Showing posts with label Debt Management. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Debt Management. Show all posts

Sunday, November 29, 2009

3 Tips to Hassle Free Debt Settlement

Many of us have had issues when it comes to debt settlement. We get careless, make financial mistakes, get into an emergency where you are forced to spend money that was set aside for payments, and other stuff. Things happen, some of it controllable and some are not.

Finding yourself in deep debt is a scary thing. Letters, e-mails, and threatening phone calls are just few of the things that you have to go through when you’re in debt. They can be very stressful and will eventually affect your health if you continue to avoid settling them.

Many are fearful of debt settlement. I mean the processes of settling the obligation. Some think that they will be continuously hounded by creditors and will be stripped off their assets and other ugly stuff.

That is true if you continue to avoid your obligation and you show no sign of interest in settling them. If, however, you show creditors that you are willing to settle your obligations, they can be the bestest best friend you’ll ever have.

Here are 3 tips that will make debt settlement a positive experience for you.

Talk to your creditors – If you are in a bad situation and unable to pay off debts on time, say it straight to your creditors and explain your situation. Most often than not, creditors will work out something that will help you out.

Negotiate – Oftentimes, you can talk your way into lowering your interest rate, especially if you’ve been a good customer. Again, explain your situation and you will most likely get an approval. Negotiating your debt is better than running away from it so creditors appreciate that.

Stay true to your word – Once you got the OK. Debt restructuring, lower interest rates, and everything. Make sure to keep your word and pay religiously. Your reputation, from the creditor’s point of view, will remain intact as long as you keep your word.

Debt settlement is a debtor’s best friend. It’s out there to make things easy for you. Take advantage of it and make it work for you. Hiding from creditors will get you nowhere and will only make your life miserable. So deal with it… and deal with it real good.

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Thursday, November 26, 2009

Credit Counseling Services - 3 Tips to Finding Good Ones

Many of us make mistakes when it comes to managing our finances that lead us to trouble. Credit scores go down, collection agents start to hound you, and other nasty stuff brought about by debt. Those are indications that you should probably look for credit counseling services and weigh down your options.

There are many companies that offer credit counseling; and many of them actually care about your situation and deliver good results. But there are still no-good companies that offer the same kind of service so you should be careful in choosing who to trust your finances with.

A good company will start out by studying your finances such as your current debt, monthly amortizations, overdue debts, your monthly income, etc… and will work out a plan for you to pay off your debts without starving yourself to death. That was the only way I knew how to save extra money before I studied debt management.

Effective credit counseling services will often lay out a plan for you and it is up to you to follow it to the letter. These are well thought out plan that will fix your problem so having the discipline to stick to it is really important. If you think of things to even make it better, then discuss it with you credit counselor.

Finding companies that offer counseling is easy. Do a Google search and you’ll be presented with pages and pages of choices. But the question is “how do you find a company that delivers real results?” Here are some tips.

Research and ask around – If a company offers credit counseling services, chances are many people have used their services already. Look for reviews online, ask around in forums, ask at Yahoo Answers, whatever… as long as you can find real feedback about the services of the company.

Check with BBB – The Better Business Bureau is a very good place to look for complaints and feedback. If the company is good with BBB then they should be good.

Call customer service – Find out how they treat customers by calling them and asking some questions. Get a feel of how they assist customers and see whether they are good enough. Prepare some questions before hand and see if they can effectively answer your questions.

Credit counseling services are invaluable tools that can literally change your life and get you back on track when used correctly. Work with your credit counselor and consider all your options. And once you have a working plan, make sure to follow them.

Lack of discipline will be your worst enemy on your quest to effectively managing your finances and in raising your credit score.

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Monday, November 16, 2009

5 Credit Solutions That Work

When talking about credit and credit solutions, some people think that once you’ve made the mistake of pulling your credit score down, you are doomed to have a low score for life. Or that you will have to spend a lot of money in order to raise your score up.

