Last updated May. 25, 2023 by Charles Zemub

live debt free:15 money hacks to get you out of financial trouble

Do you know that you can live debt-free? If you continue to live in debt, you can escape your financial problems by deploying a creative approach toward gaining financial freedom.

However, you must be smart enough to pay off your debt and have peace of mind. Moreover, if you live in some countries, you may find it difficult to escape debt.

Whether you have accumulated student debt, medical debt, or other types of debt, there are simple money hacks that enable you to get out of financial trouble.

So how can you live debt-free? In this article, you will see 15 money hacks to get you out of financial trouble.

How can you get out of financial trouble?

Financial troubles have broken homes, left some homeless, and stopped others from realizing their goals. But, no matter the devastating challenge associated with financial problems, you can always make the smart move that will get you out of debt.

So how can you get out of financial trouble? The following tips will enable you to live debt-free and attain financial freedom.

Develop a good relationship with money.

When you have a poor relationship with money, you will never experience financial freedom. Your chances of escaping debt will be limited, and your financial situation may worsen with time.

Developing a good relationship comes with a lot of tasks. First, you have to figure out what causes your terrible relationship with money in the first place. Then, when you clearly understand your setbacks, you can correct them and take a bold step toward gaining financial freedom.

Review your financial records.

You may become a debtor when you keep poor financial records of your income and expenses. Instead, being accountable for every extra payment you make daily would be best.

Keeping a good account of your financial records will enable you to understand your financial mistakes. In addition, you can dig up possible solutions from your analysis.

Be accountable for your lifestyle.

If you prefer living a lavish lifestyle, you may find it challenging to escape debt. However, almost everyone that is debt-free is living within their income. By standard, your daily expenses are not supposed to supersede your income.

However, if you have other sources of income, you should be bold enough to adjust your daily expenses to suit your new income. Note that having multiple income sources is not a guarantee of becoming debt-free. Some people living in heavy debt also have numerous income sources.

But they still find themselves stuck in debt. If you want to escape debts, endeavor to limit your lifestyle and be accountable for every dime you spend.

Stay away from the buy now and pay later option.

Most business owners will attract you with the buy now and pay later option. You may find this offer to be great in the first place. But before accepting the offer, remember that you are also walking into debt.

Some of these buy now and pay later options usually have other policies that may not be revealed initially.

But with time, you will realize the impact of your investment choice. If you don’t have enough money to purchase an item, learn to exercise patience until you are buoyant enough to make the big move.

Learn patience with money.

Desperation has led millions of people into debt. They fail to understand how to exercise patience with money. If you start a high-paying job today, you may think your financial situation has changed.

However, you may move deeper into debt if you are not patient enough to think about investment and how to grow your financial goals. For example, if you received a million dollars today from a project. It would be best if you considered how to use this money to generate other sources of income.

But if you wait for the money on cars, fashions, and luxury, the million dollars will vanish before you realize it. So as you think of living a stylish lifestyle with your newly acquired wealth, find a way to focus on escaping debt in the future.

Pay more often with cash.

Whenever you go to groceries or any environment where you know you may spend some money, always remember to go with cash. Paying with cash will limit your spending habit and keep you in control.

Some people that prefer paying with their credit cards may be inspired to buy more than they require. You will become more responsible in controlling your spending habits. Buying stuff with cash will give you this power of control.

Learn to compare prices.

Whether you are buying online or offline, you should develop the habit of comparing prices before completing a purchase. Sometimes, the store owner may be motivated to profit from you.

Hence, they will increase the price of items listed in the store, hoping you will purchase without comparing prices with other stores.

When you are smart enough to compare prices, you can always buy items cheaper and save extra money. You may be wondering how this can help you to escape debts.

Since you cannot do without your basic needs, you must purchase regularly to meet your daily needs.

As you continue to purchase without comparing prices, you may lose out without realizing it. If you want to remain on the safer side, make an effort to buy goods cheaper from a particular store.

You don’t need to purchase goods and services from a store. However, if their prices do not match your budget, check such products in alternative stores and complete your purchase while considering the quality.

Good Read: 13 Reasons to track your expenses and control your spending

15 Money Hacks To Get You Out Of Financial Trouble

You must also understand the best money hacks that guarantee financial freedom since you have learned how to escape debts and live without financial worries.

