Posted on June 28, 2011 at 11:58 am Hello. I am a young adult with a single income, who is having difficulty getting out of debt. I work in a medical setting where I do not receive payment unless I am meeting with a client. For the past few years, that has worked fine, and payments have been inconsistent, but I've always been able to make the mortgage, etc. Now it's becoming increasingly difficulty to do so because of a decrease in clients and income. Given the unpredictable nature and the "slow periods", I've had to dip into savings and use up my "cushion". I'm wondering if there's anything I could should do. Right now, my credit score is in the 700s, and I've managed to make payments on time, even though I've very reluctantly had to use my credit cards for payments on certain bills. My bills are outlined as follows:Mortgage $150,000Car $28,000Grad School Student Loans $42,000Credit Cards (used during college for tuition/books etc. and to buy home furnishings) $30,000I didn't have much difficulty making these bills and paying extra, trying to do the snowball payment method with small cards and/or higher interest rate cards, but as I said, the financial situation and work situation has changed so that I'm having a hard time. I don't think I have enough equity in my home to go that route, and I'm not sure how long I would be living there if I find alternate employment and decide to move in the next couple of years, so I'm not sure how viable a home equity line would be. Also, I'm not in impending danger with creditors harrassing me for debt-collection, etc. However, I want to avoid this, and the inconsistency with income is going to soon catch up to me because I'm running out of resources. My income for the past two years was in the ballpark of 60,000 to 65,000 but this year, it's looking considerably lower, like possibly 50,000-55,000. I'd appreciate any advice, as I'm looking to get myself out of this situation so that I can enjoy a better quality of life with travel and the kind of car I'd like to drive, etc. I'd like to even work less or get a job in which I don't have to compete so much for income so that I can stay ahead (or afloat, as it seems now).....I have been looking for another job that may pay equally well but be more consistent income with paid-time off, etc. Then I could at least budget, but I'm unsure what to do in the meantime. Obviously, I have to limit my spending. But I wasn't sure about any other options to try to reduce debt. Or the best way to tackle my current debt. One of my cards has 3.9% for life and the other is fixed (used for appliances) at 9.9%. The other has an interest rate of 14.9 to 17.9%, and it carries about an $8,000 balance. I have enough available credit to shift some of those things around and do the limited 0% APR balance transfers, but as I said, I'm not sure where to start in taking a stronghanded approach to this issue.Thanks in advance.