The best thing for you to do to keep good credit is to pay your bills on time, in full, and on your own. If you need a little assistance, without seriously damaging your credit, Credit Counseling is the way to go.
However if you cannot afford Credit Counseling payments, it will not work for you. Call or apply for a payment quote. If you have certain debts (such as certain collections, legal accounts, charge offs, medical bills, etc.) Credit Counseling does not offer any benefits (such as reduced interest, stop late and over limit fees, etc.) and therefore will not work for you.
If Credit Counseling is not right for you, you would need to look at Debt Settlement.
Credit counseling is a process offering education to consumers about how to avoid creating debts that cannot be repaid. It often involves negotiating with creditors to establish a debt management plan for the individual. A debt management plan may help the debtor repay his or her debt by working out a repayment plan with the creditor. Debt management plans, set up by credit counselors, usually offer reduced payments, fees and interest rates to the client.
Under a reputable Consumer Credit Counseling (CCC) program, your creditors may be willing to reduce your interest rates and waive over-limit or late fees. You will make one payment each month to the counseling firm, and they in turn distribute the funds to the creditors. In addition to making the monthly payment against your debt, credit counseling companies generally require upfront fees and regular monthly fees.
CCC companies work for the creditor. They are paid a commission of up to 15% of what they recover from you. CCC companies do not reduce the total debt you owe, but simply allow you to combine your total monthly payments in to one payment, which is often higher than your regular monthly minimums. CCC companies project a 4-6 year period for repayment of debts, but often this ends up being longer because individuals are unable to sustain the higher monthly payments and are dropped from the program, making it necessary to start over again with only a slightly lower balance. Approximately 65 – 70% of the people who enter a CCC program are unsuccessful and fall off before the program is complete.
CCC programs also affect your credit report. When you are accepted into a CCC program your creditors will close your accounts and report this to the credit bureaus. Additionally, nearly all creditors will report to the credit bureaus that you have entered into a “hardship” program and need help. Although this is far less damaging than bankruptcy, it definitely does impact your credit rating. You may also fall delinquent for a short period at enrollment, which will have a negative effect on your credit score, and if you decide to leave a CCC program before you have finished the program, your failure to complete the process can be listed as a negative listing on your credit report. Just the simple fact that you resorted to a debt counseling program will be a red flag for prospective credit grantors.
A CCC program may be effective for people who want get out of debt and can afford to make slightly higher monthly payments relatively comfortably for the next 3 to 5 years. If you can continue to pay the higher monthly payments and do not foresee future financial problems, this is an okay way to go. If you are currently struggling to make minimum monthly payments, it is unlikely you will succeed using this method.
Contact DebtRX today to find out which debt management option is right for you!
Debt Settlement Debt Negotiation works by negotiating the balance owed on your unsecured debt so the amount paid is less than owed. We design an affordable monthly savings plan and your savings are used to obtain a deal from your creditors.
Most likely, yes. Any time you are behind, with or without a program, you will receive calls. However, many creditors are accommodating. Additionally, calls may reduce after the original creditor receives a detailed hardship letter from you.
Debt Settlement or Debt Negotiations effect on your credit score will depend on your current credit status before starting any settlement program. Very few people with debt problems have perfect credit and debt settlement is meant to be a hardship program.
We are the Debt Rx and are one of the longest operating Debt Settlement and Debt Negotiation firms in America. We are not the largest, because our focus has been more on personal attention and service of existing clients than that of enrolling new ones.
We are Debt Rx and are one of the longest operating Debt Settlement and Debt Negotiation firms in America. We operate across most of the 50 states.
* Clients that are able to stay with our services and make the monthly program payments generally experience a 50% reduction of their enrolled balance before fees, or approximately a 29% reduction after payment of fees over a 24-48 month period. Individual results may vary based on ability to save sufficient funds and complete the program, the creditors in your individual portfolio, and amount of debt enrolled. Statements made are examples of past performance and are not intended to be a guarantee that your debt balances will be lowered by a specific amount or percentage, that you will be debt free within a specific time period, or a guarantee of future settlement results. We guarantee we will not receive any fees until the terms of your debt have been altered with one or more of your creditors. While our programs work aggressively to reduce your debt balances, creditors are under no contractual obligation to negotiate or accept settlement offers. We do not assume consumer debt, make monthly payments to creditors or provide tax, bankruptcy, accounting or legal advice and we do not provide credit repair services. Please contact a tax professional to discuss tax consequences of debt settlement. By providing your contact information, you agree to receive return telephone calls, emails or other communications from us and/or our affiliates and expressly waive any Do Not Call preference or registration. Photographs used are not actual clients. We are not affiliated with MSNBC, Fox, or CBS and logos used are registered trademarks of their respective owners. Legal requirement: Licensed by the Virginia State Corporation Commission, license number DSP-14. Programs not available in all states. Read and understand all program materials prior to your enrollment.
