Does going to a credit counseling service really help when in credit card debt?
October 29th, 2009
Linda Lee asked:
Are there better routes to go when in credit card debt rather than debt services?
Are there better routes to go when in credit card debt rather than debt services?
the counseling service does as much harm as good if you ask me, i work in lending and ccs reflects similar to a bankruptcy on your actual credit, consolidation and planning is a much more efficient way to handle credit card debt, if you own a home the equity in that home is far and away the best way to take care of credit card debt.
You can do it yourself…see for all kinds of good info, and I recommend you sign up for their e-newsletters – they’ll send you links to their new articles of interest to you.
i thought about doin this and then i found out it can/ will affect my credit rating, trying to get a car, trying to get a loan,etc. i ended up just budgeting my money an dcontrolling spending.
If you can avoid it by controlling your spending and paying on time every time or by taking out a second on your home if you own one you would be better off.
If none of the above is possible all I can say is it’s better than bankruptcy.
“Debt negotiators,” posing as non-profit organizations, can ruin your credit even further, advising you not to pay your credit card bills at all. They also charge upfront fees, maintenance fees, and monthly fees, all of which are supposed to be placed in a “trust” account. Then, after many months have passed, debt negotiators finally convince creditors to settle for less money than was owed, making yours an “uncollectible account.”
That tactic not only ruins your credit, due to the many “over 90 days late” remarks and collections notations, but all the money you supposedly saved — which was actually money you owed — will be considered as income by the IRS! In other words, if you owed $20,000 and settled for $12,000, you’d be required to list the $8,000 difference as income!
Credit repair companies promise to help clear up your credit problems. They write letters to credit bureaus, stating that various listed information is false, so the agencies will remove that information while they investigate your account. During that time, the credit repair company sends you a clean credit report, thereby giving you the false impression that you now have good credit. But after you’ve paid off the credit repair company, you’ll discover that all the negative items will soon reappear on your report. get more information from: