Free Debt Management Plan Personalized Debt Management Advice

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1 Free Debt Management Plan Personalized Debt Management Advice Debt Management Plan: Pros & Cons A debt management plan (DMP) can make life a lot less hectic for you if it is implemented correctly. But, like every significant financial decision, both the pros and cons of debt management should be presented. The Pros of Using a Debt Management Plan: A debt management plan typically reduces the amount of time that you are in debt. Most plans take place over the course of three to five years, which will help get you on a more stable financial track in less time. Since most credit card debt spins wildly out of control, using a plan will help minimize that timeline. Establishing a payment plan will help you maintain a good payment history. While most people s FICO score take a significant hit, you will be more likely to be extended a new line of credit if you have made all necessary monthly payments for a period of a couple of years. A debt management plan will help you negotiate your current debts, and as such, lower the interest rates on any outstanding balances. You will only have to make a payment to one company instead of several different creditors. The Cons of Using a Debt Management Plan: Your counseling agency will not want you to take on any new forms of credit during the time in which you are participating in a debt management plan. That means that you will need to carefully cut expenses so that you have enough money to make regular monthly payments without putting any of it on a new credit card, and without taking out any further unsecured loans. Even though your creditors may be willing to negotiate a new payment system, they will most likely mark your account as not being paid as agreed. This will count as a negative item on your credit history, and while bankruptcies typically last for ten years, this note will probably last for approximately seven years. Be aware that there are both for-profit and non-profit debt management organizations. Carefully perform background checks on the debt management companies you are researching to save yourself any hidden fees that they may charge.

2 Debt Management Companies Below are listed several debt management companies as well as their contact information. Because the credibility of these organizations can vary greatly, it is important to carefully investigate them before enrolling in a debt management plan. Here are some points to consider before enrolling in a debt management program: Is the organization a non-profit? Is the debt management company licensed and bonded in my state? Are there any upfront fees? What are the administrative fees? Does this program also offer debt management counseling? What strategies do they explore to reduce your monthly payments? Company City State Website Phone Free In Five Tempe Arizona freeinfive.com Take Charge America Phoenix Arizona takechargeamerica.org Springboard Nonprofit Consumer Credit Management Riverside California credit.org Consumers Alliance Processing Corp. Carlsbad California caprocessing.com National Foundation for Debt Management Clearwater Florida nfdm.org InCharge Debt Solutions Orlando Florida incharge.org Credit Card Management Services West Palm Beach Florida debthelper.com CreditGuard of America Boca Raton Florida creditguard.org Consolidated Credit Counseling Services Fort Lauderdale Florida consolidatedcredit.org Lighthouse Credit Foundation Largo Florida lighthousecredit.org

3 Company City State Website Phone 2182 CredAbility Atlanta Georgia credability.org DRS Boise Idaho debtreductionservices.org Family Credit Management Services Rockford Illinois familycredit.org American Consumer Credit Counseling Auburndale Maine consumercredit.com Cambridge Credit Counseling Agawam Maine cambridge-credit.org CareOne Services Columbia Maryland careonecredit.com Consumer Credit Counseling Services of MD and DE Baltimore Maryland cccs-inc.org Greenpath Debt Solutions Farmington Hills Michigan greenpath.com Credit Advisors Omaha Nebraska creditadvisors.org Novadebt Freehold New Jersey novadebt.org Debt Counseling Corp. Hauppage New York debtcounselingcorp.org CESI Debt Solutions Raleigh North Carolina cesidebtsolutions.org Family Life Credit Services West Fargo North Dakota familylifecredit.org Apprisen Financial Advocates Columbus Ohio apprisen.com

