How Do You Handle Collection Agency Debt Settlement?
You have gotten yourself into debt. You have not been making your payments. The calls are starting to come in. You no longer want to answer the phone, you are in fear of picking up an unknown number, and you dread that your family may be called. More and more people are experiencing this. Collection agencies are very difficult to deal with. Rarely will you hear a pleasant story about them.
Hector Milla Editor of the "Best Debt Settlement Companies" website -- http://www.BestDebtSettlementCompanies.org -- pointed out;
It is time to learn to deal with them. There are different types of collection agencies. Understanding who you are dealing with will help you form the best strategy. Some collection agencies are actually part of the credit agency. They are simply another department. Others are outside businesses, they buy the debt that the credit company was unable to collect. They buy these toxic assets for pennies on the dollar. They make their money by getting you to pay as much as they can. Groups that are connected to the credit agency may be willing to enter into debt settlement with you
Will I have to take out another loan to cover my current debts? Suggest me best Debt Settlement Companies?
Suggest me best Debt Settlement Companies
Looking for the best debt settlement company. Please help!?
I have accumulated about 60K of debt over the past couple of years due to student and car loans. Can anyone suggest the best debt management company in Brea in California? I have had bad experience with debt companies in the past but I really need a good debt settlement program to help me get through my debts.
The more info, the better!
Thanks
The best debt settlement program is offered by Nationwide Debt Center at http://nationwidedebtcenter.com/
They will help you lower your debt professionally and effectively.
What’s the best debt settlement company out there?
I just want to know if anyone out there has tried this for their debt and just wondering if there are recommendations for legitimate companies out there. Thanks!
Following is a non-profit site which will give you information on debt settlement options.
http://www.nfcc.org/index.cfm
What debt settlement companies are trustworthy and have the best rating?
I have credit card debt and am looking for a debt consolidation company that I could do business with. I’m looking for the best rated company. Having an excellent rating with the Better Business Bureau would be a plus. Thanks.
best debt settlement companies?
Check with your state’s attorney general, they often have companies they recommend. This started because to file bankruptcy you have to get a certificate from a reputable credit counseling agency. Also here is link to check for the justice department to check your states agencies.
I went through DebtXs about five or six years ago. They got it done. I have no complaints. I had about 19k in credit card debt. I ended up paying, in cluding their fee, about 14k. But then the government comes back on you at tax time for “debts forgiven” and they tax the balance you did not pay. So, after it was all done I paid about 17k on the original 19k.
@ other answerers: Either way is going to trash your credit. And yes, a debt settlement will trash your credit but once you pay off the negotiated settlement your it reflects on your credit score that the debt was “paid” or “settled”. Unlike “delinquent” entirely. But again, once it is paid your credit comes back. It doesn’t take that long either. As long as you don’t default again like you did that got you into the mess you were in, in about a year you will start getting credit card offers in the mail. You may even get some of your previous cards reinstated if you call them after the debt is settled. I started my debt settlement program in 2005 and in about 18 months I was done. But like I said the goverment then comes back on you for “debts forgiven” at tax time. Overall you will save some money but you have to stick to your debt settlement program timetable, which is usually 18 months. You have to save, save your money! And when you have a good amount saved you have to call your counselor let them know! You do have to stay on top of these people. Basically a debt settlement gets you to pay back the money minus all the interest that has acrued. I don’t know which is a credible debt settlement company. I guess I got lucky, I don’t know. But I do know debt mangement comapnies don’t do a whole for you except get your interst rates lowered. That’s it. You still have to pay back the money plus the interest that has acrued up to the time you got the debt management involved.
It is sort of a joke. These banks want your money sooooo bad they will forgive just about anything as long as you pay back what you borrowed. And not necessarily all the interest. They are so greedy it is sickening.They know they are sticking it to everyone with their high interest rates compounded monthly too.
