Update – DebtGoal.com is now SavvyMoney.com. We’ll be updating this post soon.
Do you want to get out of debt but are having difficulty getting organized and setting up a debt payment plan? Maybe you don’t even know the total debt you owe, the interest rates, minimum payments, due dates, etc. Would you like to know when you can be debt free whether you pay the minimum towards your debts or pay extra each month. There are different ways of paying off debt. Will paying the smallest debt first or highest interest debt first be best for your situation? DebtGoal helps you solve all of these problems.
DebtGoal is not debt settlement, credit counseling, debt relief or debt consolidation. In fact, that’s why we like it. It’s for people who can make payments on their debts and are motivated to pay them off. Research shows if you don’t have a well-defined plan for reducing your debt, you’re likely to make minimum payments. Of course you’ll pay extra from time to time, but it’s typically easier to make minimum payments. DebtGoal is a planning tool that steers you away from making minimum payments and debt consolidation. The tool will help you reduce extra costs from the interest and decrease the amount of time you spend in debt.
How it Works
Getting started with DebtGoal requires a few simply steps that only takes a few minutes.
1. Sign up for an account and get started for free!
2. Add a debt. You can automatically link an account from your financial institution or add your account manually. Automatic linking updates your accounts in DebtGoal as they change.
3. Enter the information for the debt such as the type of debt (credit card, mortgage, car, etc.), interest rate, payment due date, etc.
4. Create the DebtGoal SmartPay Plan. You’ll choose between making minimum payments constant until the debt is paid off or a custom amount each month.
5. Choose your debt pay off strategy which includes: Debt Stacking (highest APR first), Debt Snowballing (lowest balance first), or your own customized strategy.
6. Finally, confirm your plan. You now know the total interest you’ll pay, your debt free date, monthly commitment, and have a strategy.
Benefits
Debt Free Date - Knowing your debt free debt is motivating! It helps you realize you can accomplish your goal of becoming debt free. You can also adjust your plan to see how making extra payments can impact your debt free date.
Track Progress - DebtGoal does a nice job of helping you track your progress. You can view your balance over time graphically and view a summary of your progress which includes your balance and payments made.
View Your Savings – The bottom line is debt costs you money. Someone is charging you a fee for the loan whether it be a credit card or a home mortgage. DebtGoal helps you save money and get out of debt sooner and it shows you how much you’re saving in interest payments.
Organized Payment Plan - Everyone’s situation is different. You might choose to use Debt Stacking or Snowballing or a combination of the two. The important thing is DebtGoal provides the flexibility to choose the strategy best for you with an organized payment plan.
Accelerator Actions - Accelerator Actions are recommended steps you can take outside of your debt plan. By following these actions you can modify your debt plan with a one – time payment or increase your monthly payment. One example of an action is negotiating credit card interest rates. DebtGoal will provide recommended steps to take associated with each action.
Final Thoughts
The first step of setting up a debt payment plan is getting everything organized. This is the hardest part for most people. DebtGoal definitely helps you solve this problem as they take you through the process step by step. The only drawback of DebtGoal is the monthly subscription cost after the free 7 day trial is over which is $14.95 per month. I initially thought this amount seemed high, but considering the interest savings people see in creating and following a debt payment plan, the fee is minimal. If I had a lot of credit card debt or other debt I wouldn’t question paying the fee. The benefits and savings of DebtGoal far outweigh the cost.
Have you had any experience with DebtGoal? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
I love debtgoal! Just joined 3 weeks ago and it saves me hours of work every month. I love seeing the little chart of when I’ll actually be out of debt – motivating!
Awesome, Mark! Thanks for sharing your experience. I think it’s a great product to help people get their debt organized and to pay it off. I’ll continue to promote it and share my findings.
Thank you for referring me to DebtGoal! I just signed up because I found your article here. Looks like their program can help me sort out my finances a bit better. Thanks again!
Aaron, that’s great news! I’m glad you found my article helpful and I think you’ll find DebtGoal to be an excellent tool to use.
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