Pay It Down! From Debt to Wealth on $10 a Day

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Summary: The facts, just the facts...
Review: Find an extra ten dollars a day, apply it to your credit card debt, DON'T CHARGE ANY MORE on those cards and in 3 years you'll have paid off a huge chunk of debt....maybe even all of it.
That is the basic info in this book and it simply isn't reason enough to buy it. Like dieters who lost 10 or 20 pounds and then gain it back, those who are in debt are likely to fall back into debt again - unless they change their way of thinking bigtime.
That is why credit card companies love those customers who are paying 10, 12, even 17 percent interest. They might pay it down but odds are they'll also rack up the debt again. Plenty of credit card companies even INCREASE the credit limit for these folks. Why not? From their point of view, it may be quite profitable.
Finally, there is another problem that ISN'T addressed by this book - and that is the belief that there is an extra $10.00 a day to be found in the average budget. Truth is, some people are paying for the necessities of life with credit cards - food, home, medical bills. For them, not only is there no extra money to be found, there is not a single area in the bduget that can be cut. An extra job, better health insurance or some other type of solution might help them but until that comes along they aren't likely to shuck the credit card habit. And they certainly shouldn't spend their hard earned money on this book.
For the average person, buying this book won't hurt a thing...but it won't solve your problems, either, unless you are willing to take a good hard look at your spending patterns and make some PERMANENT changes - stop charging, get an extra job, don't buy a thing that isn't necessary. For those willing to examine every purchase in the light of a new, more spartan outlook, change is possible. But will this book be the only guide you need? Don't think so. Meeting with a good financial counselor on a regular basis (think of this person as " a personal trainer " for your financial life)could bring about more longterm results.

Rating:
Summary: Not impressed!
Review: I have to agree with the very first poster. There wasn't anything here particularly insightful to me. If I had an extra $10 a day I wouldn't be in debt. I've already done the suggestions on cutting back years ago so this wasn't helpful. I found Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover much more helful and doable.

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Summary: Debt Diet
Review: I love this book!!!

Jean Chatzky has written a diet book for those of us who have a few extra pounds of debt. Like the South Beach Diet did for people who couldn't tolerate Atkins, this books makes it easy to shed the excess debt and firm up our fiscal condition.

Like any diet guide, the book starts by asking that you "assess your problem" and forces a good, hard look at how you got here, and how bad a problem you have. Only after a careful self-analysis are you able to fix the mess you may find yourself in.

Chapter 2 encourages you to break your debt problem into small, manageable steps. Jean helps you lay out a realistic timetable and set practical goals for yourself.

Additional chapters get more technical, explaining your credit score, how to track your spending, how to find new opportunities to save, and how to make the hard choices to get back on track.

And, like any prectical "diet" book, Jean explains what to do when, inevitably, things go wrong and you find yourself taking a step in the wrong direction.

This is a non-nonsense book with a straightforward step-by-step plan. If you're feeling a budget crunch, if you feel your spending has gotten a little out of hand, this book is for you. I also subscribe to the accompanying web site, www.payitdown.com for an additional daily dose of Jean's wisdom. It's like South Beach, with regular Weight Watcher meetings thrown in. I'm feeling better about myself already.

Rating:
Summary: Sensible
Review: Jean Chatsky's book Pay It Down! From Debt to Wealth on $10 a Day offers some comprehensive solutions to common financial issues many of us face. Chatsky suggests that many consumers fall into bad habits and need to discipline themselves. Some suggestions that are practical include brown bag lunches to work,minimizing cell phone use, consolidating credit card usage whenever possible, and purchasing food that you are going to consume immediately. Furthermore, there is some good insight on credit ratings and how one should request credit reports to avoid common mistakes. Example if you have a common name of someone who has credit issues, you could be a victim of someone else's irresponsible behavior.

This book is written in an easy to read quick manner where even someone of below average intelligence can get the essence of Chatsky's purpose. This book is merely 215 pages of valuable information that can be re-read for emphasis. A worthwhile purchase or at least a rental for someone who needs to gain some financial responsibility.

