Online nonprofit credit counseling services to lower bill payments for credit cards and other unsecured debt.
Can't pay the minimums on your credit cards?
Consistently late paying one or more of your regular bills?
Being hounded by creditors and collection agencies?
Can't reach reasonable repayment plans with creditors?
If so, request consumer credit counseling
assistance
Nonprofit credit counseling
Choosing a Credit Counselor
Finding a good credit counselor can be a bit tricky. After all, it's not something you'd want to bring up with colleagues around the company water cooler. That means you'll have to do the legwork on your own. But there are a few things to keep in mind to make the task easier and less fraught with disappointment.
First, look for a nonprofit credit counselor. You've spent too much already, why pay more now? Nonprofits get most of their funding from creditors, not you. Privacy isn't usually an issue, but it's wise to check what the agency's policy is. Make sure they don't sell your information. Many ask for only a nominal fee to enroll. And the nonprofits' relationship with the credit community has an added benefit. They can often negotiate better rates with those same creditors on your behalf.
Second, find out upfront exactly what services you'll receive, such as counseling, a debt-repayment plan and budgeting advice. The more services, the better. You might want to have them put it all in writing and send you the information before you proceed.
And ask if the organization belongs to any professional groups, such as the NFCC or the Better Business Bureau. Have them explain how they're audited and if your funds are protected. After all, you're sending them your money.
Don't know which debt program is best for you? Compare credit counseling vs debt settlement to help you decide which one offers the best benefits for your situation.
Whether you choose a credit counseling agency or a debt settlement company, either program can only help you with unsecured debt. Find out what types of unsecured debt qualify.
Get more information about debt, and read our articles related to credit counseling.
Bills: It can be extremely difficult when being in debt becomes a problem. Yet, credit counseling has proved to be beneficial for millions of people having to face debt issues. The first sign there could be a problem, is rejections when seeking credit. Lenders will view their applicant's credit status before approving any loans, and if credit is not good, they reject the applicant.
Credit counseling has helped people who have been unable to pay all their bills, and who have exhausted all means to solve their problems without professional help. Counselors can train people how to spend responsibly, even when using credit cards, and how to manage debts that have been owed far too long.
Lending institutions do not like to get missed or late payments. Just like people expect to get their paycheck, creditors like for their customers to pay their bill on time. People often get into money problems when they carry too many credit cards and they over-spend, thus ending up with high card balances. When they ignore the bills, late fees and higher interest rates could be added which leads to being more in debt.
A credit counselor may be able to help people who are in debt, by reviewing their finances. They can figure out how much a person owes and analyze some spending habits that are causing bills to go unpaid. Along with this, they figure the net income and expenses, and work out a plan for an affordable monthly payment. They are able to educate clients about how to manage their finances productively.
Counselors may recommend negotiating with creditors for revised repayment options, or to consider credit consolidation. They know the types of available solutions, because they are experts at what they do, and they are very knowledgeable in their area. They are good at explaining credit report scores and the types of credit inquiries that appear on the report. They can give valuable tips on how to repair credit and financial tools to use to rebuild scores. When all options have failed, credit counseling programs may be a resource to use to get debts under control
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When it comes to debt consolidation, many Americans are in the dark. The extent of their knowledge is that debt consolidation is often utilized by people who have bad credit and are seeking a way to get out their debt. However, consolidation loans, debt management, and credit counseling often go together as a means to educate people against poor financial decisions to help them avoid being stuck in the same financial situation in the future.
Get A Good Debt Consolidation Loans Company - Consolidation loans and other debt relief are offered by thousands of companies across the nation. These companies make their money from consolidating loans for people with debt and then taking a portion of the payment the person makes toward their consolidation. While this is a pretty standard business practice, some companies take advantage of this and take upwards of 30% of each monthly payment. This is absolutely unacceptable and is one reason why reading the fine print on a loans debt consolidation is absolutely necessary.
Education loans are one reason people seek loans consolidation for debt relief. Taking out numerous student loans while in college can lead to several different interest rates, repayment rates, and an all around hassle for any student fresh from college. By consolidating these education loans into one lump payment, students are better able to repay their loans on time and avoid severe penalties and possible hits to their credit score.
The Definition of Unsecured Consolidation Loans: Unsecured consolidation is the most commonly used type of debt consolidation since it does not require any collateral to back the loan, such as a house or car. This type of loan typically comes with a variable interest rate and while it is good to consolidate your debts under the roof of one lender, you should be sure the amount of interest you are paying and the fees taken for such services do not over-burden you. Unsecured consolidation loan is best for those who do not have any collateral, or those who are not willing to risk their homes on getting out of debt for good.
Other factors you need to consider include understanding how you managed to get yourself into debt in the first place. Education loans, massive credit card bills, high mortgages and car payments are all contributing factors to debt and some of them are unavoidable. However, speaking with a debt counselor about your current situation can better shed light on the choices made that have resulted in debt, and better allow you to understand how you can stay debt-free once you are out 0f debt
inding bad credit help can be a daunting task not because it is hard to come by, but because there are so many forms of bad credit help to choose from. If you are looking for bad credit help, take caution! There are a lot of scams and ploys out there that make bold claims about fixing your credit, but are really just after your money and will only make your financial problems even worse. As a general rule when looking for bad credit help, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. There isn’t anyway that you can instantly clear a bad credit rating just by paying someone a fee. Don’t be sucked into a costly scam by these claims.
