Wednesday, May 25, 2011

A Real Look At Debt Consolidation

By Adriana Noton


Just because someone gets behind in their debts does not mean they are a bad person. In real life things happen all the time. In real life, jobs are lost and spouses die. Either one of these can put a person's finances in turmoil, and it not be their fault. Once you find yourself behind on your monthly obligations, it can be really hard to get caught back up. In many instances, debt consolidation may be the answer.

If you are having money problems, cutting back on expenses is an absolute must. By doing this you'll be able to pinpoint areas where you can save money and then turn around and put that money onto the bills to catch them up. Many people will deny that they are actually spending more money than they have to, and not an honest look at their finances.

Most households have cable television, and movie packages they seldom use. These can be eliminated to save money. You could also do things like pack your lunch instead of eating out everyday. Cutting out magazine and web-based subscriptions is also a good idea until you get caught up.

You can figure out exactly where your money is going by getting a pen and paper and sitting down to list everything you pay for every month. You will need to list everything and account for every dollar spent. This type of accountability will give you the much needed mental jolt to do the right thing.

You can also have your bills consolidated into one monthly payment. There are services which will do this for you. The good thing about using a service such as this is that it is a hands-off solution which can literally change your financial situation overnight. The first thing they will do is add up all your monthly expenditures and accumulated debt to see if you qualify.

Once it has been established that you have enough debt to proceed, they will then assess all of your assets and liabilities to develop a plan which will best suit your needs. The company will handle all of your creditors at one time. You will no longer be making payments directly to your creditors. Instead you will be making one monthly payment to the consolidation company.

The service will negotiate lower payments and even go as far as reducing some of your interest rates in order for them to receive payments. Your creditors will be dealing directly with the service you have chosen as your representative and should not be calling you once everything has been settled.

After you have begin the debt consolidation process, you will no longer be able to use the services of the creditors which you owe. This is standard operating practice that you cannot have any credit extended until all bills are paid off in full. You also be glad to know that going through a consolidation company will also look better on your credit than if you had filed for bankruptcy.




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