Paying off as much of your debt as you can is the one biggest piece of advice we can give to our fellow preppers. The economy could implode any day. So we’ve put together this easy to follow guide to help you go debt free in 2019.
“Most times people take on debt because of normal things, job loss, kid in hockey, a reno gone wrong,” investment manager Shannon Lee Simmons told CTV’s Your Morning. “It’s not because of Gucci purses.” Paying off the balance is a suggested way to prepare for any potential economic downturn too. You won’t be hassled by debt collectors or have your car repossessed because you missed payments.
https://www.shtfplan.com/headline-news/how-to-best-prepare-yourself-for-the-coming-financial-crisis_06282018
Global public (government) debts and private debts are at all time (and terrifying) highs. This historic debt is really at the core of most people’s economic decline. Granted, not all debts are incurred through overspending or buying a car out of your price range but if you want to be prepared for any downturn in the very volatile economy we all are living in, the best bet you’ve got is to go debt free.
Without extreme debt conditions, economic downturns cannot be created (or at least sustained for long periods of time). According to the amount of debt weighing down a system, banking institutions can predict the outcomes of certain actions and also influence certain end results. For example, if the Fed was interested in conjuring a debt-based bubble, a classic strategy would be to set interest rates artificially low for far too long. Conversely, raising interest rates into economic weakness is a strategy that can be employed in order to collapse a bubble. This is what launched the Great Depression, it is what ignited the crash of 2008, and it is what’s going on today.
The massive debt burden makes recovery difficult, if not impossible, and thus the system becomes increasingly dependent on the banking elites to resolve the problem. –Birch Gold Group
According to Credit Cards.com, the non-housing debt was up to $3.95 trillion as of Q3 of 2018 as aggregate household debt balances increased for the 17th consecutive quarter, according to Federal Reserve data. Not only that, but the Fed raised interest rates a number of times in 2018, making servicing those debts a little harder. As of September 2018, Americans carried $1.041 trillion in revolving debt, much of which is made up of credit card debt.
According to Leslie H. Tayne, a financial debt resolution attorney and author of “Life & Debt,” there are several reasons why even the best-intentioned financial goals are never achieved. Not only is paying off debt not as easy as it seems but “old habits die hard,” she says. You must be willing to make the necessary changes to your financial behavior for the long haul if you expect to have any success whatsoever. That usually involves using a monthly budget, using debit or cash instead of credit or simply telling yourself “no” more often. Spending habits need to be altered dramatically in many cases. Some research has noted that it could take 66 days for a new habit to form, and many don’t have the discipline or desire to do something difficult for quite so long.
But if you’re looking at a pile of bills, most of which are debt, 66 days, or just over two months, could change your life. Many financial experts, such as Dave Ramsey, suggest removing any temptation by cutting up your credit cards, and some may even need to cancel the cards with the company to stop spending. After you have removed this small obstacle, save $1000 in an emergency fund then begin to pay off your debt starting with the smallest. Once that debt has been paid, apply the money you were using to pay it off to the next smallest debt and tackle that one until it is gone. Repeat this until you become debt free. This is known as the “debt snowball” and has been shown to be more psychologically effective than paying off debts with higher interest first.
Begin paying off your debt now if you haven’t already begun. The New Year is sure to bring many changes both good and bad, and it is always better to be more prepared than surprised and financially ruined in an economic bloodbath. The sobering truth is that without massive amounts of debt, any interest rate hike or trade war will have a minimal (and maybe no) effect on the average American.
If you have any substantial debt it is probably already too late to become debt free.
In the spirit of preparedness, if you have a lot of debt just prepare to loose everything you currently have and become a pauper and probably someone’s slave as well.
If you don’t have much debt, or more than you can easily pay off using current financial assets, try to put more away to take advantage of all the opportunities that will being presented to you by those who were stupid enough to be heavily in debt and loose all they have.
No, pay yourself first. Save money. Buy silver and gold. If you lose everything else, at least you have something to fall back on.
As defaulters don’t have any legal claim to any valuable property, whatsoever, savvy people would best position themselves in “Ambrosia” kind-of businesses, in which disadvantaged people pay you, first.
Any low-morale, n!ggery venue.
If I am a rightist troll, and not a liberal, it’s because I am intellectually-honest about that.
