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(continued
from previous page) In a credit
crunch? You may need professional help
By Jenny
C. McCune • Bankrate.com Look for a pattern
There's no
magic number of statements with which you must agree to determine if you have
a credit problem. Even if you see yourself in several of these instances, you
still might be able to deal with your credit crunch on your own.
But if you spot a trend, beware.
For example, don't panic if you occasionally
shop surreptitiously, not letting the spouse in
on your splurge. "Anybody might do this once
or twice," says Debby Vinyard, a retired certified
financial planner. "But if it's becoming routine,
you probably have a problem."
Similarly,
paying of minimum balances once in a while could be acceptable. But if it's more
than an isolated money management misstep, you could be headed for trouble.
"If you see some of these warning signs, you
need to take a serious look and find out why," Vinyard says.
"Maybe it's something temporary. You're between jobs.
"But if it's becoming a bad pattern, you need
to be honest. Admitting you have a problem will go at least halfway
toward solving it."
Don't wait too
long
Getting help sooner rather than later can
take months or years off the process of getting
out of debt.
Once you've hit rock bottom financially, it's much
harder to work your way out of it. Seeking credit
counseling before tipping over into the abyss eases
the stress and financial burden on families.
Any trip to a credit counselor should
be preceded by a thorough analysis of your family's
personal finances: how much money you have saved,
how much you owe, how much you have coming in each
month, and so on. Such an analysis will help you
assess how much trouble you're in and how much assistance
is required.
In the end, getting organized may
be all the help you need.
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