Five Surefire ways
to go Bankrupt
We have always strived to share
numerous ways to maintain a balanced financial lifestyle and avoid excessive
debt. However, on a whim we wondered how we could advise someone who wanted to
go head-over-heels into a debt induced spiral and came up with the five
surefire ways to ensure financial irresponsibility and strife:
Buy too big of a home - Your
home is one of the greatest ways to spend in excess of your income. Many
people today are purchasing way more home than they can afford for the sake of
prestige and position in the community. With the popular interest-only loans
today you are able to afford more house than you will ever be able to pay for.
Also, with a bigger, more expensive home comes greater responsibility:
insurance, lawn care, maintenance, possibly home association dues, and
utilities.
Buy too much of a car -
Okay, you're a parent with two kids. You need the biggest SUV in the
pre-school pickup line. You deserve to ride high above your neighbors. Heck,
just knowing that you could 4-wheel drive over their little stumpy car and
crush them and their my-kid-is-on-the-honor-roll bumper sticker is worth the
extra $50,000 on the price tag, isn't it? Also, it comes with the nifty 75
gallon gas tank and gets 4 miles to the gallon. Not to mention the insurance
and the fact that you have to wait in line with semi trucks to get it washed.
Go hog wild with your credit
cards - It's not like you're really spending money. I mean, come on, you
don't even have to pay for the stuff. For a few bucks every month you can buy
a new stereo, wardrobe, & funky rims for your over-priced behemoth SUV. And,
with paying 20% in interest on your $20,000 limit every month you'll be sure
to take care of any kind of extra cash that you may have had lying around.
Impulse shopping - Even
though this is now considered a disease in some circles you too can still use
this excuse to spend money that you had set aside to pay your kids allowance.
Having a bad day? Go buy something! Having a good day? Go buy something!
There's a sale going on? Heck, better go buy something while its a bargain,
you may need it later. If you have extra time to kill there is no better way
to spend it than to pace through the mall. Something just may catch your eye
that you think that you want and desperately need.
Don't Save - Finally, if you
are truly serious about wanting to go bankrupt don't ever, EVER, save any
money for emergencies. By putting money into savings you are assuring that you
will be able to pay for auto repairs that you weren't expecting, pay for
doctor bills for emergency treatment, and be able to survive in case of a job
layoff.
