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.