How to Reduce Your Credit Card Debt - Five Helpful Strategies

If you're like many Americans who find themselves further and further ensnared by the credit card debt trap, take heart in knowing that you're not alone, and the road has been traveled before. There is a way out. It may not be quick, or as easy as many of the advertisements will have you believe, but there are proven ways to get you out of this mess you've come to find yourself in. We're going to take a look in the next few segments at five specific ways for reducing credit card debt. These aren't the only ways, but are the most popular and easiest ways you may find to pursue. Let's look at what we'll examine.

Debt Consolidation Loans - Are debt consolidation loans really all they're cracked up to be? What are some the hidden traps and things they don't tell about these kinds of loans? Will you pay more or less? How does this affect your credit scores and long term financial health? We'll look at this type of instrument in Part 1. Is this really an answer or more fuel on the fire?

The Snowball Method of Debt Reduction - This simple, yet powerful method of credit card debt reduction is based on the concept of listing all your debts from smallest dollar amount to largest, and then paying off the smallest first, then applying that payment to the next one on the list. While this requires some discipline, it does work. There are some issues to consider with this method, and we'll look at those in Part 2.

Home Equity Loans or Line Of Credit - These might well be your best bet if you're a homeowner with some decent equity in your home. Even in the midst of a real estate slowdown, it can be easy to tap the equity in your home. There are some potential pitfalls to be aware of, however, and we'll cover these in Part 3 of the series. This step should not be taken willy-nilly though, as your home is usually the single biggest asset you have, and you want to not get in trouble here if you can help it.

Negotiating Better Terms With The Credit Card Companies- This is doable, as the last thing they want to see is you defaulting on all this money you owe them. There are some ways to go about this smartly, however, and we'll discuss this in Part 4.

Debt Settlement Companies - You've seen the ads everywhere, tempting you to let them help you slash your credit card bills by up to 60%, and rid you of this hassle forever! What do you think? Sound good? A little too good? We'll wrap up the series with a look at this practice in part 5.

The good news is you're looking to reduce your credit card debt. Let's just find the best way for you to accomplish this without doing any more damage!