When is debt consolidation right for you? Think Money
If you are considering debt consolidation , it is likely you have multiple debt repayments to make every month. In its simplest form, debt consolidation involves taking out one loan , large enough to repay all of your unsecured debts, leaving you with one loan repayment to make every month.
It's important to consider the benefits and drawbacks associated with debt consolidation before you decide whether it might be right for you.
Debt consolidation benefitsMaking one monthly payment is simpler than arranging two or more. You may find it makes budgeting and managing your finances simpler and more straightforward.
If you are able to find a debt consolidation loan with a lower APR (Annual Percentage Rate) than your current debts, you could lower the overall cost of repaying your debt.
If you can spread the debt consolidation loan over a longer repayment period, you could reduce your monthly payments.
Debt consolidation drawbacksIf you spread your debt consolidation loan over a longer period , there is a real possibility that you could pay more interest overall, making it more expensive in the long term.
9. Debt Consolidation - savingandinvesting.com
Some of the principles behind consolidating your debt explained.
debt consolidation?
Hello all, I have a question regarding debt consolidation. I have about 15k worth of debt and have tried applying to two companies for a debt consolidation loan and was denied both times. I thought about trying what one of the other posters suggested , writing to the individual companies threating a voluntary bankruptcy order. I have about 10k in the bank, but I don't want to borrow from that lender because I wouldn't be able to use the money in my account. My credit is only good. What other options do I have? Thanks
First thing, you do not need a debt CON-solidation loan. That fools you into thinking that debt is the problem when i is really just the symptom. The problem is the behavior that got you into debt. I know because I did it too, only with a lot bigger number than you. I will say that I am a huge fan of Dave Ramsey - I'll let you do your own research on his website.
First thing is: you must get on a budget and determine how much money you can throw at your bills each month. Stop investing until your bills are paid. Have a yard sale. However you can scrape up a dollar within legal means, do it.
Here is what I would do:
1) I would take $9K out of savings, leaving a $1K Emergency Fund
2) I would pay off debts from smallest to largest, regardless of the interest rate
3) I would then rebuild my savings to cover 3-6 months of household expenses.
After that, it gets fun when you get to keep your money and get rich.
http://best-loans.awardspace.com/Loan-Consolidation.htm
Unlike bankruptcy, in which debts are cancelled and your credit rating collapses completely, debt consolidation loans are essentially a type of refinancing, where several-->old loans are replaced with a new one that has more favorable terms. Your loan consultant will negotiate with creditors on your behalf, so you’ll no longer have to deal with harassing phone calls and daily mail.
Also, a good resource is...
http://www.safelinked.info/jump.php?link=debt
Good Luck.
How can I get debt consolidation with hospital bills and non credit card debt?
I have a bunch of hospital bills that really cost me in credit scores. I really want to try to consolidate it but I can't find anyone who does debt consolidation without credit card debt. Any suggestions?
Call the hospital and see if they have any programs that can help. Last month when I ended up in the ER with my gallbladder we got put on a payment plan where we only pay off $28 a month until the bill is gone. The surgeons office also worked out a plan where we actually only have to pay half of what the bill would have been (because my dingbat husband cancled our health insurance back in May *smacks head against wall*).
What is the best debt consolidation service?
I have a few credit card that are past due and I'm not able to make the payments.
What is the best debt consolidation company to use?
Keep in mind, I'm not a home owner.
I'm not a student and actually I'm looking for a better answer than the obvious budget and make more money.
Stay away from any that charge a fee.
Most if not all of these companies will trash your credit.
What they do is not pay your creditors for months and then try and settle for less under the threat of bankruptcy. No special skills. They just don't pay.
Your creditors do not have to deal with these people because it is your debt.
Also, If they don't pay you creditors. You, and you alone are still responsible for the debt. Your creditors will sue you and not the company you hire.
if not, continue to budget and spend less.
or make more money to pay off ur debt
If you must go the debt consolidation route, I would only recommend one -- CCCS, Consumer Credit Counseling Services. There should be an affiliate in your area, just do a search on CCCS and your town.city or state. They are the most reputable and have been around the longest. There are lots of scam artists out there who say they will consolidate your debts and then just end up taking a lot of your money and not getting much to the creditors. CCCS does charge you and it should still be a last resort if you can't do it on your own.
Good luck!
Here are some best,
http://debt-relief-free.blogspot.com/
How do you know which debt settlement or debt consolidation program to choose, when theirs 1000's out there?
How do you know which program is good and which one is right for you. I heard their is a way to check there beruo report or something, not sure what its called. How can you see the results and reputation of the debt settlement program or debt consolidation program.
