At the core of American’s principles lies the ability for her to adapt to change. [Think industrial revolution.]

And we may just be on the brink of another revolution—a revolution where consumers are acutely aware of the dangers of credit reliance.

A revolution where sensibility rules and consumer gluttony becomes a thing of the past.

A revolution where credit card agencies’ predatory practices fall flat and consumers are protected and looking out for their best interests.

What Could a Consumer Revolution Look Like?

The consumer revolution would focus on each person being actively aware and responsible for their “consumerism” practices. It’s basis simple—people will reduce spending to save money.

For example, people could decide that it makes fiscal sense to carpool to work, thus saving gas and reducing their carbon footprint.

Adults may consider finding roommates or doubling-up with extended family to share living costs.

People may opt out of buying a car and turn to using public transportation (or turn to using that old-school idea of human transportation — walking or riding bikes).

There may also begin a trend of more people working from home to save on transportation costs.

Companies may also prefer people working from home so it saves on overhead and turn to hiring freelancers for projects instead of hiring full-time staff, thus cutting back on benefit expenses.

In the end, the consumer revolution could help American’s retool their spending habits and rebuild their financial futures.

…And it will have appositive effect on the environment—the best a win-win situation we could hope for.

Are you in debt looking for your own revolution ? Check out this information on filing bankruptcy.

It’s no surprise that we’ve gotten into the habit of purchasing items with credit cards.

I mean, we’re bombarded with advertisements trying to convince us that it’s sophisticated to spend credit (“become a silver cardholder and climb the social ladder”) and that we will live the good life if we use credit (“you’ll experience priceless moments because you bought this item”).

The reality is that for decades the credit card agencies have aggressively attacked our way of life to convince us that we should spend, spend, spend—even if we don’t have the savings to back up those purchases.

Just take a look at this recent Chicago Tribune article which shows how aggressively they’re trying to recruit us (more than 445 credit card offers were mailed to a family in one year—including 35 pre-approved offers for their 8 and 10-year old kids[!])

Their tactics are working for them—the more often we can’t pay off our monthly balances, the more interest and late fees they collect. Cha-ching.

You Must Look Out For Your Best Interest

It’s time to stand up to those credit card agencies and say “No, I won’t keep handing you over hundreds or thousands of dollars of my hard-earned money.”

Decide for yourself what’s really best for you, your family and your future.

It takes a little “brain re-training,” however, once you get in the routine of asking yourself whether you can really afford something, it easily becomes a healthy habit.

Credit Card Spending Isn’t All Bad, It’s Just Best in Moderation

I’m certainly not trying to say that we shouldn’t use credit cards—responsible credit card use can boost your credit score and a good credit rating is a necessary part of our financial health—but I am saying that we should retool our spending habits so we can create a solid financial future.

Check out this funny Saturday Night Live Skit about some not-so-ideal spending thought patterns.

–Are high credit card bills keeping you down? Learn about the filing bankruptcy option.

It’s time to start saving more money and slashing your debt!

Try these 10 easy ways to save money and apply that savings to your debt:

1. Consolidate your debt and transfer balances to low-interest accounts. If you have outstanding debts, make sure you are paying the lowest interest rate possible on them by transferring balances to a lower rate account, or if possible, getting a low-interest bank loan instead.
2. Avoid individual serving size packages of food at the grocery store. These cost more and use more packaging for less product. A family of four can save about $2,000 per year in grocery costs by not buying food in individual serving sized packaging.
3. Use Freecycle.org. You may be surprised at things that are free for the asking, right in your neighborhood. Before going out to buy something new, check Freecycle to see if someone might be able to give you a good used one for free.
4. Feed your kids for free. If you are treating your family to a restaurant meal, you might as well go somewhere that will let your kids eat for free. Find local restaurants that offer free food for kids at MyKidsEatFree.com.
5. Listen to your favorite music for free. Instead of paying for music per-download, why not listen for free? Pandora Internet Radio, Spiral Frog and Live365.com offer a wide variety of free music.
6. Don’t pay for directory assistance. You can get free directory assistance by dialing 1-800-FREE-411, 1-800-GOOG-411, or by texting your request to 46645.
7. File your income tax return for free. Go to IRS.gov and click on “free file” on the left. From there you can get software to prepare and file your federal tax returns electronically for free.
8. Save money on prescriptions with DestinationRx. DRx.com shops for the cheapest prescription prices and suggests cheaper generic medications that can be substituted for expensive name-brand drugs.
9. Don’t speed. Driving over 60 mph burns gas faster; for every 5 mph over 60, you’ll lose about 20 cents on each gallon of gas.
10. Install a programmable thermostat and save about $100 per year in energy costs.

