Chapter 7. Manage Your Credit Cards and Mortgage

7. Manage Your Credit Cards and Mortgage

The most common forms of debt that people have are credit cards and the mortgage on their home. Naturally, Quicken can track both of these. Of the two, keeping on top of credit card debt is a key concern for many families. As purchases and interest charges mount, it's all too easy to get to the point where credit card debt becomes overwhelming.

One way to make sure that your credit card debt doesn't spin out of control is to track it carefully on a monthly basis. That means categorizing your card charges so that you know where you're spending your money and reconciling your credit card accounts to make sure that spending doesn't slip by unnoticed. In Chapter 8, you'll see how you can use Quicken's reports and graphs to get an even better view of your credit card spending.

For your home mortgage, you'll want to set up two accounts in Quicken: one showing the asset (your home's value) and the other tracking the liability (the mortgage on your home).

In this chapter, you'll learn how to use Quicken to manage your short-term debt such as credit cards, as well as keep track of your long- term debt, such as your mortgage.