to two-parent couples. As per the report published by the National Bureau of Economic Research, single-mom households would be facing poverty. Statistics reveal that around 85% of the single-parent households are actually managed by women. Also, about 42% of the total single-parent households were in abject poverty. These families are finding it difficult to handle housing payments, food, clothing, utility bills, and even childcare and single mothers are hard-pressed for cash since they are perpetually struggling to evade declaring bankruptcy and recover credit scores.

In case you are a single mom who is in a financial mess, your primary focus should be on seeking professional assistance and look for an appropriate financial counseling program. If you are not in such a terrible situation, you could follow an effective debt management plan. Single moms could seek online credit counseling. In case your overall financial scene is really distressing, you could consider enrolling in bankruptcy counseling for determining if you require declaring bankruptcy.

Let us explore some dos and don’ts which would be helping you in making better credit choices and managing your debt efficiently so that both your kids and you are immensely befitted.

Do Look for Opportunities for Building Credit

Though it is a wise idea to pay mostly in cash, it is important to build the credit score.  You must keep an effective line of credit readily available and you must pay off the entire balance every month. This could be an effective way of building your credit score. As a rule, you must not spend more than what you are capable of paying in just a single cycle. This way you could effectively avoid accruing interest. Moreover, this should be helping you in maintaining a high credit score.

Don’t Consider Spending on Credit

You may easily get tempted to spend money that you do not actually have. You know that credit cards have been designed in such a manner that they allow you to actually carry a balance. However, it is critical to keep in mind that interest would be accruing every payment cycle. This implies that you would be compelled to go on paying for all those purchases that you could not afford and also, you would be ending up paying much more over a period of time. If you can manage to, it is best to make all your payments in cash. This could be the best way to prevent you from splurging and spending more than the amount you actually have currently in the bank account.

Do Consider Negotiating

You may owe a lot of money to various people or agencies. However, that does not imply that you need to pay off everything at once. You could call up the relevant agencies or your creditors and try negotiating for a payment, which you could actually afford. Some companies actually have specific programs which have been designed for benefitting working single moms, allowing them to postpone or reduce some payments. There are yet some other companies which are more than happy to look at your problem with a more realistic approach. They would be willing to take whatever you are actually capable of paying. It is a fact, that there is actually no guarantee that your creditor would be interested in negotiating with you but you could always ask. Do visit nationaldebtreliefprograms.com to learn more and avail effective debt relief solutions.

Don’t Even Think of Ignoring Your Debt

One of the silliest things that you could ever do is trying to pretend that your debts do not exist. You simply cannot ignore your debts. It actually does not really matter if you have shifted your location or the collection calls have stopped, the record of all your debts is still after you. If you fail to acknowledge your debt seriously, you would be heading towards a lot more trouble such as wage garnishment and some other serious consequences including legal actions.

Some Important Suggestions for Distressed Single Moms

There are numerous single moms who cannot make timely payments every month without some sort of a financial assistance. Cutting down your bill payments and lowering your rent could prove to be helpful. You could put in an application for the Section 8 housing vouchers. Also, visit www.hud.gov. The HUD or the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development has incredible resources about income limits and assisted housing applications. When you visit www.liheap.org, you could have access to the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program. This offers programs for families that are in need of assistance for reducing utility bill costs. Moreover, check your eligibility for the ACCESS card that could be utilized for buying food and other goods. You could avail TANF or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

Do not miss out on all the fun. You may be on a particular debt management program but that does not imply that you would lead a life with no fun or entertainment. Take your children to a museum as many museums ask for admission fees which are ‘suggested donations’ so they could be waived. You could take your children to the free-to-the-public art galleries. Go for a rejuvenating long walk in the nearby park and then have a nice picnic with your family. The entire family would be benefitting from some mental stimulation and exercise and most importantly, you would not end up accumulating the dangerous credit card debt this way.

Conclusion

It involves a lot of dedication and hard work to be a parent and things could be million times tougher if you are a single parent. Single moms need to understand that there are enough help and provision for assistance out there. They simply need to reach out for help. Your state must be having a host of programs crafted to assist single moms just like you. Remember you do not need to depend on these programs all your life. They are merely the stepping stones for helping you get to a robust financial path.