Still Having a Tough Time Paying the Bills?

If you’re squeezing the pennies just as hard as you can and still having a tough time making ends meet, filing bankruptcy may be a debt-relief option for you.

Bankruptcy may help you eliminate debt through a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing, or it may help you repay your debts by making one lower monthly payment through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy repayment plan.

Learn about filing bankruptcy by connecting with a bankruptcy lawyer (for free) today.

I’m sorry my lovely, warm and delicious latte friend—but our relationship is over. I’m going back to free decent coffee from the office pot, thank you.

Please don’t be sad. It’s not you—it’s me… I just found out I could save more than $1K this year by ditching you. I have no choice but to part.

Best wishes,

The Debtress
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Times are tough, and the Debtress, like everyone else, is looking for ways to buckle down and save some hard cash.

Check out bankruptcy lawyer Kevin Chern’s guest post below and discover how much you could save by skipping those morning (or afternoon, or evening) lattes…
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The “Spending Diet”: Set Attainable Saving Goals

by Kevin Chern, Bankruptcy Lawyer & President of Total Attorneys

As a bankruptcy lawyer, I’m constantly on the lookout for ways to help my clients save money and get out of debt.

We’re told that to save money we must reduce our expenses (obviously); however, it’s rarely said that we don’t have to take dramatic steps in order to save significant money.

For example, instead of saying “I’m going to move to a $100/month cheaper apartment”, we could instead take action and save more money but cutting our seemingly smaller, day-to-day expenses.

Saving Money the Easy Way: Lose the Latte

Consider this—by forgoing your daily Starbuck’s venti three-shot skinny cinnamon dolce latte, you could save $1,666 between today and December 31, 2009.

Or, if you let yourself splurge on weekends (every spending diet needs some incentive) and ban lattes during the workweek, you could save $1,195.60 by the end of the year.

Just imagine how many bills you could payoff with that kind of cash.

So, please take some time to examine your daily expenses and consider what can you afford to cut–it could be your key to saving money, cutting down those bills and finding real debt relief.

–Kevin Chern
Bankruptcy Lawyer & President of Total Attorneys
Check me out on Twitter!

We have a guest speaker today!

Please welcome Christopher G. Hill, a construction lawyer, who’s here to discuss how building green can really build your savings.

LEED: Good for the Environment and Your Pocketbook

The Debtress was kind enough to allow me the opportunity to present the key money-saving components of LEED/Green building:

LEED uses an integrated project approach to reduce “First Costs” (i.e. initial outlay of money) and “Operating Costs” (costs of maintenance and operation):

Energy Costs

First Cost Savings: Use of LEED-based principles such as alignment along an east-west access, use of natural light and reflective paint colors, and use of energy reflective or absorbent materials requires a lower initial outlay for such things as:

• light bulbs (fewer will be needed with more ambient light)
• HVAC capacity (Less duct work, lower capacity [and cheaper] heat pumps)

Because this initial outlay is lower, the First Costs of a project are reduced by the LEED integrated approach.

Operating Costs:

The lower First Costs above lead to the use of less overall energy and the need for less maintenance.

For example, fewer overall light bulbs mean fewer to replace and lower capacity HVAC means lower maintenance and overall energy costs to run those units.

Water Costs

First Costs: Use of LEED integrated processes leads to less need for irrigation piping and other initial costs.

Operating Costs:

Here is the big savings in water costs.

A recent study showed that LEED based buildings used less than one quarter of the water that a non-LEED based building used.

Clearly, such a reduction results in a much lower operating cost, not to mention the conservation of natural and water treatment resources.

Don’t just take my word for it. Check out the study linked above for more information.