When you want to get out of financial trouble, you must make a lot of considerations to actualize success in the end. So what are the best hacks to choose from? Use the following 15 money hacks to get you out of financial trouble.

Use the 50/30/20 rules wisely.

This rule demands that you keep aside 50 percent of your regular income for your basic needs, 30 percent specifically for your wants, and save the remaining 20 percent. If you owe a debt, the rule allows you to use this remaining 20 percent to clear your debt.

Moreover, it is not wise to focus on saving when you have an outstanding debt to clear. Millions of people that deployed this rule carefully have escaped financial worries and enjoy greater financial freedom.

However, it may appear challenging if you have several bills to clear when your regular income is small. But no matter your income ratio, you should devote your strength to trying out this routine.

If you cannot obey the 50/30/20 rule, consider adjusting yours to the 60/30/10 rule. If you play by this rule for the long term, you will see yourself winning financially.

Plan out your Budget

One of the financial mistakes people often make is a lack of ability to plan out their budget. Without a good budget, you will spend carelessly on everything that comes your way. So before any dollar enters your hand, you should have a specific budget.

Planning out your budget can be complicated, especially if you don’t know how to manage money. Some people who spend without planning a budget always use their money on irrelevant things.

So how can you make a good budget? Begin by writing down your financial plans. After that, analyze your income source and determine how to merge them. Some situations may come in to affect your initial budget plans.

But to avoid financial trouble, you must stick to your budget plans and bring your budgeting to life.

Make Plans for Emergency Funds

Emergencies can lead you into serious debt. Unfortunately, most people never realize the power of emergency funds until they find themselves in trouble. Sometimes, you may never plan to connect any debt option.

But due to the devastating situation that may arise at any time, you will be forced into collecting loans to save the day.

So what can lead to Emergencies? Natural disasters, medical issues, and other troubling challenges can cause severe damage to your financial life.

The situation will be worse when you don’t make plans for emergency funds. You cannot depend on your savings to solve emergencies. Experts will tell you that saving without planning for emergency funds is never a good idea.

As no one can predict when emergencies will arise, you must be prepared to take action. For example, you can open a separate bank account to save these funds.

Find a side Hustle

One of the best ways to escape financial trouble is to find a side hustle. There are many side hustles out there that could earn you a fortune. However, you cannot depend on your regular job only while hoping to live debt-free.

However, consider learning the process before earning money from any side hustle. If you begin to work on a side hustle based on what you know, you will always make several mistakes. In addition, no client will likely pay for a poorly executed job.

You must prove your expertise before you can earn from it. Hence, you must invest time, money, and energy to learn a side hustle.

For example, if you want to work as a freelance video creator for clients, you should learn how to edit videos professionally before signing up on any freelancing platform. As you find a side hustle, ensure your main con is unaffected.

Be accountable for your expenses.

You cannot be in debt and continue to spend extravagantly. Your daily expenses must be carefully planned to enable you to determine how to save more money and get off your debt fast.

When you have an outstanding debt to clear, spending without thinking of the future will keep adding fuel to your problem. To maintain a healthy spending lifestyle, endeavor to separate your wants from your needs.

When you spend more money on your wants and less on your needs, your problem will increase with time; even before visiting a grocery, endeavor to write down your list. Of course, only essential items should make it to this list.

However, you can still add a few of your wants to it. As you shop at the store, you should stick to this list. If you continue this lifestyle, you will see how quickly you will get out of debt.

Help yourself with Financial App.

Innovators have created many financial apps to help people track their expenses and budget and meet other financial needs. If you hope to escape your financial troubles, you may consider using some of these Apps to help yourself.

• ATO: ATO is a tool app that provides tax-related offers for everyone needing such a service. You can use this app effectively to handle several tasks-related issues and more.
• Splitwise: Splitwise is an app with an easy-to-use interface. With the features of this app, you can monitor payments and split bills with friends.

There are hundreds of financial apps to check out. However, before using anyone to meet your financial needs, read the platform’s terms and conditions to ensure you make the right decision.

Try Saving Money on Bills

Saving money can elevate you towards attaining financial freedom with time. Therefore, you should find a way to save more money on every bill you pay. Remember that there are unique tactics you can deploy and save money on your accounts.

