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Informative Articles

Debt and financial optimism in the UK continue.
With £1.3 trillion pounds worth of debt in the UK, Scotland’s Citizens Advice Bureau ( http://www.cas.org.uk/ ) has welcomed a new Bill to regulate lenders and protect borrowers from creating un-repayable levels of personal debt. Chief executive...

Debt consolidation
With consumer debt on the rise, many people have found themselves burdened with crippling monthly repayments on a variety of loans. This can make life very difficult, and can often means seriously compromising on your quality of life. Taking out a...

Debt consolidation mortgage - decode its apparent complexity
Someone great once said that ‘if it isn’t the sheriff, it is the finance company’. Do you feel the same? Has the piling up of bills forced you to take several loans? Do you live in constant dread that someone would soon come to claim his money. The...

Debt Management Plans - How They Can Help You Get Out Of Debt
Debt management plans (DMP) consolidate your short term debts into one monthly payment. They also negotiate lower interest rates, enabling you to pay off your accounts usually in less than five years. Before you sign up with one of these...

Debtors Prison, a Brief History of Bankruptcy
In Ancient Israel, every 7th year (Sabbatical year) the debtors were forgiven some of their debt and every 50 years (the Jubilee year) all debts were to be discharged, some mortgages released and all indentured servants and slaves were to...

Eliminate Your Credit Card Debt, But How?
Can a debt consolidation loan eliminate your credit card debt? A consolidation loan might (or might not) be the key. There are several things you must consider when making the choice to consolidate debt using a debt consolidation loan. First, is...

How To Get Out Of Debt?
If you are in debt up to your ears like many other people, there are a few ways available to you to get out of debt. One of these ways is called debt consolidation. This is actually a refinancing of all of your debts, whether it be credit card or...

It Only Takes a Few Simple Steps To Avoid Student Loan Debt
Student loan debt is a problem that affects many former students. It is a long and difficult process to pay off a student loan. Undoubtedly, it is much easier to avoid student loan debt in the first place. There are a few simple steps that can...

Reducing Debt Through Lower Interest Loans
It happens to the majority of us, credit card debt accumulates and before we quite realize it, we are carrying a debt load that is far beyond our means. When this happens, we need to take immediate positive steps to knock down the debt as quickly...

You Don`t Have To Declare Bankruptcy To Deal With Your Debts
Considering filing bankruptcy? If your finances are in ruins and you're considering filing bankruptcy, there's a few things you should know. Bankruptcy is not your only option. Millions of people credit is devastated by bankruptcy every...

 
 
 
Debts Negotiations

If you're in a really bad situation, and you just can't even make your minimum payments this month, don't worry. You can negotiate your debts, and pay back much less than you owe - as long as they get their debt plus interest in the end, no-one is expecting you to pay the full amount when you just can't afford to.

If you've experienced some personal financial setbacks, and you now find yourself with more financial obligations than you can handle, you may be able to get the debt relief that you need...quietly and discreetly, and without filing bankruptcy. Believe it or not, nearly every financial institution will agree to settle outstanding debts for less than what is owed if you can demonstrate a legitimate financial hardship. If you are deep in debt and currently having a difficult time meeting your financial obligations, its time to take action before bankruptcy is your only remaining alternative.

Settling your debts takes a lot of time, and many people find it intimidating. If you do it right, though, you'll be surprised at how kind your creditors (that is, the people you owe money to) can be.

Close My Account

It might feel bad, but if you can't afford to pay that credit card, you'll have to close the account - that means you can't borrow any more money with that card. To close the account, you'll have to negotiate something called a 'payment plan'.

A payment plan turns your credit card debt into a plain old loan. The company might take as much as 50% off the amount that you need to pay back. It might seem strange, but they're happy you're paying at all - there are plenty of people who just don't pay and have to be chased, costing their creditors time and money. They'd rather hear from you if you're having trouble, so don't bury your head in the sand.

It's in your creditors' best interest to take whatever you can offer them, within reason. Their alternatives are

 


lengthy court proceedings, or paying collection agencies to come round and intimidate you. They know that your offer will probably be the only offer you make before you do something more extreme that could result in them never getting any money back.

Do It in a Letter

Phoning companies to ask to negotiate your debts isn't a good idea - it's too easy to get flustered and say the wrong thing. They're professional negotiators, and you're not. You need the advantage of having time to think, which is why you should always negotiate with them by post. Getting it in writing also means that you can hold them to what they say later on. Here's a sample letter:

"Dear Sir or Madam,

I regret to inform you that I can no longer afford to make my minimum payments of $100 per month on my credit card account with you (account number 111-222-333). I would like to request the closure of my account, followed by the settlement of the debt on a monthly payment plan. Please advise what kind of terms I could expect from such a plan.

Yours faithfully..."

The Damage to Your Credit Report

You will rarely be able to negotiate over your debts without doing some damage to your credit report. If you're willing to pay a bigger percentage of the debt, though, you might be able to persuade the creditor to say that it was paid off to their satisfaction, instead of recording that they accepted less than they wanted. It's up to you just how much you feel your credit report is worth - if you're planning on getting a big loan anytime soon, this could be something to consider.

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Original Source: Articles-Galore.com



Information supplied and written by Lee Asher of The Home Income Portal

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