Additionally, please check out these resources for more information:

• www.stopwaste.org
• www.usgbc.org
• www.reallifeleed.com

If you are interested in further construction law discussion from mechanic’s liens to green building, please check out my blog at http://www.constructionlawva.com and join that conversation.

“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we’ve been waiting for. We are the change that we seek.”

~U.S. President, Barack Obama

On this day, January 20, 2009, like many others, I am filled with hope. I hope for the communities of this world, I hope for the people of this nation, I hope for my family and friends.

It’s wonderful to see that the word “hope” has become a real, living verb once again.

We are entering a new time, where hope breeds and where we’re allowed to dream again.

Relating to Hope

Hope is a word that has a different meaning to different people. For me, hope means a chance for improvement and positive change—it’s a feeling that is encouraged in action.

Let’s take this day to reflect on our lives. Let’s breathe hope back into our core and let’s take action to implement that hope.

More Messages of Hope…

“Courage, it would seem, is nothing less than the power to overcome danger, misfortune, fear, injustice, while continuing to affirm inwardly that life with all its sorrows is good; that everything is meaningful even if in a sense beyond our understanding; and that there is always tomorrow.” ~Dorothy Thompson

“Hope is that thing with feathers that perches in the soul and sings the tune without the words and never stops… at all.” ~Emily Dickinson

“Hope never abandons you, you abandon it.” ~George Weinberg

“Hope is like a road in the country; there was never a road, but when many people walk on it, the road comes into existence.” ~Lin Yutang

“Sanity may be madness but the maddest of all is to see life as it is and not as it should be.” ~Don Quixote

Feeling hopeless about debt?…

Many people have gotten hope from filing bankruptcy. Bankruptcy was designed to resolve debt so there’s light at the end of the tunnel.

Bankruptcy: It’s just one of those words we don’t like to talk about.

But the truth is that bankruptcy has been a real debt-relief solution for millions of people who’ve struggled with debt, unfair interest rates and mortgage terms, job loss, divorce, unexpected medical costs and/or wage reduction.

If you’re deep in debt and are having trouble paying your bills or making ends meet, bankruptcy may be able to help you get out of debt once and for all.

Ask yourself these questions:

• Are you heavily in debt, with little prospect of getting out of that debt in the near future?
• Are your creditors threatening foreclosure, repossession or other legal action?
• Have you experienced a dramatic drop in income?
• Are you frequently late paying bills?
• Do you only pay the minimum on your credit cards?
• Are you paying more money than you make on just your monthly living expenses?
• Have you recently become partially or totally disabled?
• Are you going through a divorce resulting in a decrease of income but an increase in expenses?

If you’ve answered “yes” to any of these questions, filing bankruptcy may be an option for you. Read on for information about the two types of personal bankruptcy.

Filing Chapter 7 Bankruptcy

This type of bankruptcy is often a good option for people who:

• have lots of unsecured debt like credit card debt, medical bills and outstanding payday loans
• have little/no money after paying monthly living expenses & bills
• rent their home or have little equity in their home

Chapter 7 eliminates unsecured debt and stops creditor harassment–and the process usually only takes a few months.

Learn more about filing Chapter 7 bankruptcy…

Filing Chapter 13 Bankruptcy

This type of bankruptcy is often a good option for people who:

• have a steady income and can pay for basic necessities but are having trouble making scheduled payments on debt
• have significant equity in their home/property
• are facing foreclosure

Chapter 13 bankruptcy stops foreclosure proceedings and gives you 3-5 years to catch up on past-due bills. Under Chapter 13, you are put on an agreed-upon payment plan where you make just one payment each month.

Learn more about filing Chapter 13 bankruptcy…

First Step: Talk to a Bankruptcy Lawyer

A bankruptcy lawyer is a good resource who can help you determine whether filing bankruptcy is right for your specific situation.

Talk to a bankruptcy attorney today.

What Do You Think About Filing Bankruptcy?

If you’ve filed bankruptcy in the past or are thinking about filing bankruptcy, let’s hear from you.

What was your experience? What are you thinking about? What do you think about filing bankruptcy? –Leave a comment so we can share our thoughts.

1. Ask for Lower Interest Rates: Seriously, it could be that easy. A 5-minute call could potentially save hundreds–if not thousands. The credit card industry is a competitive market and they don’t want to lose you to another provider.

