Because of the overwhelming number of relief programs that exist today, finding the best relief programs for your particular situation can be quite daunting. You can ask friends and families which relief programs they recommend, but the truth is that not all debt relief programs are right for all financial situations. In most cases, you will need to find the best debt relief programs for your situation on your own.

First, understand what your debt relieving options are. The two choices are typically debt settlement and debt consolidation. With debt settlement, your unsecured debt will be dealt with. Essentially, an agreement is entered into with the credit card companies, through a debt settlement company or program, and you only pay a small percentage of the balance that you owe, settling the debt for good.

With debt consolidation, your secured debt can be combined into one loan, with one low monthly payment for an extended period of time, relieving you of multiple payments that amount to a large amount of your monthly income. Both options work, and often, both are used for debt relief.

Debt counseling absolutely must be a part of the process when it comes to clearing your financial issues. Through debt counseling, you will learn all of the advantages and disadvantages of credit, how to use credit responsibly, how to create a budget, and how to reduce you're spending. Of course, you also learn various options for dealing with your current debt.

Now that you have a clearer understanding of the type of help that you require, you can start your search for the best programs at the Association of Settlement Companies (TASC), where you will find listings of the top companies in the industry. These are the companies that you need to compare, to find the company that works best for your situation.