4 Company City State Website Phone Trinity Credit Counseling Cincinnati Ohio trinitycreditservices.com Pioneer Credit and Debt Consolidation Services Rapid City South Dakota pioneercredit.com Cornerstone Financial Education Austin Texas csfedu.org Money Management International Sugar Land Texas moneymanagement.org ClearPoint Credit Counseling Solutions Richmond Virginia clearpointcredit counselingsolutions.org AFS Credit Counseling Seattle Washington myfinancialgoals.org Family Financial Education Foundation Evanston Wyoming ffef.org Once you have understood the basic ideas of debt management, the next step is to consider whether you would like to create your own debt management plan, or if you should examine professional debt management companies to handle negotiations with your creditors. How do I know if I need a debt management plan? If you have a couple student loans, or a large mortgage, a debt management plan is most likely not the right debt management solution for you. If, however, you are swimming in thousands of dollars in unsecured loans or credit card debt, a debt management company may be able to negotiate the terms of your loans with your creditors. You will most likely be able to lower the interest rates of the outstanding loans, reduce your minimum monthly payments to make it more manageable, reduce the amount of the loan, or reduce the term of the loan. You should consider a DMP, if you are experiencing the following situations: You have tried managing your own debt, but have been unsuccessful in managing payments You have many outstanding loans or bills to different companies You are being harassed by collection companies You feel overwhelmed with getting your financial situation back on track

5 What steps does a DMP take to help rectify my financial situation? There are typically four major steps that a debt management company takes in order to improve your debts: 1. Details of your current financial situation are processed and analyzed by the company in order to insure that all debts are accounted for, and to form a realistic picture of what can be done to improve your financial situation. 2. The debt management company negotiates on your behalf with your creditors and collection agents to secure rates that are more manageable than what you are currently paying. 3. A payment plan is set up with creditors to insure that each company is paid the correct amount each month, and so your loans will be paid off in a reasonable amount of time. 4. Once your debt management company has completed steps 1-3, they will return to you with a fixed monthly amount that you will pay. This payment will cover all minimum payments for your creditors, as well as any new fees accrued from your management company. Creating Your Own Debt Management Plan A debt management plan can take on many forms. It could refer to a debt management company that you might employ to help consolidate your debts, or more importantly, it could also refer to the series of steps that you take in order to set yourself on a path to financial freedom. Advantages of creating your own debt management plan: By creating your own debt management plan, you truly own your debt. You have taken control of your own financial situation in order to dig your way out of debt, by understanding precisely what amounts of debt you owe to each creditor. While it sounds convenient to rely on an outside credit counseling agency or debt settlement company, you have taken the step forward to managing your money, and you ll reap the rewards for carefully allotting monthly payments. Once your out of debt, this will increase the chances that you ll be more responsible with your money, and that you will be able to stick to a monthly budget as well as maintain a regular investment portfolio. This is absolutely the best free debt management plan that you will find anywhere. You have to remember that most debt counseling and settlement agencies are for-profit institutions, and the financial industry is ripe with people who will take advantage of you if you aren t aware of the many pitfalls that await you. Even credible companies will seek to make enormous profit off of you through administrative fees and late fees; both of which you re probably already suffering from if you have fallen into significant credit card debt.

6 Disadvantages of creating your own debt management plan: Ask those who have come before you, and most will attest that sticking to their own personal repayment program has probably been one of the biggest challenges in their lives. While you maintain control of your financial situation, that control can quickly spin out of control, and you ll end up in a significantly worse position than you were in the first place if you cannot effectively manage your money month to month for several years. By relying on a traditional, commercial debt management plan (or DMP), you can set it and forget it. The debt settlement company or counseling agency will be able to put you on a repayment plan that requires much less stress and frustration, and will contact your creditors for you. The largest disadvantage of managing your own debt repayment is that you will have to actively keep track of multiple loan companies, loan amounts, interest rates, payment due dates, and maintain very detailed records of all negotiations and payments that you have made. By working with a DMP, you will be able to pay one monthly payment for the duration of a few years with very few changes. There are always multiple solutions to getting out of debt. While some people stick to their guns and are self-motivated to create their own free debt management plan, others are more inclined because of time constraints to handle their own plan, and would prefer to pay an outside company to manage their debts for them.