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| Benjamin |
 Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 12:56 pm Post subject: Credit Counselors... |
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Administrator
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| Has anyone ever used a credit counselor? What sort of service do they provide? |
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| lmountford |
| Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 1:06 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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I'm not really sure what a credit counsellor is  Actually that might be  In the UK we have companies who offer people in financial trouble guidance on the best way of getting out. They may direct you to lower interest options or even negotiate with creditors. Unfortunately they generally charge hefty fees and as many of their functions could be provided in our charitable sector for free ( an organisation like the Citizens Advice Bureau makes a good starting point ) they are often considered undesirable. This is where someone will enlighten me and say that's not what a credit counsellor is at all  |
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| paula0000 |
| Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 4:47 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Manager
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| credit counsellors help you negotiate a better interest rate on your debt- you can go to a credit counsellor when you are over your head in debt and they will help |
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| trixiezzz |
| Posted: Wed Feb 23, 2005 7:39 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Manager
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| Consumer Credit Counseling Service, of CCCS, is the main one I've heard of. For a small fee, they help you get your credit card interest rates lowered and help organize your payment schedule with creditors. |
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| crisrn2003 |
| Posted: Sat Feb 26, 2005 6:50 am Post subject: Credit Counseling |
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Investing Associate
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| I have been involved with Incharge Debt Solutions---originally Profina. They negotiated with our creditor so that all the late fees and phone calls would stop. Then they also negotiated so that many of our interest fees were reduced. I have set it up so that a cetain amount comes out of my checking account on a specific date. As one debt is paid off, that amount plus what was being paid to the next creditor is paid until eventually all debts are paid off. We have paid off two accounts with a few more to go. We pay $700/month (by choice---we could have paid less) and the company takes $40 of that. Its terribly convienent---and the $40 is less than the amount we would have been paying for the higher interest rates. |
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| alicia gist |
| Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2005 1:56 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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| I've heard that if you go to credit counseling it dings your credit score. Is this true? |
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| crisrn2003 |
| Posted: Thu Mar 03, 2005 7:47 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Associate
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| Apparently it did cause some trouble as far as the credit problems go because I did have to provide documentation of up to date payments with them when I purchased a car. And, when we moved, it caused us to be moved into a different type of loan (interest only for three years). But, we were not good about paying the credit cards promptly so we would have been dinged because of that anyway... |
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| hulamama |
| Posted: Thu Mar 24, 2005 1:48 am Post subject: Credit counselors |
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Investing Associate
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I have heard that it could take 7 or 8 years to pay off your debt that way, and your credit still doesn't improve...is that true? Is paying it off yourself the better way, or is bankruptcy the answer?  |
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| thrilla |
| Posted: Thu Mar 24, 2005 5:31 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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| There is also a problem with people seeking credit counselors when there is actually no need for them. Consumers need to be very wary who they seek help from. AmeriDebt recently reached an agreement with the FTC to pay a very large settlement for overcharging for its supposedly non-profit services. They must also shut down its credit counseling operations. |
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| alicia gist |
| Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2005 5:17 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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| I talked with Debt Rite the other day. The way they explained the non-profit part was that the company's you owe money too can right off your interest as tax deductible. The guy I spoke with gave me the "willys". He was way too pushy. We've gotten ourselves into debt by making quick decisions. I'm not about to make a quick decision and make matters worse. |
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| thrilla |
| Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2005 7:19 pm Post subject: |
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Investing Sr. Associate
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| alicia gist wrote: | | I talked with Debt Rite the other day. The way they explained the non-profit part was that the company's you owe money too can right off your interest as tax deductible. The guy I spoke with gave me the "willys". He was way too pushy. We've gotten ourselves into debt by making quick decisions. I'm not about to make a quick decision and make matters worse. |
Good decision, I have always been wary of credit counselors like Debt Rite and AmeriDebt. There is no reason to rush into a hasty decision that you may not be comfortable with. Shop around and speak with several credit counselors before you make any definite decisions. Most importantly, do your research until you feel at ease with you decision. |
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| hulamama |
| Posted: Fri Mar 25, 2005 9:09 pm Post subject: Credit counselors |
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Investing Associate
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| Has anyone that has a good reputation? Is this a good alternative to bankruptcy or trying to pay it off yourself? |
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| ziemerd |
| Posted: Tue Jun 07, 2005 5:53 am Post subject: |
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Consumer Credit Counseling Service, of CCCS is by far the most reliable and most effective counseling organization. Many out there are scams and they never pay your creditors. This happened to a friend of mine before she went to CCCS.
I was looking into buying a car and the owner of the car lot told me that banks don't like to lend to people who have put there credit card debt in the hands of a credit counseling company.
Also, you do not have to deal with the debt collectors. Just send your money to the creditor and ignore the debt collectors. They make a lot of noise and bully you a lot but they really can't do anything if the creditor is processing the checks or money orders you send. My friend was doing this and a collector took her to court. She was sending the creditor $100 a month. The judge ruled that she only had to pay $25 each month which really teed off the debt collector.
I hope this helps. |
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