I want to add a little more after reflecting back on this. What these negotiators do is make the creditors sweat it out. The negotiators already know how long they can wait before they HAVE to pay up. All that interest and late fees gets thrown right out the door when you have enough money to make a settlement. The creditors have to get something. And it is much easier and less expensive to accept a lower amount than what you owed. In my case it always alot lower than what I owed. Example: I had one credit card that I turned in to DebtXS that had a balance of about $5600. I stopped paying on it immediately. After awhile it had ballooned to about $7500 but I ended up settling that particular card for I believe about $2800. All my debts went like that. But then Uncle Sam comes to get you at tax time for “debts forgiven”. DebtsXS warned me this would happen. If I would not have had to pay the taxes I would have saved a ton of money!
Please do not consolidate. It is not free, they will lower your payments by increasing the length of time until you are debt free, and you will take a hit on your credit score. Or they negotiate your debt down after telling you not to pay for awhile adding another hit to your credit score. There is a better way.
A. Have a garage sale and sell anything that you no longer need or want.
B.Get a temporary part time job, if you have one, get another.
Here is a plan that can help you. If you work the plan, the plan will work for you:
1. Make a budget. Make the budget a week before you get paid. A budget is not a punishment! It is a tool which will free you from ever having to worry about money again. Put everything in your budget. Especially those annual, biannual, or quarterly bills like car registration, insurance, etc. Give every dollar you are going to bring home the name of where it is going. Add an “emergency fund” category to your budget for 25 dollars and save up until you have 1000-1250 dollars. Your emergency fund will help keep you from getting into new debt because of an emergency. If you can, set up a direct transfer to a savings account for your emergency fund. That way it moves automatically and you don’t even have to worry about it. You must cut your spending and live on less than you make.
2.First get current on all of you debts and make no more late payments. Stop using your credit cards immediately. Do not take on any more debt. Credit cards are like quicksand only the death is much slower. Make a list of all of your debts in order of highest interest rate to lowest interest. Use cash only for your spending from now on.
3.Pay the minimum due on all of your debts and then put your extra money towards paying off the highest interest one first. After you get that one paid off, you put the money you were paying on debt #1 (the minimum payment and the extra payment) towards debt #2. That will pay debt #2 off faster. When that is paid off, you put all three payments towards card #3 and that one will be paid off pretty quickly. As an example:
To start :
Debt #1 (highest interest): minimum payment+ extra payment
Debt #2 (middle interest): minimum payment
Debt #3(lowest interest): minimum payment
Debt #1: paid off
Debt #2: minimum payment from Debt #1+ Minimum payment from Debt #2 +extra payment
Debt #3: minimum payment
Debt #1: paid off
Debt #2: paid off
Debt #3:Minimum payment from card #1+ minimum payment from Debt #2+ minimum payment from Debt #3+ extra payment.
That way, you will get them all paid off, on time, and pay the least interest. It will also help towards rebuilding your credit since you will no longer have any late payments. This works no matter how many different debts you may have.
4. After you get all of your debts paid off, add to your emergency fund until you have 6-12 months of income saved up. Put that emergency fund money into a liquid money market fund or into a Bank of America no-risk CD so that if you need the money you can take it out without penalty.
5a. When you have your emergency fund in place, add a category for “fun” to your budget. Save for a holiday, a vacation, a big screen, or dinners out, whatever goal you want. Remember to enjoy your life.
5b. When you have your emergency fund in place, start saving for your retirement. Join the 401(k) plan at work and contribute the maximum. Your employer probably matches at least part of your contribution so why give up free money? Open a Roth IRA and contribute the maximum on a monthly basis. If you start saving for your retirement now, you will probably retire a millionaire.
5c. When you have your emergency fund in place, start saving for your next car. Only buy cars, or other things that depreciate, with cash. Save up for a nicer car. That way you get the interest instead of paying the interest.
You can do it and it isn’t as hard as you think. Just follow the plan.