How to do it: Bluntly say you want a lower interest rate. It also couldn’t hurt to tell them if you have a lower rate with another provider or if you’ve recently received credit card offers in the mail with lower interest rates.

2. Make it Automatic: Have a a portion of your paycheck automatically go toward your company’s 401(k) account.

Feel like your paycheck is stretched too much as it is? I know, but it’s still a good idea participate in your 401(k) program–even $25/paycheck will add up.

3. Slow Down Your Internet Service: If you’re not spending hours playing sophisticated online games, it’s likely you don’t need “super-speedy” Internet service. Take advantage of the “slower” service plan–you probably won’t even notice a difference and you could save big bucks each month.

Now, please don’t just read these saving money tips and forget about them! At the very least, follow tip #1 and call your credit card companies today.

If the credit card company already has you pinned under high interest rate and a balance that you just can’t reduce, it may be time to think about filing bankruptcy.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy was designed to eliminate credit card debt.

If you’re in debt and considering turning to a debt settlement agency for help, be sure to conduct a little background research on the agency.

Not all debt settlers are created equal. Unless you know what to look out for, you could end up in more debt than when you started.

You Should Find Another Debt Relief Agency if:

• They’re Forcing the Contract: If a representative discourages you from reading the entire contract or if he tries to “explain what it says” to “save you time,” watch out. NEVER sign a contract without reading it, especially if your finances are on the line.
• They’re Promoting Default: If a debt settlement representative suggests allowing one or more of your accounts to go into default, DON’T work with the agency. Some companies insist they can’t negotiate with creditors until an account is in default, but this is untrue. Defaulting on payments can cause serious damage to your credit score, wage garnishment, foreclosure and more.
• They’re Discouraging Direct Creditor Contact: Direct contact with creditors is an effective way to address your debt issues. Suggesting you refrain from contacting them can indicate questionable methods.
• They’re Demanding Unreasonable Upfront Fees: This company is supposed to be helping you get out of debt. If you’re asked to pay enormous fees or if you’re asked to pay fees before the company helps you, walk away. Consult with a trusted resource before making a final decision.
• They’re Pressuring You to Sign Up: Ask yourself why a company would do this – because it loves helping people in distress? Probably not. Any company that pressures you to sign up right away is likely arranged so that it will make a large profit off you and maybe not offer you much in return.
• They’re Rushing the Consultation: If a representative is trying to sign you up without really listening to you, don’t bite. Effective debt settlement agencies will help create a program that will work for your specific needs.

Remember… You’re The Boss

In the end, you’re there to help yourself. If the agency is legitimate, it should understand and encourage your desire to do your homework.

If you’re not comfortable with debt settlement, you may want to consider filing bankruptcy.

Bankruptcy was designed to eliminate debt.

Welcome to my new home! I started this blog because I wanted to stand up to the financial crisis and declare that it doesn’t own or define us.

The shaky economy is causing too many of us to drown deeper in debt. All too often do I hear people say they feel stuck and they don’t know how to get back on financial track.

But the truth is that there are steps you can take to secure the type of financial future you deserve.

I’m Here to Help You Get Out of Debt & Get Back to Living

I’ll use this blog to discuss money-saving tips, explore real debt-relief options and to post relevant economic news that matters to us.

My hope is to also have this site serve as an open venue for discussions about our lives.

Money matters are not usually solely about cash-flow problems; oftentimes we find ourselves in debt because of illness or injury, job loss, wage reduction, divorce or because of another life-altering matter.

Let’s fight debt together and learn from one another … so, are you in?

Go Ahead–Defy Your Debt

A new year–a new start. Stick with me and get on track. It’s time to confront your debt and knock it out cold.

Stay tuned to my posts and I’ll try to help you navigate your finances and beat the debt demon.

And, if my money-saving tips are coming a bit too late, I can introduce you to the idea of filing bankruptcy to possibly get out of debt.

Feel free to e-mail me anytime or leave comments. I’ll be sure to respond to everyone.

Curious about The Debtress?

Well, I’m curious about you too! Follow the blog, leave a post or send me a message and let’s get to know each other. Be sure to stay tuned–I’ll be sharing a bit of my background with you soon.