Wait!!! Don’t invest if you can’t pay your bills…
Before you consider investing money in any market, you really should take a good look at your current situation. Investing in the future is a good thing, but clearing up bad situations that are going on now, such as credit cards on which you are behind in the payments, is more important.
Get your credit report. I blogged about how you can do that for free. It is important to know what is on your report, and to clear up any negative or incorrect items as soon as possible. If you’ve set aside $25,000 to invest, but you have $25,000 worth of bad credit, you are better off cleaning up the credit first!
Look at what you are paying out each month, and get rid of expenses that are unnecessary. High interest credit cards, high interest unsecured loans, and services you are paying for but do not use are good examples. Pay them off and get rid of them. If you can, exchange the high interest credit card for one with lower interest and refinance high interest loans with loans that are lower interest. You may have to use some of your investment funds to take care of these matters, but in the long run, you will see that this is the wisest course of action.
Get yourself into good financial shape. You can then enhance your financial situation with sound investments.
Also, don’t invest if your bank balance is always low or if you are struggling to pay your monthly bills. Your investment dollars will be better spent to rectify adverse financial issues that affect you each day.
While you are in the process of clearing up your present financial situation, make it a point to educate yourself about the various types of investments.
This way, when you are in a financially sound situation, you will be armed with the knowledge that you need to make equally sound investments in your future.
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© Copyright 2009, John A. Simpson. All Rights Reserved.
