by BlondieWrites on February 6, 2010
Medical debt plagues many households across the country and can often contribute to the terrible level of debt that many families and individuals are facing. While, medical debts can be erased with bankruptcy and other extreme measures, it’s important to take the time to exercise other options of debt management beforehand. The three main forms of debt management are debt consolidation, debt negotiation and credit counseling. In this article, we are going to focus on credit counseling and how finding the right credit counselor can help build a smart plan to pay off your medical debt and save your credit rating in the process.
Credit counseling is a great way to learn more about debt management and find a way to work with your medical creditors to find the best way to deal with your level of and specific kind of debt. Credit counselors should offer a variety of choices for you to work with your self or offer additional services that include them negotiating or working on your behalf.
Before you find a credit counselor, you need to understand your level of debt. First, make a list of all the medical debt you have and you should include the following information for each medical account: creditor, creditor contact information, interest rate, monthly payment and current balance. Second, take a deep breath and add it all up. This may be a hard number to face, but you need to be honest with your self and your credit counselor in order to face your medical debt head on and find a reasonable solution.
Once you are ready to find a credit counselor you should take the time to do some research to find a credible credit counseling company with reliable, certified credit counselors working for them. You should not be asked to pay for anything until the services have been completed, but you should have the opportunity to consult about what the fees will be so you can prepare for them at the end of the relationship. Your credit counselor should share all your options with you and give you the information to complete the tasks on your own, but also remind you they would be happy to complete them on your behalf if you are uncomfortable dealing with creditors. This is often the case with many people, so most credit counselors are trained to negotiate and deal with creditors.
Look on the website of the credit counseling companies you are most interested in and review their information and check for real customer testimonials. These are both important components when ensuring you are dealing with a credible company. Also, look for certifications, staff information and full contact information. When you are ready, set up a consultation (which should also be free) to go over your particular medical bills and hear the ideas and recommendations that credit counselor has, then you are prepared to start on your plan of action to get out from under your medical debt.
Don’t let medical debt set the stage for your future financial endeavors. Take a stand against your medical debts and find a way to stare them down while still preserving your future borrowing opportunities. Good credit is a privilege, not a right and needs to be earned with smart financial decisions and planning. Everyone makes mistakes, it’s how quickly you learn from your mistakes and the honest measures you take to correct and pay for your mistakes that show the kind of future borrower you can be. Take the time to learn from your credit counselor about how to make smart financial decisions and learn to live within your means. Creditors appreciate contact and payment, take responsibility by providing both and work with a credit counselor to put a plan into action immediately on your way to finding relief from your medical debt.
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by BlondieWrites on February 6, 2010
Credit card debt is the number one form of debt in the country and every day more and more Americans are finding themselves in deeper and deeper with credit card companies. When the payments seem high and many and the interest rates are beyond comprehension, you may be looking for relief. Debt negotiation can bring relief to the situation and allow you to fight for your hard earned money and still make your creditors happy.
Debt negotiation is a form of debt management that allows for the debtor or a representative of the debtor to negotiate the terms of the loan with the credit card company to reach a settlement amount and form a pay off or reduce the interest rate, thus bringing relief to the debtor. What this means for you is a way to pay off your credit card balance while saving a little money or by bringing relief to your monthly payments and shortening the amount of time it takes to pay off your balance by decreasing the interest rate.
The first step to successful debt negotiation is to know as much as each of your credit card accounts as possible. Pull out all the information for each account you have a make a short list of the following information for each account to have readily available when you call. You need to have the account balance, monthly payment, interest rate, creditor and full creditor contact information. Knowledge is power in this instance and the more you know about the company and how the company compares to your other accounts, the better the negotiating power you have.
While, credit counselors are trained in the art of debt negotiation and if you are absolutely unable to make the calls and negotiation yourself, you can find a credit counselor who offers debt negotiation services and have them make the calls for you. With that said, with a little courage and some confidence you can negotiate your own account and contracts with great success and a few tips.