“probably someone’s slave as well”
If you have debt you are already someone’s slave. There is NO PROBABLY about it.
Anonymous, I’m already debt-free and stay that way. I can buy more preps at one time than anyone who is in debt so I can prepare faster than a lot of other people. There’s a definite advantage to being debt-free. All extra money I have goes toward prepping and I refuse to sacrifice that for anything.
@DR,
Happy New Year to you, good to know you’re still lurking around out there.
I totally agree with what you’ve said. I even took a part time job at 16 hours a week to further the preps. Additional peace of mind.
Wilson, Happy New Year and good to hear from you.
same here TDR. Now, if they’d only quit voting in raises to all the worthless local/county services and officials and dump the damned property taxes…. I’ve never gotten it. I paid off my land and house. Deed free and clear. No credit cards, no vehicle loans, no debt at all. Yet, each year I’m taxed again on property I’ve already paid for. For what? So the cops can come mop up after I bleed out, the fire crew to show up in time to toast marshmallows, for the public schools to indoctrinate my grand-kids into believing I’m wrong for believing in the Constitution and being a supporter of the Bill of Rights, for roads that either are falling apart or they shut down just as tourist season hits? Screw this.
Heartless, agreed. The BOL property and the families’ properties are also paid off and have deeds free and clear. We also get property tax bills every year so we know the feeling.
Been debt free since 2004. Life sure is nice when you don’t have to kill yourself to live! Don’t like my old truck.. FU, Don’t like my flip phone…FU… I am not trying to impress the jonses but I do because they can never have what I do lol.
Genius, agreed. I don’t even try to catch up to the Joneses and don’t even give a shit what they have, LOL.
Am I wrong about this but isn’t credit card debt unsecured? Meaning if there is a real crash of the banks and economy that banks are going kaput anyway. They may be able to harass you but not do anything that really matters if the ShHTF.
I am not saying don’t pay your bills but I really don’t think unsecured debt is going to be your biggest problem. That great credit score is not going to mean anything anyway.
Now secured debt that you have signed your house and property away on is a TOTALLY different thing. YES, the banks and financial institutions are VERY likely to kick you to the curb and throw you out for it.
Simply getting a judgment against you allows them to seize and sell anything or everything you have in order to cover the amount of the judgment plus all collection costs. The same as it would work for you if you got a judgment against someone owing you money and not paying it.
Get usecured cards and buy gold and silver. There ya go.
My mortgage is paid off, I own my land, my truck, my car and pretty much everything I have today. I have a solid year worth of preps, and my own source of clean water and solar electricity.
I have 3 high credit limit credit cards. I plan to load them up if the economy falls apart, mostly, because I can and there will be so many people in so much debt, no one will have to repay anything.
“…there will be so many people in so much debt, no one will have to repay anything.” That could be one scenario. Look at who is holding the debt. I think the Red Chinese government will end up owning the Failed Socialist States Of Amerika. They will do the “Red Dawn” thing and take what they can. A lot of us will end up culled. I hope I am wrong.
Throw all the undesirables to the front line….. the chinese will die laughing!
If it is going to crash, run up that debt for tangible goods you can use after the crash. Don’t pay the banks and bankers one thin dime.
I think you’re right. But I also think that the very first thing banks would do is halt all new credit charges and even limit withdrawals on EBT cards such that it would be impossible to wait to make last minute purchases.
In the past, I suggested that four guys go in a vehicle with cash and make a last minute run. Even this is a dangerous volatile situation as 99% will be trying pay with plastic. These guys would be the last to pay for anything and likely rioting would then occur.
In the Great Depression, sharecroppers got thrown off the land. That happened in Ireland as well in 1847. In the former, people drove aimlessly looking for work with many doing migrant work in California. In the latter, people froze to death, and some Protestants held tent revivals and fed Catholics soup. To this day, they talk about “taking the soup” still angry 150+ years later.
With untold millions unable to pay their loans, there are not any reasonable ways to try to collect the debt without causing revolts. And of course LEOs wouldn’t work without pay.
I think you’re right. But I also think that the very first thing banks would do is halt all new credit charges and even limit withdrawals on EBT cards such that it would be impossible to wait to make last minute purchases.
