Understanding Your Net Worth: A Guide to Reducing Debt
Your net worth equals what you own minus what you owe. It is commonly referred to as the difference between your total assets and your total liabilities.
Here’s a simple illustration:
- Home Value: $350,000
- Mortgage Balance: $150,000
- Investments: $100,000
- Credit Cards: $20,000
- Auto: $45,000
- Auto Loans: $30,000
- Savings: $15,000
- Bank Loan: $4,000
You Own = $510,000
You Owe = $204,000
Therefore, your net worth would be $306,000.
The Fastest Way to Increase Your Net Worth
You can own more things or you can reduce your debt obligation. This article will focus on reducing your debt first because it is the fastest way to generate more money and then buy (own) more things.
In our example, you have $204,000 of debt. If you’re like most people, you pay less attention to the mortgage and car loan balances because you consider them to be rather normal (necessary) to your way of life.
The Cost of High-Interest Debt
Credit card companies are probably charging somewhere between 12 to 18 percent (forget those slick, short-lived introductory teasers) and the bank loan is probably around 6 percent.
Now, before we go further let me ask you a question. Which is faster? Create $204,000 (in other words, own more) or reduce $204,000 of debt? In both instances, the result is the same because your net worth will have increased by the same amount.
Comparing Investment and Debt Reduction
To create $204,000 in 15 years, you would have to invest $6,956.69 each year for 15 years and receive a guaranteed 8 percent rate of return. Where can you find a guaranteed rate of return this high in today’s marketplace? Nowhere!
To reduce $204,000 of debt in 13.5 years, it takes only $100 extra each month. Now, let’s make sure.
To increase your net worth by $204,000 you must invest almost $7,000 each year for 15 years. You hope and pray you’ll receive no less than an 8 percent average every year.
Or… you can come up with only $100 each month to reduce 100% of your debt (including your mortgage) in only 13.5 years — guaranteed! Hard to believe, isn’t it?
The Benefits of Debt Reduction
In every instance, it is faster and more reliable to eliminate your liabilities than to increase your assets. Why? Because the interest you pay on your debt is excessively higher than the guaranteed interest you can earn.
By following the debt chart and adding an additional $100 each month to the minimum payment requirement, you can dramatically compound the effect of your payments and expedite the complete elimination of all your debt.
It’s a lot easier to come up with $100 extra each month than it is to find $6,956.69 each and every year for the next 15 years.
Conclusion: An Effective Strategy for Financial Growth
Reducing your debt is a practical and guaranteed way to increase your net worth. For those seeking additional ways to enhance their financial stability, consider GL&L Holdings’ private lending partnership program. Private money lending is an excellent way to invest in real estate without acquiring property. By acting as the bank for other investors, you fund properties owned by your borrowers, with your investment always secured by tangible local real estate in a recorded 1st lien position. This approach is extremely safe and low-risk, offering steady returns distributed monthly or quarterly. Plus, you can check on your investment at any time and get 100% of your money back at the end of the loan term. It’s amazing! Learn more about the advantages of our lending program here.