Most of the debt repair/consolation/settlement companies want their fees up front and leave you credit trashed.
Check nfcc.org for listings legit non-profit credit counseling services. They can help you set up a budget and work out clearing up your debt.
You can tackle your debt yourself by putting every extra penny on the highest interest rate debt, while making minimum payments on the rest. When the highest is paid, move to the next, till they are all paid off.
It will take 2 or 3 years but if you work at it, you'll be out of debt with a good payment history.
The advantage of a debt consolidation repayment plan is that it prevents your creditors from harassing you as long as you go on making lower monthly payments. The drawback of the debt consolidation repayment plan is that all your credit cards are cancelled. You have to make the first payment for the program and an extra fee is levied every month. This fee can range from $10-$50 for all your creditors while others charge $5 for every creditor. This will set you back by about $30 each month that you would have otherwise used to repay your debt.
What are the advantages and disadvantages of debt consolidation?
I have two credit cards that I have used over 5 years ago and never paid back. The total of the two cards FIVE YEARS AGO was $1000. Of course, by now, it should be close to $3000 because of all the interests.
What does debt consolidation do? More importantly, can it REALLY remove or reduce the interest that built up over the last 5 years?
When doing a search for debt consolidation services, I get THOUSANDS of results. Which debt consolidation services are better?
Detailed answers would be appreciated.
Update: Am I correct to assume that if I leave the debt as it is, I can have it completely wiped off my credit card two years from now as if it never happened?
Hi, Jimmy:
First, I already answered a related question, so I've copied that answer below after the dashes.
If your number one objective is to simply improve your credit, you could just wait it out for another 2 years until the debt is 7 years old. You can then ask for it to be removed from your credit report. If this is your objective, then don't pay the debt. Records on your credit report are good from 7 years of last transaction so any payments or charges you make resets that 7-year clock.
Personally, I've never used a debt consolidation company because I've felt capable of trying the same tactics myself. Granted, these companies are professionals and may get special "deals" and privileges that I wouldn't get, but I've still been pretty pleased with my own results.
Before using a debt consolidation company, I recommend trying your own hand at it. Contact your creditors. Before you do, determine how much you can afford to pay in a monthly payment. Even better, if you have some money saved up as a lump sum, you can try to pay them off in a couple of chunks. The more money you can give them at once, the better your negotiating power.
If you're in collections, ask the creditors by how much they'll reduce the total amount owed if you pay now/in 30 days/in 60 days/within a year.
If you're not in collections yet, ask the creditors how much they'll reduce your total interest. Some companies (e.g. Discover used to do this) will even suspend interest entirely while you're in re-payment. Of course, you can't use the credit card during that time, but you're saving money and salvaging your credit.
Good luck!
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There are several benefits to credit card consolidation:
- Convenience (only one or two payments)
- Easier to manage (less likely to forget a bill!)
- Possibly a lower combined interest rate
Generally, when companies help you by consolidating your credit cards, they contact the credit card companies on your behalf and try to negotiate a lower interest rate (you can do this on your own, by the way). Then, the companies can take one of several methods for that single consolidated payment. Options include...
- Financing your debt themselves and then THEY pay your creditors
- Helping you find a financier to consolidate your debt
- Having you roll all of your debt under one of your existing accounts and pay off the others
As such, credit card consolidation does not affect your credit rating. In fact, the results of consolidation are often positive simply because it's easier to manage and you may pay less interest.
All this being said, I've never used a consolidation agency because I never wanted to pay the fees. Instead, I contacted my creditors myself and asked for the best possible interest rate they could give me, and asked what kind of arrangements I could make to manage debt. In general, they all worked with me.
By the way, here's one thing to consider when paying off your debt: Bad credit falls off your credit report 7-10 years after your last transaction. So, if you have a liability that is 6 years and 10 months old, carefully consider whether you pay it off or not. If you touch that account at all, even if it's to pay it off, suddenly that 7-year period is renewed. So, the choice you have to make is: Do you want something that was bad and is now paid on your credit report for another 7 years, or do you just want it gone entirely?
There are some ethical questions there, too (e.g. if the debt was yours and you were above 18 at the time, you should pay the debt to be ethical). These are questions that only you can answer. But, when working with a consolidation company, make sure they only consolidate the accounts you want them to touch.
Good luck.
Debt consolidation companies are companies that act on your behalf talk to the companies you are in debt with, perhaps negotiate the debt down if you have not paid on it in awhile and perhaps it has gone to collections. Some or most of these companies are non-profit companies, however there is a charge of a percentage of what they save for you that is normally leveled against you.
