5 questions to ask before taking on more debt
Editor’s Note: Below is an article published first at MarketWatch that was written by Elaine Scoggins, CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER(TM) and director at Merriman
Early in my career, I knew a wealthy man who took his own life. He left a suicide note saying he was pushed to the breaking point trying to pay back some sizeable business and personal debt.
From the outside, he appeared to have it all: a successful business, a beautiful new luxury home, expensive vacations and a wonderful, loving family. But, like with so many people we’re impressed by, no one knew about the dangerous levels of debt he’d taken on in order to have all those things.
I use this story knowing it is an extreme case. Debt, in the right amounts and at the right times in our lives, can be very beneficial in helping us get ahead. But if you get into a situation where you can’t pay it back, it can turn out to be one of the ugliest nightmares you’ll ever face.
You might think that if the lender says you’re fine to borrow the money, it must be OK to proceed. But there’s one gigantic problem with those income and debt ratios that are commonly used to screen us all before we borrow: They assume nothing in your life is going to change.
Taking the time to honestly answer these five questions could save you from years of misery.