Tip #1: The most important thing to remember when negotiating with your creditors is that you MUST be speaking with someone authorized to make changes to your account, otherwise you are wasting your time. Only certain supervisors are authorized to offer settlements and make changes to accounts and most people you talk to are only there for customer service and billing calls. Ask for a supervisor or account specialist before starting your pitch.
Tip #2: Put together some pay off money and know your back up bargaining chips. The best thing you can do is offer a pay out or settlement offer. To do this you need a lump sum that you can pay them to settle the debt if they agree. If you are unable to offer this, then you need to have the information in front of you to negotiate other conditions like a lower interest rate. For this you should have other credit card offers and accounts in front of you to offer what other companies are offering you. Many credit card companies would rather meet a lower interest rate, than lose your business.
Tip #3: Don’t take no for an answer. What this means is that if they don’t go for a settlement or pay out option, don’t give up. Instead ask for a lower interest rate or a loyalty credit to your balance. If they are resistant to lower your interest rate tell them you have other offers that you have been considering transferring your balance to that offer a lower interest rate. They will often at least match it, if not beat it. Even if your account is default, they would rather you stay with them and pay it than close the account and leave their company.
Debt negotiation can be a great tool for lowering your interest rates, monthly payments or finding a way to pay off credit card debt. These tactics can all bring success when partnered with a confident attitude and understanding of the credit card industry. With a little work and negotiation you can be well on your way to a life without credit card debt.
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by BlondieWrites on September 15, 2009
It’s one of the unfortunate aspects of being an adult – accumulating debt. If you are in debt, you probably didn’t start out as an adult with the goal of having as much debt as you currently have, and it most likely didn’t grow to the level it is overnight. If you want to get rid of the debt once and for all, you may want to use some of these ten tips for aggressive debt reduction.
1. Know what your total debt is so you know what you have to repay. Write down on a sheet of paper a list of all your creditors, the total amount owed, and what your minimum payments are for each. This list will give you a roadmap of how to get out of debt.
2. Do not incur additional credit card debt. If you have to, place your credit cards in a zip top bag filled with water and place it in the freezer so you don’t have easy access to it.
3. Create a realistic budget for expenses. List necessities such as mortgage, car payments, utilities, insurances, groceries, etc. as well as credit cards. Decide how best to spend your money to meet all of those financial needs. Stay within your budget.
4. Use extra income for debt repayment. Instead of spending that money, you may want to use all or part of it for debt reduction.
5. Be sure to continue to make all regular monthly payments on each credit card. You do not want to fall behind on any of them because it will reflect poorly on your credit history.
6. Pay off the credit card with the highest interest rate first unless there is one card that has a balance over 50% of your credit limit. In this case, you’d want to pay down this credit card until it gets to a balance of less than 50% of the limit. Then you’ll work to pay off the card with the highest interest rate. When you have that card paid off, close the account and cut up the card. Next you’ll roll that payment onto the card with the next highest interest rate. Continue this pattern – paying off one card and then adding that payment to the next card – until all of your credit card balances are paid off and there is only one card left.
7. Use cash instead of credit cards. For the one card you keep, use it only for emergencies or major purchases such as a new dishwasher. Put it somewhere in your wallet that will help you avoid using it for daily purchases. Do not accept increases to your credit limit.
8. Reduce discretionary spending such as dining out, gourmet coffee, or other unnecessary items. A family of four generally spends $30 for a meal. Four meals over the course of a month would be an extra $120 you could use to pay on credit cards or put into a saving account.
9. Avoid borrowing money from another source to pay off debt, especially organizations that promise to consolidate debt. This means to combine debt could lead you to lose everything if you can’t keep up with your payments.
10. Look for ways to come up with extra money. This could be stopping some services, moving to a smaller home, selling items you no longer use, or getting a part-time job.
It is possible to spend your money wisely and get out of debt. Use these ten tips for aggressive debt reduction to encourage you to begin making changes in the way you spend and save.
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by BlondieWrites on August 4, 2009
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