You can do the same thing yourself by finding a company that will give you a loan to pay off all your credit card debt and other debt that you might have into one single debt, thus reducing your debts to a single debt with a lower monthly payment, and in most cases lower interest rate, but the interest rate will depend on your credit scores off your credit report. You don't have to have the top scores to accomplish this. Lower scores simply mean that your interest on your debt consolidation loan would be a little higher, though probably less than what you would be paying for all your credit cards and on the debt combined.
From what I gather you have two credit cards that you are behind in payment since you indicated you have 2 cards over a 5 year period that you have yet to pay back what you have used on them.
They have probably been sold to another company by now. this is called a charge off by the company that originally had your credit card debt. You, in some cases, can call those companies that have purchased your unpaid debt, make a bargin to pay them in one lump sum, say you are able to pay them 1/3 of what you owe. In this instant you stated that the debt was at one time $1000. If it was sold for that amount you might be able to pay if off completley for around $350.00, just make sure that if you do you ensure that the company send a piece of paper to the credit bureaus that the debt is "PAID" simply "PAID" this will cause your credit score to go up a little better than "PAID CHARGE OFF" which they will place on your credit report if you don't ask them to place "PAID" on your credit report.
I hope this has helped you in some way.
First, and most important, DESTROY ALL your credit cards. No use consolidating debt if you just use it as an excuse to get into more debt.
Second, make payments that are about the same as you make on the total of all your payments at the moment. ie if you have 3 payments of $75.00, arrange your new loan so that your new monthly payment is about $200.00.
Now, to answer your question. Debt consolidation is getting one loan to pay out all your other loans. This means that you have only one payment per month to pay and that payment is a set amount. Depending on the terms of the loan the payment or the length of the loan may vary if interest rates go up or down.
With debt consolidation, you arange a personal loan which may be secured or unsecured at an interest rate which is far lower then your credit cards and often with reduced fees. Here, you may pay 15% to 20% interest on your cc but only 7% to 10% on a personal loan. A saving of between 5% and 13% on $3000.00 will be as little as $150.00 to as much as $390.00 in the first year.
The thing is that you have only one debt to pay, and destroying your credit cards stops ffurther debt.
Yes, it should help reduce the interest you pay on your debt. The only way you can eliminate it is to pay it off.
There is some great advice in the bible to everyone, not only Christians. It comes from Rom 13:8 and says " Owe no man any thing, but to love one another..."
I have debt, but I am heading to the place where I can be compliant with this Godly advice.
How much does it cost generally to pay a debt consolidation company?
I was wondering how much does it cost to pay a debt consolidation company to help you, because I want to know if it's worth it. I'm in so much debt making barely and I don't know what else to do. On payday I usually just have 100-200 dollars to myself because the rest goes to my bills.
Credit Counselors charge between $10-$50/month and get your interest rates cut a bit.
Debt Settlement companies usually charge about 15% of what you owe over the term of your program.
A mortgage debt consolidation will cost you from 1% to 4% of the amount you refinance.
What you should really look at is what is the total cost to get debt free, how long the program will take, and how low each can get your monthly payment.
Try to get a free consultation from someone, this page had a good review of your options and considerations so you choose the right path for your situation:
http://www.bills.com/blog/consolidate-debts/
Where can I find a personal debt consolidation loan for people with bad credit?
I am in dire need of a debt consolidation loan and I have bad credit. I can make things work with $5000, but I do not know where to start. I have seen people with yahoo addresses claiming they can loan money but they sound fishy as it is not a company email, their emails always seem to be yahoo. Any info will help. I fell on hard times and am now able to pay my monthly bills but I cant seem to catch up what I fell behind on. PLEASE help asap. I have a 5yr old and I do not want him to suffer us loosing our home or car.
Debt consolidation is an option, and you should look into it. Just be careful about WHAT you're getting into. Some plans, because of their higher APR rates get you into more trouble than you were.
Also, some lenders look poorly upon it later on. Some institutions believe that it really is a black mark. It will depend upon the types of deals that your particular company or lender work out, and of course, your own individual circumstance. For some with absolutely NO way out, debt consolidation is a welcome option.
Take a good hard look at all the options and plans offered, and don't let a single company pressure you into something you just can't do. Make sure that you're comfortable with the plan offered before you commit to it.
In any case, it doesn't hurt to investigate debt consolidation as an option. It doesn't cost you anything to find out more information about it.
If you want a place to start your investigating, there's information and listings for debt consolidation providers on the page listed below. You'll probably find something of use there:
http://axalda.info/debt-consolidation.html
What is a good, reputable debt consolidation company?