Since your bills should be added as your essential needs, saving money on this can help you increase funds going to your savings or servicing your debt. In most places, electricity, mobile phone plans, insurance, and other bills can eat deep into your income.

But if you understand the policies surrounding these bills, you can quickly figure out how to save and escape financial trouble.

Automate your savings

Saving money can save you on rainy days. Unfortunately, most people in heavy debt care less about protection. When they find themselves in huge debt, they become helpless in escaping it.

Even if you are servicing a debt already, it shouldn’t stop you from saving money. Instead, finance experts have revealed that automating your savings is the best way to save money.

You can inform your bank beforehand to remove a certain percentage and keep it aside from you.

You can also consider accepting your employer’s retirement schemes and investing a certain percentage of your income there. No matter the option, your primary goal should rely on keeping a certain portion of your monthly payment away to save you on rainy days.

Think of avoiding Debt Consolidation.

When you consolidate your debts, you may worsen your financial situation without realizing it. So why should you avoid consolidating your loans? Debt consolidation is designed to keep you in debt for a longer period.

Debt consolidation may hurt your credit score and limit your chances of saving more money. In addition, when you cannot save, you may find it challenging to think about investment in the future.

Use less of your Credit Card.

The internet has pushed more people into serious debt. Once you find yourself on any online marketplace, you will buy several goods, including items you may not even need for the long term.

If you fail to understand various ways to manage your credit card usage, you will find it difficult to escape the debt culture. Becoming a debtor should give you serious concern. Hence, learn how to use less of your credit card.

This habit will enable you to get rid of the debt culture and set you on the track to escaping financial worries.

Avoid filing for bankruptcy.

When you find yourself in real financial trouble, you may think filing for bankruptcy is the only option to save the day. However, filing for bankruptcy comes with its disadvantages. Therefore, you should slow down and revisit your footsteps.

When you rush to conclude on taking a step, you may have yourself to blame in the end. However, remember that there is always light at the end of a dark tunnel. When there is hope, you will work towards success with time.

Find a possible means to increase your sources of income. This act will boost your income and solve some of your elementary financial troubles.

If you have confidence, you can change your financial situation within a few years with workable solutions.

Speak to a financial advisor.

You may be experiencing an uphill financial battle within yourself. However, you may be the actual cause of your problem. Since no one knows it all, you may consider speaking to a financial expert to see how you can rewrite your story for good.

Some genuine advice that you will get from financial advisors will guide you on the path of escaping your financial troubles.

Remember that you must apply the advice accordingly to change your story. In addition, some financial advisors may charge you a fee before listening to your complaints.

If you have the money, you should be motivated to pay the consultation fee as it is worth it. However, when you are not buoyant enough to afford the paid services, you can listen to financial experts on YouTube, Tiktok, and other video-passed platforms.

Sell Your Car

If you are servicing debt, you may consider selling your car to reduce bills and increase your chances of getting out of debt fast. The average monthly car bill is estimated at $577 in most places. Imagine where you are saving this amount monthly.

You can reach a great milestone by getting out of Financial trouble. However, if you have a strong need for the car, you may consider keeping it or monetizing it through other means. Turo is a great app that pays you to label your car.

You can also rent your car on the platform. In addition, you can register with Uber and earn extra money driving people around your neighborhood.

Cut the rate at which you eat outside.

You may never know how much you spend at the restaurant. Some people have developed a habit of eating outside at all times. If you hope to get out of debt, you must cut tides by visiting restaurants for meals.

Instead of eating outdoors, cook food at home and take it out. However, when you cannot escape eating outside, you should go for affordable meals.

Stand strong on your financial rules.

The primary reason people find themselves in debt is a lack of zeal to maintain their stand on money. If you are devoted to accomplishing a financial goal, you should work extra hard to realize your vision.

If you learn how to handle distractions, your chances of actualizing your big dreams will likely increase. Once you are determined to follow any path, ensure you actualize success without distracting yourself.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this article up to this length. Your ability to read shows that you are determined to escape financial troubles.

Whenever your dreams and aspirations rely on escaping debt, you can deploy the 15 money hacks to get you out of the financial troubles listed above.