The question of whether or not to settle credit card debt yourself depends on how much experience and expertise you have dealing with creditors, debt collectors, credit bureaus and the laws that relate to the above.
It also depends how much time you have because there is a lot of paperwork involved. After you read the remaining article, you should determine if you should settle credit card debt yourself. If you choose to do it yourself, you can save a few thousand dollars.
What Am I Getting Myself Into?
By settling your debts yourself, please take the following into consideration:
- The average duration of a debt settlement program is about 3 years. Be prepared to do a a lot of paperwork. Also, since credit repair, attorney consultation and debt settlement go hand-in-hand, there will be a lot of additional paperwork and communications with creditors, debt collectors, attorneys (if a lawsuit is filed by the debt collectors) and the credit bureaus.
- You need to develop a strategic plan. Knowing when, with whom, and how much to settle for is key. Every creditor is different. Some may act aggressively, while others may be more patient regarding the collection of a debt.
- Possessing excellent negotiating skills is critical. Your creditors have plenty of experience negotiating debts. You should too.
- Each creditor settles for a different amount. Some creditors have reputations for settling for favorable amounts to you, and some creditors won't budge beyond a nominal amount. Only experience in negotiating settlements will maximize your savings.
- You must know the legal aspects regarding credit and debt settlement. If you don't, the creditors will use that to their advantage. You must be familiar with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).
- You should be familiar with the various tricks that some debt collectors employ to their advantage. For instance, they may require that you pay the settlement amount via check. Later, when you review your credit report, you notice that the account still shows an unpaid balance that's in default. So you call the creditor, only to be informed that the sum that you paid was applied to the balance of your debt-not as a settlement that was "paid in full as agreed!"
Weather you choose to settle credit card debt yourself, or hire a professional, it's your choice. The main point is that you get out of debt!
In order to successfully wipe-out your debt in the safest manner possible, It's critical that you know the best way to get out of debt
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