Though there is some truth to that, but it’s far from being the end of the world. It may take some time and probably a little money, but raising your score up is definitely doable. You just have to have the right strategy and follow credit solutions that work.

If you have been browsing the net looking for information about raising your credit score, then you probably noticed that experts suggest different methods and strategies to raise a bad credit. This is because not all cases are the same. What worked for somebody may not work perfectly well for you.

What I will be talking about in this article are 5 strategies that work perfectly well in fixing a bad score. I believe these credit solutions can be effectively applied by anyone. But then again, consider your situation first before doing anything.

Review you credit report – This is the first step that you need take. You have to know why your score is down before you can take appropriate action. Most of the time, you will find inaccuracies in the report and simply having them removed can raise your score.

Pay up on time – Late payments and defaulted loans damage your credit score so much. Some people have a bad habit of paying bills on the due date or a few days late. This is a very bad habit that you need to avoid. Plus, you’ll get an X mark from lenders if they see that you have poor payment practices.

This is absurdly simple but is one of the best credit solutions there is.

Pay down your debts – Having too much debt makes you a risk. Lenders will shy away from you, as well as a good credit score, since you at risk of overextending your credit. And it’s only a matter time until you start missing payments.

Cut your credit cards – If you have six credit cards in your wallet, then do yourself a favor and cut four of them in half. Juggling debts will get you nowhere and will eventually get the best of you. You’ll only need two credit cards in order to survive, and make sure not to exceed 50% of your credit limit.

Be consistent – This is probably the most important out of the five credit solutions listed in this article. You have to be patient and stick to your plan. Your credit score will not dramatically change overnight, not even after a month. So consistency and discipline is key.

Your score tells a lot about you and how you behave when it comes to debt. Lenders give a lot of importance to it so making sure that your score is good is critical. Apply credit solutions that work in case your score stumbles.

Most importantly, you have to safe guard your credit score and make sure that nobody ruins it. Not even you.

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Monday, July 6, 2009

3 Simple Steps To Break A Credit Card Habit

You wake up one morning and you realize that your credit card debt is rising…FAST! But still, you can’t avoid using you credit card to get yourself some fancy items or dine at expensive restaurants. A tried and tested recipe for disaster, if credit scores could reach 0, I know many fellow citizens would get that big O.

Many people get easily addicted with credit card purchases, they’re like gonna die if they don’t get to swipe that card even for 1 day, and what’s sad, is if you look at their credit card purchases you’ll notice that most of them are unnecessary expenses. People get lured to the illusion of an expanded buying power. I say illusion because with credit cards you are merely borrowing money, and you get charged an interest rate that’s over the roof!

So, if you think of it, you are actually reducing your buying power everytime you use your credit card. You are spending money that you don’t actually have yet. Many people, including me at one point, are literally broke because of monthly credit card payments, they’re just juggling debt. Not funds but debt.

And what happens when you are unable to settle you credit card bills on time? You get bombarded with malicious letters and threatening calls.

So if you think you have the potential to become addicted to credit cards, better follow these 3 simple steps to break a credit card habit…NOW!
  • Close - This is easiest and most effective way to prevent yourself from spending money that you don’t have.
  • Cut - From the very first day that you come to your senses, cut your credit card in half so you can’t use it, then call to have it canceled.
  • Forget - Turn your back to credit cards completely! No matter how good the offer is, say no.
It might be a bit difficult at first, specially if you’ve become deeply dependent on your credit card. Sounds like drug addiction, huh? All addictions are basically the same, you develop a habit that is hard to break, only the consequences are a little different but they’re all devastating one way or another.

Ok, so now you gotta be disciplined enough keep your spending within your limits. If you want to buy something, save for it. It feels great to buy something without ever worrying about payments.

And if you happened to screw your credit score, then that’s a different story. It will take some work to beef up your credit ratings, but the good news, is that it is doable and it’s not as difficult as you might think.


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