Page 33 - Book1E
P. 33
CHAPTER 5
Too Much Credit
Like many of the trouble areas in life, it can be hard to see that you need help with managing debt until it is too late. You might wake up one day to find you have bills you can’t pay on time, shut-off notices arriving from the utility company, and the mortgage lender threatening foreclosure. Sleeping at night gets more and more difficult.
There are warning signs on the road to financial trouble. If you pay atten- tion to these signs and get help from a credit counselor, you can get things under control before you are forced into bankruptcy.
Here are some of the signs you should watch for:
• Debt is making it hard to concentrate at work.
• You have low self-esteem.
• Your home life is unhappy because you worry about debt.
• You find yourself giving false information or withholding information when trying to be approved for credit.
• You make commitments to creditors you know you are unable to keep so they’ll stop calling you.
• You’re afraid your family, spouse, or employer will find out how much debt you are in.
• You borrow regardless of the interest rate at a quick-cash store because “you just need the money.”
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