I am thinking about doing debt consolidation, but am confused by all the different companies out there. I have heard that there are a lot of shady companies. Does anyone have some helpful advice. My debt is not a huge amount ($6000), but I am tired of paying and paying on them and never seeing a difference on the balances.
I would suggest not going through a debt consolidation company because there are many bad ones out there. Plus borrowing money to pay off your loans to get one payment is like "Borrowing from Peter to pay Paul" as my grandparents told me once. If you do a search on the internet, many of the loan consolidation companies are listed on Rip Off Reports website.
Here is some advice to do this on your own. With only $6,000 in debt, you should be able to do this fairly quick. Others are using the same method with over $100,000 in debt. It works.
First thing of course would be to cut up the credit cards and make a commitment to never charge again. Then follow the following plan.
Make a list all your debts by amount you owe from smallest to largest. Then begin by paying the "most" amount you can each month to the smallest debt with the idea of paying it off quick. Then, only pay the minimum payment on the larger debts. Continue doing this every month until you have the smallest one paid off. Everytime you pay off a debt, call the company and tell them to close the account ... that you paid off the debt and that you do not want to leave the account open. They will try to talk you into leaving the account open. Don't do this as it is too convenient and you will be tempted and will sink into debt again. You then start paying the most you can on the next smallest debt in line and go on from there until you have each paid off. Every time you get any extra money, whether it be $5, $10 or more, apply it against your debt even if you have already sent in a payment. You can send in payments more than once a month. Don't go out to eat. It's "beans and rice, rice and beans" as Dave Ramsey always says which just means (cheap meals that you can fix at home). LOL Also do things to make money like garage sales, sell on eBay, get a second job, anything to help you get money to apply toward that debt. It's not about obtaining the best credit score, it's about eliminating the debt.
You can get more help on how to accomplish this by reading and listening to Dave Ramsey. He has a talk show which you can hear on line through his archives, or live on line, or by radio by entering your zip code and find out what time of day his show airs. Plus there is a lot of reading material on his site to get you started. In addition, he has forums from his site to get help and advice from other people who are in debt. Dave has been there (with debt) and knows what it is like and is now helping people to get out of it. There are people that have followed this method with over $100,000 in debt and have gotten it paid off without going through bankruptcy and without getting some debt help company to do it for them. Dave's website link is below. I would also consider getting his book if you can. I gave mine away a few days ago to someone else on Yahoo Answers who is trying to do the same thing. It is worth the money and not that much, but you can obtain much information just by reading his site, going into his forums (there is a free trial offer) and listening to him on air.
I hope this information helps you and you get the relief you need. Best of wishes to you.
http://www.daveramsey.com
what is the best debt consolidation company?
I am looking for the best debt consolidation company to help get me out of the mess I am in. Suggestions?
They are ALL SCAMS. Don't get ripped off.
Go see a local non-profit debt counselor. They will elp you with a budget and help you work with the creditors. No fast easy fixed.
What exactly happens to your credit if you do debt consolidation?
I have $7,000 in debt and I have heard about debt consolidation. Does this negatively affect your credit rating? Do you get to choose how much you pay monthly or is there a set amount they make you pay? I live in Canada, if that matters.
I went online to look up your question, and here's what I found....I hope that it helps you out....Best of luck to you!!
debt consolidation - News
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Clearing up some debt confusion - Allentown Morning Call Clearing up some debt confusion Most people don't understand the differences among debt consolidation, counseling, settlement and elimination. They're looking for a magic wand to wave to Credit Counselors See Younger Clients, More Debt Getting out of debt Is credit counseling right for you? |
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Dave says: Credit consolidation services ruin credit - Norristown Times Herald Dave says: Credit consolidation services ruin credit I think we should live on a really tight budget and save like crazy, but my husband is really fired up about using a debt consolidation service. |
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Think Debt Relief Expands Its Consumer Services With Attorney ... loan modification programs, credit counseling services, and a debt settlement program that serves as an alternative to costly debt consolidation loans. |
Pandit Dismantles Weill Empire to Salvage Citigroup
New Zealand Herald CitiFinancial, a global network of 3799 branches that offers car loans, home-equity lines and personal “debt- consolidation” loans to repay credit cards and Video: Money Minute: Citigroup, Cessna, Oil Morgan Stanley buys controlling interest in Smith Barney Comment by Christopher Whalen Managing Director, Institutional Risk Analytics
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Consolidation loan Information - Meadow Free Press Consolidation loan Information You can get a debt consolidation loan irrespective of the type of outstanding loans - secured or unsecured. When you take a debt consolidation loan, DEBT CONSOLIDATION LOANS: PROVIDES YOU ALL INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR Is Debt Consolidation The Magic Bullet? Science news straight from the source |
