“What if I need to borrow money to buy or fix a car to get to a job?”
Many of us have been there at one time or another in our lives. Here’s a serious answer:
Before you get a credit card, read all of the fine print. Don’t accept credit from a company that is going to raise the rates or levy huge penalties for late payments.
Once you have done that, figure out how much you are going to have to borrow on the card and if you are going to be able to pay it back. If the answer is no, try one or more of these:
1. Find another way to get to work.
2. Get help from family or friends, telling them the truth about the likelihood that they will get paid back in a timely fashion.
3. Find a different job, closer to home.
Then: Sit down and track every dollar you spend. Cable tv? Fast food? Ipod? Computer? Entertainment? Concerts? Magazines? Newspapers? Dump everything you don’t absolutely need for survival until you are living within your means.
Finally, once you are living within your means, get out there and increase your means! It’s a long process with ups and downs.
In any case, borrowing money when you won’t be able to pay it back will only make things worse.
BUMP for later reference