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Summary: SIMPLE YET USEFUL
Review: Jean Chatzky reports on finance for the Today show and Money magazine. This interesting little book shows the average Joe just how much difference can be made in one's finances with very small changes.

Often those of us on the go fall into bad habits like stopping to buy that $1.50 cup of coffee on the road to work..rather than spending mere pennies by taking it with us from home.

Or how about spending $6 a day eating out at fast food when you can take your lunch and save $20 - $25 a week. We get into bad habits of spending where we don't need to and it's breaking those old habits with new ones that "Pay it Down" is all about.

If you spend a few minutes after reading this book and just examine your routines you'll see that you can save a lot.

I have already taken the advice in this book and contaced not only my cell phone co. but also my local phone co. and found alternative plans that will save me some $40 per month on those two bills.

I've found that these companies are more than happy to help (at the alternative of you changing companies) and there are a lot of plans out there that you don't know about unless you actually call.

If you look around...there's tons of little things you can change that WILL add up to significant savings over a month.

Nice book!

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Summary: A Map for Financial Success
Review: Jean Chatzky takes the mystery out of "making ends meet" and draws you into a host of exceptional (though simple) steps to help gain a handle on personal financial freedom.

Casting off all those quick-rich schemes dominating cable television infomercials, she shows you how to set money aside in simple (yet compounding) steps. And, she does it with easy-to-read, quick-to-comprehend, step-by-step instructions that any one can plainly understand.

No complex investment strategies, these are simple solutions that our high-tech, fast-paced world left behind decades ago.

Her approach draws into the simplicity of making choices that will free you from long-term debt and open your eyes to how to better use the money in your hands, while allowing you to keep more of it for yourself. As a financial services industry manager, I'll be resourcing this material for my members and using the book in classroom and seminar settings.

I only wish I had this book in my hands 30 years ago. It should be required reading for all high school students today. They'll wish they had when the reach those sunset years of the daily grind and realize there's not much in the piggy bank for retirement.

Guy DiTorrice
Newport OR

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Summary: Jean Chatzky does a great job demystifying personal finance
Review: Let's face it - personal finance isn't rocket science, but, like clean living and exercise, for many of us, it is easier to talk about in the abstract than it is to put into practice.

Jean Chatzky has an uncanny ability to connect with readers and viewers on a personal level, and to help them incorporate sound financial principles into their everyday common sense. This is a good book for reading oneself, and a particularly appropriate present for folks who often find themselves with too much month at the end of the money.

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Summary: Great read! A quick, useful lesson in focusing your finances
Review: Our entire family have been fans of Jean Chatzky's NBC Today appearances for several years. Her clear, plain-spoken approach to understanding and tackling financial challenges is once again on display with this latest book - which offers straightforward, practical advice on identifying and fixing the common problems that nearly all of us seem to share.

Check out the website at www.payitdown.com. i use it as a good morning reminder that a simple, small and consistent effort can have a great big payoff!

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Summary: A Clear Path to Living Debt Free
Review: This an excellent book for people struggling with debt who need solid and easily understood advice on managing debt and curbing bad spending habits. There aren't any big secrets to managing debt but for those of us who don't know and are in trouble with debt, having a good and clearly written book is a tremendous help. I really like the way Jean writes. Her style is like talking with a good and sensible friend who cares and isn't going to criticize you for getting into trouble with debt. She just helps you look at your situation so you can clearly see your way to better habits and debt management.

And just for the record, I'm pretty good at managing my debt and spending and I learned a few things and gained some new insights reading this book.

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Summary: It is easy to reduce my debt
Review: This book gave me valuable advice on how to reduce my debt. Chatzky helped me get a grasp on how damaging my excess debt really is and she gave me lots of tips for improvement. Surprisingly, most of them were very easy and would not cause much hardship. I especially like her easy, friendly writing style. I found this book to be extremely useful and have implemented some of her ideas already. This would be a perfect present for any high school/college aged kid starting to manage their finances.