It’s probably not what you want to hear, but all forms of solid and useful bad credit help are going to take both time and effort on your part as well. If there is a false or inaccurate mark on your credit history, you can fix it yourself without paying a fee to anyone by contact a credit reporting company directly. Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion are all required to give you a free credit report once a year, and you can dispute any mistakes on your report for free.
Having said all this, there are plenty of credit counseling services that offer genuine bad credit help. Many of these services are non-profit organizations, and will offer you bad credit help either for free or for a minimal fee. Look for these kinds of services if you feel you need bad credit help or guidance. Be wary of services that ask for fees prior to offering your or even fully explaining what they do.
If you are thinking about paying for bad credit help, at least make sure you do some research about the service you are interested in. With a little investigation online, you can probably determine if the service is valuable or not.
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Review information was gleaned from the website, and is neither an endorsement by us nor an confirmation of content nor a warranty of any promises made by the website. Use the review information at your sole discretion and sole liability.
Nobody wants to remember a deceased family member by the debt they left behind, but many creditors certainly make it difficult to forget.
Denise Townley was appalled when she received a letter from her mother's credit card issuer less than two weeks after her mother passed away.
Confused and concerned that she was on the hook for her mother's debt, Townley called Discover. When she asked a probate specialist there how they knew her mother had passed away, she was told that Social Security furnished the information.
"I find this not only ethically abhorrent, but also irresponsible and insensitive on both parties' parts," said Townley.
But while it may be "ethically abhorrent," it's not illegal. Banks are within their rights to seek payment for debts owed by a deceased borrower, and the estate is liable for the debt if it has enough money.
"We understand that settling the affairs of loved ones is difficult," a Discover spokesman said. When contacting family members about the unpaid debts of deceased card members, Discover states upfront that payments on behalf of a deceased relative are voluntary, not required, he added.
How soon is too soon? Financial institutions typically receive notice of a person's passing from the Social Security Administration within a month or two, according to a recent review of the agency conducted by the Social Security Administration's Office of the Inspector General. Yet, in some cases, banks find out even earlier than that.
Because it's likely the deceased carried multiple debts, creditors often race to be the first to collect money from the next of kin or the estate before it has all dried up, said Gerri Detweiler, a debt specialist at credit card research and comparison site Credit.com.
Hey Social Security, I'm not dead! "The longer a creditor waits to get paid, the less their chance of getting paid," she said. "And unfortunately, they may find that it's easiest to elicit payment when bereaved relatives are still trying to sort everything out."
During her husband's wake, Deborah Crabtree said she had set up an answering machine and put it on speaker phone so that loved ones could leave their condolences, according to the complaint she filed against Bank of America.
But instead of hearing only the voices of friends and family come through the speakers, she said a debt collector from Bank of America Home Loan Servicing called every 15 minutes and left harassing messages about the debts her husband had left behind that everyone in the house could hear.
Even after the wake, Crabtree said Bank of America collectors called her as many as 48 times a day -- and even threatened to foreclose on her home, according to a lawsuit she filed last month against the bank.
Crabtree, who lives in Honolulu, said she had told the bank that she would pay the debt as soon as she received her husband's life insurance check. However, the agents told her that since the calls were computer-generated they couldn't stop them until the debt was paid.
Extreme debtors: Crabtree's lawsuit claims that Bank of America violated state debt collection laws. Her lawyer, Gary Shigemura, said the bank has not yet responded in court.
For its part, Bank of America declined to comment on the particular case, but a spokeswoman said that in general, the bank informs family members when they aren't responsible for the debt of a deceased relative.
The Federal Trade Commission recently declined to impose a "cooling off" period after a death, during which creditors wouldn't be allowed to go after a debt.
The FTC said it was unnecessary, since its rules under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act already prohibit third-party debt collectors from collecting debts at "inconvenient times" and harassing customers.
Yet, the FTC only governs third-party debt collectors, not the banks -- which are regulated by individual states. And while many of the states have laws similar to the FTC's, the terms "harassment" and "inconvenient times" can be interpreted very differently by consumers and creditors, said Detweiler.
Do you owe money for the deceased's debt? Often mourners don't have enough time to grieve their loss, let alone assess the debts owed by the deceased -- and whether or not they're on the hook to pay for it.
Some debt collectors make family members feel responsible for debt owed by the deceased by asking them questions about whether they were the one who paid for the funeral or took care of other business related to the person's death, said Detweiler.
"They don't necessarily state that you are liable for the debt, but they blur the lines to make you feel like somehow you are responsible for it, even if it's just a moral responsibility," she said.
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Credit Card Debt Settlement: If you've maxed out your credit cards and are getting deeper in debt, chances are you're feeling overwhelmed. How are you ever going to pay down the debt? Now imagine hearing about a company that promises to reduce - or even erase - your debt for pennies on the dollar. Sounds like the answer to your problems, right? The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, says slow down, and consider how you can get out of the red without spending a whole lot of green. Many different kinds of services claim to help people with debt problems. Among them are "debt settlement" companies that say they'll negotiate with your creditors to reduce the amount you owe. Some debt settlement companies claim that they can arrange for your debt to be paid off for less than the amount you owe - for anywhere from 30 to 70 percent of the balance. For example, if you owe $10,000 on a credit card, a debt settlement company may claim it can arrange for you to pay off the debt for less, say $4,000. But there is no guarantee that debt settlement companies can persuade a credit card company to accept partial payment of a legitimate debt. Even if they can, you must put aside money for your creditors each month. Meanwhile, it may be months - or even years - before the debt settlement company negotiates with your credit card company to settle your debts. And, if you stop making your payments in the meantime, the credit card company usually adds late fees and interest to the debt each month. That can cause your original debt to double or triple.
