10 Tip-Offs You’re Heading for a Debt Disaster
Like most of life’s major problems, a debt disaster doesn’t happen overnight. There are clear warning signs that crushing debt could grow out of control.
Here are 10 Tip-Offs that you’re heading for a debt disaster. See how you score.
1. Your bank account is consistently overdrawn.
If you keep getting those thin envelopes in the mail from your bank telling you that your checking account is overdrawn, it’s time to regroup and find out why you’re not keeping up.
If you keep getting those thin envelopes in the mail from your bank telling you that your checking account is overdrawn, it’s time [...] Continue Reading…
Debt Settlement Industry Responds to Misinformation
The Association of Settlement Companies (TASC), the debt settlement industry’s largest trade group, today responded to misstatements and inaccurate information released by Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan and the Chicago Sun-Times.
“There are many good debt settlement companies who are helping tens of thousands of consumers resolve their debt when no other help is available,” David Leuthold, executive director of TASC, said. “Characterizing the entire industry negatively is wrong and only misleads consumers in the end.”
TASC is correcting the following statements made either by Madigan and/or that appeared in a April 12, 2010 article in the Sun-Times:
Misstatement: Labeling debt settlement [...] Continue Reading…
Debt Settlement – Fact Vs. Fiction: What You Need To Know About Debt Settlement
With the economy failing, consumers are finding their unsecured debt rising, coupled with limited resources to pay. What options do you have as a consumer to save your credit and avoid bankruptcy?
The good news is that you have options, but with all of the companies out there trying to make a quick buck, it is in your best interest to educate yourself to avoid being scammed. Countless articles on the Internet warn consumers of unscrupulous credit counseling and debt settlement companies. They are completely different services and can benefit you in different ways. Researching these options and educating yourself [...] Continue Reading…
Great Article on How to improve, and keep up, your credit score
Paying down balances is the first step in getting your rating in order
updated 1:19 p.m. MT, Wed., Dec . 30, 2009
NEW YORK – Your past is never really behind you. Or so it seems when it comes to credit reports.
As you prepare to shape up your finances in 2010, you’ll find that improving your credit score is among the more complicated tasks.
You may be bewildered by what helps or hurts your score, by how much and for how long. Regardless of whether you understand how it’s calculated, the number you’re tagged with can play a big hand in your [...] Continue Reading…
5 Evil Things Credit Card Companies Can (Still) Do
by Julianne Pepitone
Saturday, October 24, 2009provided by
The credit card reform bill tries to help cash-strapped customers, but companies are coming up with new ways to boost profits.
The Bill
Credit card companies are socking it to consumers left and right.
They’re hiking interest rates to as much as 36% and doubling minimum monthly payments, frustrating customers who are already cash-strapped and credit-crunched.
In an effort to curb these abusive practices, President Obama signed into law a credit card reform act in May that’s rolling out in three parts over 12 months.
At the same time, credit card companies have been hard at work coming [...] Continue Reading…
Right of Offset. How safe is Your Money in Your Own Checking Account?
If you deposit funds into a bank where you have a car loan, credit card, mortgage or any other debt, you likely have what’s called a “banking conflict”. You are housing assets where you also have liabilities and more often than not, the “right of offset” will apply. This means that if you have a depository account with funds available and for some reason do not pay these bills, the depository institution will have the legal right to freeze and seize any funds available to offset monies due to them.
While all banking institutions, as permitted by state law, have [...] Continue Reading…
What Kind Of Debt Qualifies For A Debt Settlement Program?
Not all debts are qualified to be entered into a debt settlement or debt negotiation program. Because of the nature of this type of debt relief and the process that is employed, only balances which are unsecured can be affected and reduced by this type of program.
Unsecured Versus Secured
Unsecured means unattached. Credit cards are just one example of unsecured debt. Whether they are Visa/MasterCard or local merchant or department store cards, most of these balances can be negotiated down to a fraction of what you owe. Unsecured signature loans and lines of credit (those not attached to personal property) [...] Continue Reading…
How Debt Settlement Affects and Helps Mend Your Credit Score
TRUTH – You will experience a negative impact with any debt reduction or debt elimination program.
With that said, Debt Settlement will have the least negative impact of any debt relief option, especially when employed without a Third Party Assistance (TPA) notation on your credit report. This means that the company that you use to help you negotiate with your creditors will not be required to report your participation in their program to the 3 major credit bureaus, Experian, TransUnion and Equifax. THIS IS HUGE! Documentation of that nature will show that you gave up control of your finances and [...] Continue Reading…
Avoiding Bankruptcy – Bankruptcy Alternatives
Most people who are in debt are looking desperately for a way to avoid bankruptcy. They scramble to create new budgets, ways to spend less and make their pennies stretch further. Much to the dismay of countless consumers, it’s a relatively simple process to get into debt, but not so easy to get out of. Buy now, pay later has been the source of many consumers financial destruction. What you purchase on credit today, may look affordable in your budget, it may even BE affordable at the moment. The problem is that things change very quickly in the wide [...] Continue Reading…
Debt Settlement. What is it and What Type of Consumer Can Benefit from This Type of Debt Relief?
Let’s begin by saying that debt settlement is not for just any consumer. For those who have difficulty managing their money or figuring out which bills to pay and in what priority to place them in, a debt settlement program is NOT for you. In most cases, it will do little more than elongate your situation and create additional hardship. Let’s put it this way. If you enroll in a program that is 24 months long and you drop out in 7 months, you will likely have lost fees that you’ve invested and be deeper in debt. Let’s not [...] Continue Reading…