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Short of money? Debt consolidation can help

The progress of many families means that over time extra children, business expansion or changing homes and vehicles leads to additional term loans and hire purchases being added to the family housing debt without a comprehensive plan for paying it back.

Debt consolidation can actually reduce monthly outgoings leaving more funds available to live on.  If your own bank does not co-operate other banks may assist with refinancing incentives.

Instead of borrowing additional funds on hire purchases to replace your car, speak to your bank.  Hire purchase repayments are often spread over 3 to 5 years and will seriously impact on the family’s available cash.  Credit card debt is easy to spend for weddings, holidays, children’s braces etc, but high credit card costs apply and create repayment problems.  Personal loans and overdrafts likewise are too easy to max out leaving few options for the borrowers and can sometimes result in needing to sell the family home.

In periods of high house inflation, a lifeline is available by consolidating debt.  To be effective you must do this only once, combining credit card, HP and personal loans with your house mortgage to pay it all back at first mortgage interest rates over a reasonable repayment period.  The resulting drop in your monthly payments might surprise you.

For more information on how debt consolidation can help you, contact one of our property lawyers, Julia Trautvetter or Carolyn Faulknor on 06 835 3069.