Working with a credit counselor

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If creditors are continously calling and you are unable to work on a budget, it may be time for a credit counselor to step in. The most easiest way to search for a credit counselor is to thumb through your yellow pages or hop on to the internet. If you are unable to pay your debts on time or you are unable to pay at all, a credit counselor can help you create a payment plan to eliminate your debts. Different credit counseling agencies have different pricing. Seek fro non-profit credit counseling agencies so you end up paying very little in fees. Call a handful of credit counseling agencies and work with the one you are most comfortable with. Ask questions and see how they respond to your debt questions. If you are satisfied with the quality of the answers, they might be the best for you.



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Working with a credit counselor
Worried about debt collectors? Can't seem to develop a workable budget? Unable to save for retirement? If these sound familiar, you may want to consider a credit counseling agency.

Here's How:
Look under "credit counseling" in your telephone directory or your Internet search engine to find a credit counselor near you.

If you have too much debt or are unable to repay your debt, a counseling agency may work out a Debt Repayment Plan for you where you deposit money each month with the counseling agency.

Since some agencies charge little or nothing for managing the plan and others charge a significant fee over time, you need to know up front what the cost will be. Are they non-profit?

Repayment plans usually cover only unsecured debt (i.e. cards, dentist). If your secured debts (i.e. car, house) are not included , you must continue to make payments to creditors directly.

If you fall behind with secured debt, consider working directly with the holder of the title yourself. Most lenders will work with you if you're acting in good faith and the situation is temporary.

Some secured lenders may reduce or suspend payments for a short time. When you resume payments, you may have to pay extra toward the past due total, so ask about any fees charged for these changes.

If selecting a credit counseling agency, interview several. Check with the Better Business Bureau to find out if consumers have filed complaints about the provider you are considering.

During the initial interview find out their fee, sources of funding, who regulates and audits their operation, what are the counselors qualification, and is their a formal written agreement.

Concerning their repayment plan, ask specific questions such as what happens if repayment is more than you can afford and how secure is the information you provide. You should know if you will receive status reports and can you access your accounts?

Sometimes counsellors can get creditors to lower or eliminate interest and finance charges. Some agencies have multiple plans which you should ask about.

Tips:

A debt repayment plan does not erase your credit history. Under the Fair Credit Reporting Act, accurate information about your accounts can stay on your credit report for up to seven years.

Creditors may report an account in financial counseling, payments missed, or that there are write-offs, etc. But a demonstrated pattern of timely payments should help you get credit in the future.

A credit counselor is the perfect person to ask about setting up a budget and money saving tips.

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Beware of credit-counseling fraud

If you're one of the estimated 9 million debt-stressed Americans who seek help from credit-counseling agencies each year, you might be getting less than you sign up for--and may even find yourself in a deeper hole. Why? Because the booming credit-counseling industry, with an aggressive new class of shady agencies, is rife with "improper advice, deceptive practices, excessive fees and abuse of nonprofit status," according to "Credit Counseling in Crisis," a report by the National Consumer Law Center (nclc.org) and the Consumer Federation of America (consumerfed.org). "It is virtually impossible to distinguish the honest, caring agencies from the rip-off artists by just looking at a TV ad or making a quick phone call," says Travis Plunkett, CFA's legislative director and coauthor of the report.
But unless you're on the verge of bankruptcy, "You can take your own steps to get out of debt," says Elisabeth DeMarse, president and CEO of Bankrate.com, a leading Web site for personal-finance information. "The first step is to stop using your credit cards immediately, and then pay two or three times the minimum each month." If you cannot make payments and require debt management, DeMarse advises that you look for a nonprofit agency in your community that's affiliated with the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (nfcc.org). "And," she adds, "it's a good idea to go and visit the agency to make sure it actually exists."




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Working with a credit counselor
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