Should You Use A Credit Counseling Service or A Debt Management Program?

For many people, using a credit counseling service or debt management program may be the best choice. If you are having trouble paying your bills on time, have creditors calling you, or are simply finding paying the bills too stressful, it may be in your best interests to get help from a credit counselor, or have a debt consolidation company deal with your creditors. A credit counseling company can tell you if you are a good candidate for a debt consolidation program. Another person managing your debt may be a great stress relief, as well as saving you money in the long run by negotiating lower interest rates with your creditors, and avoiding future late payment charges. This would also consolidate all of your payments into one payment per month, which for many people and families, is a lot easier to handle and budget for.

Choosing a credit counseling service requires a lot of research. There are many message boards and websites where you can ask people their opinions of their experiences with a particular company – a money based message board can be a good place to get people’s experiences, although you can also check with the company’s local Better Business Bureau to see if there have been any complaints against them, as well as checking with their local courthouse to see if they have been sued. The advantages and disadvantages of many different companies and their programs can be found by searching on the internet for information that doesn’t just come from the particular company’s website or TV commercials.

Credit counseling services and debt consolidation companies offer a wide variety of debt management services. Some are government sponsored, while some are not-for-profit or even for-profit agencies. Be sure and find out how they are paying their employees – you don’t want to end up with another huge debt to pay just to get out of your current debt. A small donation is often acceptable to many companies, while others may have a sliding scale for payments.

Credit counseling services can help you to form a budget and offer financial advice for you to consolidate your debt and pay off your bills yourself. Or you can have a debt consolidation company pay your bills, by sending the company a monthly payment and having them negotiate with your creditors. Some credit agencies will not deal with debt consolidation companies, and you will not be able to consolidate whatever loan or credit you have with that company.

You might not be able to use a credit counseling service if you cannot pay your minimum payments each month. In that case, you may need to get a bank loan and consolidate your loans yourself, or you may need to find another way to deal with your debt, such as a family loan, getting another job, or even, if all else fails, declaring bankruptcy.