Are You Guilty of Credit Card Abuse?

Credit card abuse isn't something to be taken lightly. It's put more than a few families into financial ruin. The scary thing is, many people don't even realize they're abusing their cards until it's too late. If you think you may be one of them, here are a few things to consider...

What's Your Balance Doing?

What exactly is your credit card balance doing each month? If it's going up, you're most likely guilty of credit card abuse. If, on the other hand, it's going down (or better yet, you don't have a balance at all) then you can be reasonably sure that you're handling your credit cards in a responsible manner.

What Are You Buying?

Another thing you have to ask yourself is, what do you use your credit cards for? If you use them only for emergency purposes, the chances of credit card abuse are slim to none. If, however, you're charging up lattes like there's no tomorrow and you can't pay your balance at the end of the month, you are indeed guilty of abusing your credit cards.

Think paying interest on a $3 latte is no big deal? If you're running a balance on your credit cards, that $3 latte can cost you a lot more in the long run -- especially when you're buying one a day. Over a few short years, your debt can go up by a couple thousand dollars on lattes alone. No matter how good that latte is, don't ever buy it if you can't afford to pay cash.

How Are Your Payments Going?

When your credit card bill comes in, how much do you pay each month? If you're only paying the minimum and you're at your wits end trying to make your budget accommodate your debt, you're probably guilty of credit card abuse.

You should never pay only the minimum monthly payment when it comes to credit cards. If you do, you'll likely be paying them off well into retirement. Instead, pay off as much as you possibly can. Try to keep a goal of having all debt paid off within one year. If that's not possible, credit counseling may be in order.

Remember, the economy isn't at its best. Right now we need to make sure we're as financially secure as possible. Credit card abuse is going to be the one thing that prevents you from doing that, so make sure you're using your credit cards responsibly and that abuse isn't a deciding factor in the outcome of your financial future.