In the past, I suggested that four guys go in a vehicle with cash and make a last minute run. Even this is a dangerous volatile situation as 99% will be trying pay with plastic. These guys would be the last to pay for anything and likely rioting would then occur.
In the Great Depression, sharecroppers got thrown off the land. That happened in Ireland as well in 1847. In the former, people drove aimlessly looking for work with many doing migrant work in California. In the latter, people froze to death, and some held tent revivals and fed the impoverished soup. To this day, they talk about “taking the soup” still angry 150+ years later.
With untold millions unable to pay their loans, there are not any reasonable ways to try to collect the debt without causing revolts. And of course LEOs wouldn’t work without pay.
I think you’re right. But I also think that the very first thing banks would do is halt all new credit charges and even limit withdrawals on EBT cards such that it would be impossible to wait to make last minute purchases.
In the past, I suggested that four guys go in a vehicle with cash and make a last minute run. Even this is a dangerous volatile situation as 99% will be trying pay with plastic. These guys would be the last to pay for anything and likely rioting would then occur.
With untold millions unable to pay their loans, there are not any reasonable ways to try to collect the debt without causing revolts. And of course LEOs wouldn’t work without pay.
I think you’re right. But I also think that the very first thing banks would do is halt all new credit charges and even limit withdrawals on EBT cards such that it would be impossible to wait to make last minute purchases.
In the past, I suggested that four guys go in a vehicle with cash and make a last minute run. The plastic won’t work 14 days before the crash.
With untold millions unable to pay their loans, there are not any reasonable ways to try to collect the debt without causing revolts. And of course LEOs wouldn’t work without pay.
I think you’re right. But I also think that the very first thing banks would do is halt all new credit charges and even limit withdrawals on EBT cards such that it would be impossible to wait to make last minute purchases.
In the past, I suggested that four guys go in a vehicle with cash and make a last minute run. The plastic won’t work 14 days before the crash.
Black 47 (The Irish Potato Famine in 1847) and The Grapes of Wrath (The Great Depression plus Dustbowl plus sharecroppers thrown off the land) both show what happened in history.
This only works if debt collectors have enforcers. I doubt they will.
Hoovervilles and the Bonus Army is a forgotten chapter in American history. Displaced homeless people found some unclaimed land, often on the edge of cities, and built shacks out of scrap and dug holes supported by strong heavy branches, and thus had a way to get out of the wet and cold.Hobo stoves were a common way to cook.
Soldiers from WW1 had been promised a bonus but it didn’t look like they would get it, so they marched on Washington, and though peaceful and support from some top brass, they were ruthlessly fired up with many injured and some died.
You would expect both to occur.
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Marantha, your ‘cryptic’ post…. you referring to the Hooverville or the Bonus Army videos/pdfs?
Maranatha, I had some relatives who were members of the Bonus Army and 2 of them died in that atrocity. And the action was carried out by DOUGLAS MACARTHUR, DWIGHT D EISENHOWER, OMAR N. BRADLEY, AND GEORGE S. PATTON. All four of those were later HEROS in WW2. Didn’t take long for everyone to forget the crimes they committed against those vets and their families.
Yeah. Disqus is acting squirrelly on posting comments. If you put in your email, it posts most comments but sometimes even the most innocent comments kick out like the anonymous ones above that got repeated over and over. I was trying to figure out what was the annoying word that it was censoring. Sorry about that.
Sometimes posting an innocent youtube video is just about impossible with Disqus.
Clearly, Mac has no idea how the monetary system works. The banks “loan” nothing. Hint: does a promissory note have any value before the “borrower” signs it?
Fortunately our only debts are for a home repair and a car. Interest on both is 0%. The former will be paid off in the fall and the latter in summer 2020.
Get this, for Christmas 2018, over 50% of peep had yet to pay off their 2017 Christmas debts.
Off topic,
How many have seen the new Capital One Bank TV ads depicting ‘a new swank bank’, kiosk style, no lines, refreshments, etc., (and no cash)? The millennials just don’t get it, do they? Aside from losing their independence, the banks make money on every plastic transaction. This should be a line for many of us.
So, why does getting rid of debt make sense if the dollar goes to hell in a handbasket? Any debts owed now are reduced, no?