Book Review Of How To Get Out Of Debt By Harrine Freeman
Walk into any bookstore and I will bet my last dollar that there is a whole shelf of books aimed at teaching the reader the fundamentals of becoming a millionaire in 10 easy steps!
It all sounds fine, and it makes for a fun read, but generally speaking it is just a bunch of junk that has little to do with the real world. The real world is a bad place. The opportunities to become enslaved in the debt society are everywhere. And when you find yourself owing ten, twenty, or even fifty thousand dollars, what do you do? Well my preferred solution is to panic (but that’s just me), Harrine Freeman on the other hand has a much better solution!
I have read several books on this subject, and this is the first one that actually offers a reasonable and achievable solution. Harrine Freeman talks about the ‘grand scheme’ but actually uses small and attainable goals. Pick the smallest debt you have, let’s say it is $200, and pay it! That’s simple, and it is a debt gone. Essentially you can ‘Nickel and dime’ your way out of debt.
The concept of taking it one debt at a time is a good one. Pay the minimum required on the rest and concentrate on getting rid of the biggest pain in the butt. Harrine Freeman talks in everyday English, and makes a good deal of sense. I guess you can sum up her ideas as ‘Walk before you run.’ The Author explains that this book is based on personal experience, ‘too much fun during her college days.’ She found herself with a millstone of debt around her neck, not from school loans, but from credit cards that had been used for fun rather than necessity.
Having worked in the banking industry in the past, I was happy to see that Harrine acknowledged the fact that spending money (that you probably dont have) on credit repair companies is a waste of time. Everything that these ‘Mr Fixit’ solutions can do, you can do even better. Better still, you can do it for the cost of a stamp, which is considerably cheaper than they will charge you. How To Get Out Of Debt contains sample letters that you can use during your quest to a debt free life.
I give the Author high marks for taking the time to translate the near impossible language used in the financial world into terms that us mere mortals can get our minds around. Rather than spending pages explaining the coma inducing mathematics behind Credit Card interest calculations she merely says ‘paying the minimum balance means that you will pay three times the purchase price.’ Enjoy that $20 bottle of wine, it is going to cost you $60!
Also included are an absolute wealth of useful names, addresses, and phone numbers. From credit bureaus to the Federal Government agencies, all the names and numbers are in this handy guide.
About Harrine Freeman: Harrine Freeman is a member of the American Association of Daily Money Managers, the National Association of Women Writers, SPAWN, Toastmasters, AAUW, the Women Network, IEEE, and Women In Technology. She has provided credit repair counseling for issues such as bankruptcies, judgments, student loans, delinquent debts, repossessions, and much more. Her clients range from doctors, lawyers, actors to school teachers and students. She has been a guest speaker at local churches and schools, Fortune 100 companies, libraries and local and national radio shows. She lives in Washington, D.C.
Tags: Attainable Goals, Banking Industry, Becoming A Millionaire, Better Solution, College Days, Credit Repair Companies, Freeman, Grand Scheme, How To Get Out Of Debt, Last Dollar, Millstone, Mr Fixit, Nickel And Dime, Pain In The Butt, Personal Experience, Preferred Solution, School Loans, Spending Money, Thousand Dollars, Waste Of Time
