Lifestyle inflation is the tendency to increase spending as income increases — upgrading your apartment when you get a raise, buying a nicer car after a promotion, dining out more because you can "afford it now." It is the most socially acceptable financial trap in existence.
With regards to money and finance a lot of the things we do are motivated by the psychology of how we view money. Some people dispose of it easily, some save it, some risk it, some invest it and others never have enough.
In the U.S. there is free flowing money and money that is generally being utilized by the public. This free-flowing money is the heart of the economy and its economic activity. Without free-flowing money that is constantly exchanging hands and being exchanged for good and services, the heart of the economy would not beat.
Most conversations about credit card debt focus on the financial mechanics — interest rates, minimum payments, payoff timelines. Those things matter. But the daily experience of carrying significant debt is broader than the numbers on a statement. It shapes decisions, strains relationships, affects sleep, and quietly limits options in ways that compound over time.
Staying debt-free requires structural changes to how you interact with credit, not just a promise to "be more careful." The behaviors that created the debt were rational responses to your environment — the same environment you will re-enter after the debt is resolved. Without changing the environment, the behaviors return.
In one way or another, everything has an associated cost. In economics, we refer to opportunity cost as the associated cost of choosing something else instead of another given option.
A debt settlement program follows a specific structure. Understanding each stage prevents surprises and helps you evaluate whether the program is the right fit for your situation.
The difference between banks is that large banks have a more robust amount of capital. Due to the increased capital they can use a float and book diversification to make up for any short-term windfalls in cash withdrawals, asset depreciation or losses on their books.
Military service members and veterans face financial challenges that the general population does not — deployment-related income disruptions, PCS moves that create housing cost volatility, the transition from military to civilian employment, and the unique stresses of service that can contribute to financial decisions made under extreme pressure.
Should we invest more or should we save more? Now this question has been asked for years and years but as time has continued to move forward, it appears like the camp that favors investments has been on the money thus far. Let’s try to figure out why.
Credit card interest is not a mandatory cost of using credit — it is a penalty for carrying a balance. If you pay your full statement balance by the due date every billing cycle, you pay zero interest.
Many consumers are conflicted between paying down debt or investing. There’s a lot to be said about the opportunity cost between these two things. However, which is better will really depend on your situation, how much debt your carrying and what kind of investment return you expect to receive.
"Mortgages are good, credit cards are bad" is a fine bumper sticker, but it ignores the nuance that actually matters when you're making real financial decisions. A mortgage you can't afford is terrible debt. A credit card used strategically to build your credit score can be one of the smartest financial tools available.
Deciding on a financial service might not be the easiest thing for you to do but at the end of the day it’s something you’re going to have to decide on, one way or the other. If you carry debt, especially high interest credit card debt, you might think you don’t have so many options available to you. Well I’m here to show you that’s not the case.
Debts can either get settled via a 1 on 1 phone conversation with the creditor, via emailed scrub lists and various other methods from standing working relationships that negotiators may have already setup. Whatever the method of settlement it is, it typically depends on the creditor and their preference for doing business. Every creditor or debt collector is different from the next.
Litigation happens. Consumers get served. Even though these things are unfortunate and our goal is to avoid them from happening, especially for our clients, they can still happen. This is part of the process with any debt relief company and any subsequent debt relief program you enroll in. There’s always a possibility that creditors try to take legal action on debts that are owed. Anyone that tells you otherwise is just plain lying.
Debt has become fundamentally ingrained into American society but it doesn't have to be your burden. If you currently carry debt, regardless of the type, these are your options to help pay it off.
The debt relief space has a trust problem, and the only way to fix it is to be transparent about the practices that give legitimate companies a bad name. Some companies make promises they cannot keep, charge fees they should not charge, and enroll clients in programs that are wrong for their situation.
In American society, debt carries a moral weight that other financial obligations don't. Nobody feels guilty about returning a product for a refund. Nobody agonizes over negotiating the price of a car. But failing to pay a credit card balance in full feels like a character flaw.
When it comes down to it, you only have three options for getting out of debt. You can either increase your income, decrease your monthly expenses or reduce the amount you owe via the various debt relief options. There’s no other miraculous way to do it.
The answer really depends on your personal preference but for the most part, supporting small business (while they are still small) could definitely be considered an act of kindness towards small business.
When you enroll in a debt settlement program, you stop paying your credit cards directly and start making deposits into a dedicated savings account instead. The missed payments get reported to the credit bureaus, and your score declines.
A local company has roots in the community. They have a reputation to protect with their neighbors. You can physically walk into their office if something goes wrong. That accountability means something.
This is a question we sometimes receive. Although it might sound strange, there isn’t always any rhyme or reason to why creditors give the deals they give. Sometimes there is a reason, but other times there simply isn’t. If accounts aren’t scrubbed they are typically settled on a case by case basis and each and every case can be different from the next.
The question of why people accumulate so much credit card debt deserves a more honest answer than what most financial websites give you. The standard explanations — overspending, lack of discipline, living beyond your means — are not wrong, but they are incomplete.
All kinds of different myths run amuck in the debt relief industry. Some of them are founded on thin air and some have some substance behind them. It's important to understand what's factual and what's not. Here's our verdict on the myths within the debt relief space.
Buy Now Pay Later lines of credit have become popular for quite a few different reasons. The biggest reason people are attracted to BNPLs is that they usually incentivize purchases and don’t charge any interest. If you offer consumers a new trending service that allows them to buy goods or services with no interest, a lot of people are going to take that offer.
Debt relief as an option may have more negative associated credit impacts but it also provides more savings than a loan does. They both help consumers by providing one consolidated monthly payment. Loans are mostly for the purpose of saving consumers money on interest payments.
When we take the time to get accustomed with our feelings, we can see that debt does in fact impact our emotional state and well-being. It’s known to give people depression and whole host of other emotional states that can compound the negative effects and make us push our debt to the side.
