Top New Year Resolutions!

Ok - I had a request to go over some of the top New Year Resolutions that we have either seen online or that people have been talking about.  Every year you typically will find the usualls; stop smoking, weight loss, get fit, etc....  We picked a few to talk about today and to give you some resources so you can get more info.

1.   Getting an Education:  Obama's Education Stimulus Package was implemented to encourage (mostly moms) to go back to school so they could either finish a degree, or earn one to better their job status.  As with other government programs, most of the people that I have discussed this with stated that they didn't qualify or that the process was taking a long time to get done.  Although I would love to see more programs of this nature to help out our citizens, most will never see that help. 

What we would recommend is to do some research into multiple schools that can offer you what you need as far as the courses and costs.  Now, you can either go to individual sites that you are already aware of or you can compare several schools with an online service.  With a service you find the degree programs you want in locations close to home with available scholarships.  These types of sites also offer great ideas on tips for the application process, studying skills and so on.  Several also offer their own blogs so you can connect with other students to ask questions and get help.  Find the help you need for getting back into school with the help of a great online resource such as ScholarshipLink.


2.   Getting Out of Debt:  This is perhaps one of the the biggest topics right now.  Most of us have felt the sting over the course of the last year or so that we never expected to see!  Even people that have done "everything by the book" through their adult lives have lost funds or know someone else who has.  The New Year is always a time to reflect and try to start fresh for the next year.  If you are one who is falling behind in payments, racked up too much debt over the holidays or even looking at the possibility of loosing your home - take a breath and then look at your options!  Panic never helps any situation, and this is no different.

These situations are always tricky because getting the wrong advice can really be bad, but not doing anything can sometimes be worse.  Talk to your creditors and let them know what is going on.  Creditors would rather work with people than to see them go through a bankruptcy because they loose out even more.  Call every single one and let them know you need help before it effects your credit.  You can also look for debt relief programs online to find the best program for your needs.  BE CAREFUL not to "borrow" money to pay off existing bills as many of these advance programs carry a hefty percentage rate!  You might wind up paying more than you would have if you had just called the creditor first.

I hope these short articles were of some help and we will be adding more and more information to the site as we go along on on these subjects, as well as others!