Face it - Getting into serious debt took a long time. So it makes sense that getting out of debt will take a lot of time… and work as well. In order to help ensure you succeed, you’ll need a plan. You need a get-out-of-debt plan that has been proven over and over again. The Debt Snowball is the simplest, most direct way to get out of debt. And using a Debt Snowball Calculator is the easiest way to build and keep up with your debt snowball plan. Here’s how the Debt Snowball works. Find an extra amount of money from your budget to start the debt snowball – $100 - $200 is great. But even $10, $20, or any amount you can squeeze from your budget every month will do.
Then, list all your bills from the smallest to the largest. Include interest rates and minimum payments. Make the minimum payments on all your bills except the smallest one. Attack that bill with a vengeance. Make the minimum payment plus whatever extra amount you can squeeze from your budget. Your goal is to use the Debt Snowball to pay off that first, smallest bill as quickly as you can. Once you pay it off, you’ll be amazed at the sense of accomplishment and the feeling of control you’ll have. You'll realize - You can do this! The Debt Snowball can get you out of debt!
When that first bill is paid off, it’s time to let the debt snowball roll over the second bill on the list. Here’s what you do - Add the money you were paying on the first bill - its minimum payment and the extra amount from your budget - to the minimum payment of that second bill and attack it until it's paid off. It’ll happen much sooner than you might think.
When the second bill is paid off you add all the money you were paying on it – its monthly payment, the minimum payment from the first bill and the extra money from your budget - to the debt snowball and let it roll over the third debt. Then, as bills are paid off, you keep moving from one to the next, letting the debt snowball grow until it barrels through all your debt. Once all your bills are paid off, you’ll find yourself in a place not many people get to these days. You’ll be free. Debt-free thanks to the Debt Snowball.
One of the best plans to get out of debt is found on the Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball Worksheet from Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University at daveramsey.com. It is powerful, and just can't be beat. The only thing that could make it better would be to make it easier to use. So, that is what we did. We added the Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball Worksheet to our Budget Toolbox – a set of advanced budgeting worksheets based on the Dave Ramsey Budget Worksheets.
Here’s how the Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball worksheet works in the eBudgetLink Budget Toolbox. After you open the Budget Toolbox click on the Debt Killer button. Then enter today’s date and information about all your debts starting with the smallest up to the largest. The budget planner worksheet will keep track of all you snowball payments, the dates you will pay off each debt and the exact date you will get out of debt if you follow the debt snowball plan. Changes are easy. The budget worksheet does all the work and will not let you make a mistake.
The Dave Ramsey Debt Snowball worksheet is available as part of the Budget Toolbox available at eBudgetLink.com, and is the best tool available to help you become debt-free. The Budget Toolbox is an easy to use powerful household budget worksheet based on the budgeting worksheets from Dave Ramsey Financial Peace University. Click over to eBudgetLink.com to get your copy today.