Product Description

If you’re trying to kick the “Buy Now/Pay Later” habit and get your spiraling debt under control, you need Managing Debt For Dummies now! This practical, commonsense guide provides straightforward strategies for coping with every kind of secured and unsecured debt, including, personal loans, car loans, mortgages, home equity loans, lines of credit, credit cards, finance company loans, and student loans. You’ll find out how easy it is to:

• Distinguish between good and bad debt
• Go on a “debt diet” to get back into financial shape
• Start a filing system to track debt and protect life after debt
• Adopt a smart spending regimen
• Increase your income
• Consolidate your debt
• Decide which bills to pay when you can’t pay them all
• Use credit cards responsibly

You can still live well while slashing spending on groceries, clothing, and entertainment. Find out how in Managing Debt for Dummies.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53950 in Books
• Published on: 2007-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 312 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780470084861
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• Click here to view our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices

From the Back Cover
Tips on spending less and getting more for your money

Manage your money wisely, stop accumulating debt, and start paying it off today!

Are you carrying too much debt? Relax! This practical guide gives you simple, effective methods for paying off your bills as quickly as possible and getting your finances back on track. You'll find proven strategies for slashing spending, consolidating debts, dealing with collectors, handling high-risk debt such as a mortgage or car loan, and avoiding future debt problems.

"Managing Debt For Dummies arms consumers with all of the tools and information they need to pay down their debts. It's an essential guide for anyone with money troubles."
—Richard Alderman, Director of the Center for Consumer Law, Associate Dean, University of Houston Law School

Discover how to

• Create a debt-busting budget
• Improve your spending habits
• Use credit cards responsibly
• Negotiate with creditors
• Manage past-due debt
• Rebuild your credit history

About the Author
John Ventura: John is a best-selling author and a nationally boardcertified bankruptcy attorney. He is also an adjunct professor at the University of Houston Law School and the director of the Texas Consumer Complaint Center at the Law School.
As a young boy, John dreamed of becoming a Catholic priest so he could help everyday people, and he spent his high school years in a Catholic seminary. After graduating, however, John decided to achieve his dream by combining journalism with the law. Therefore, he earned an undergraduate degree in journalism and a law degree from the University of Houston Law School. Later, he and a partner established a law firm in Texas, building it into one of the most successful consumer bankruptcy firms in the state. He subsequently began a successful consumer law firm in South Texas.
Today, as Director of the Texas Consumer Complaint Center, he supervises law students as they help consumers with their legal problems. He is also a regular speaker at law conferences around the country and serves on the Bankruptcy Council for the Texas Bar Association.
John is the author of 13 books on consumer and small business legal matters, including Law For Dummies, 2nd edition; The Everyday Law Kit For Dummies; Divorce For Dummies, 2nd edition; and Good Advice for a Bad Economy (Berkeley Books). John has been interviewed about consumer money matters by numerous national media including CNN, NBC, NPR, Bloomberg Television & Radio, The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Newsweek, Kiplinger’s Personal Finance, Money, Inc. Martha Stewart’s Living, Bottomline, Entrepreneur, Bankrate.com, CBSMarketWatch.com, and MSNMoney.com. In addition, his comments and advice have appeared in major newspapers around the country, and he has been a frequent guest on local radio programs.

Mary Reed: Mary Reed is a personal finance writer who has coauthored or ghostwritten numerous books on topics related to consumer money matters and legal rights. The books she has coauthored with John Ventura include The Everyday Law Kit for Dummies, Divorce For Dummies, and Good Advice for a Bad Economy (Berkeley Books). Mary has also written for the magazines Good Housekeeping, Home Office Computing, and Small Business Computing, and she has ghostwritten numerous articles that have appeared in national and local publications.
Mary is also the owner of Mary Reed Public Relations (MR•PR), an Austin, Texas-based firm that provides public relations services to a wide variety of clients, including authors, publishers, attorneys, financial planners, healthcare professionals, retailers, hotels, restaurants, and nonprofits.
Prior to starting her public relations business and writing career 20 years ago, she was vice president of marketing for a national market research firm, marketing director for a women’s healthcare organization, and public relations manager for Texas Monthly, a national award-winning magazine. She received her MBA from Boston University and her BA from Trinity University in Washington, DC.
In her free time, Mary serves on the board of a community development corporation in her neighborhood. She also enjoys long morning bike rides, road trips with her husband, gardening, working her way through the stack of books by her bed, taking care of her six cats, and spending time with her family and many friends.

Customer Reviews

The light at the end of the tunnel!
Not knowing where to start untangling the mess I'd made for myself and way too embarrassed, even ashamed, to ask for help kept me living in vagueness, not ever adding up the numbers. Managing Debt for Dummies made it safe to come out from under the covers and look at my financial situation. Ventura and Reed not only have a friendly, non-judgmental tone to their advice, they break the road to solvency down into manageable pieces and guide us forward step by step. It most reminds me of the feeling I had as my dad ran alongside my bike the first rides after removing the training wheels. The fear is still there, but knowing he's there to guide me, I'm able to take the risk, all the time feeling an eminent sense of independence.

Excellent current information to help millions struggling with debt
I've been a fan of John Ventura and Mary Reed's books for some time, mainly because they are accurate, straightforward and actionable. Managing Debt for Dummies is no exception. It covers everything from basic budgeting to how to avoid eviction. I've been in the consumer education field for a long time now and I can attest that the strategies and resources listed are reliable and useful.

The chapter on Managing Your Past-Due Mortgage is going to be especially relevant as billions of dollars in adjustable rate mortgages begin to reset. Likewise, I know a lot of people are having trouble paying back student loans, and the information there is also clear and straightforward.

Overall, this book is coming out at the right time, and I have no doubt many, many people are going to find it indispensible.

Managing Debt for Dummies
This book gives you everything you need to know about getting your finances in order and gives you a plan of action. The information is very practical and helpful for a variety of issues and situations. If you are in debt, this is a must read.