Need Credit Relief Referrals?
gnlgates asked:
Anyone know how to get credit card companies to work with you BEFORE you ruin your credit with missed payments? It seems they all tell me my accounts are fine, even though they won’t be soon,….I don’t want to have to ruin my credit score before they are willing to work with me to pay off my debts at lower interest rates or payments. Any advice?
Ricky
Anyone know how to get credit card companies to work with you BEFORE you ruin your credit with missed payments? It seems they all tell me my accounts are fine, even though they won’t be soon,….I don’t want to have to ruin my credit score before they are willing to work with me to pay off my debts at lower interest rates or payments. Any advice?
Ricky
Tags: Credit Score, Debts, Interest Rates
July 21st, 2009 at 8:20 am
Donald
Contact your local Red Cross for a referral to the local Consumer Credit Counseling Services (CCCS) in your area. They can negotiate lower payments and interest rates. They DO NOT negotiate settlements.
They will require you to stop using all credit and to cut up your cards. Your credit report will be updated to “enrolled in debt management.” This does not damage your credit, but it may make it impossible to obtain new credit while you are enrolled in their program….so don’t use this service if you anticipate applying for a new apartment, car loan or mortgage anytime soon, as you would probably be denied while you’re enrolled in the CCCS debt management program…. Otherwise, it can be a very good way to deal with your debt.
Please note that CCCS cannot perform miracles in situations where there is an overwhelming level of debt relative to your income/assets.
DO NOT use any firm that promises to settle your debt at 50%…these firms deliberately let your accounts default/charge-off to put them into a position to negotiate settlements…This ruins your credit rating and your creditors have no obligation to accept settlements from these firms.
July 23rd, 2009 at 6:06 am
Reginald
If you have been paying your cards on-time to date, but are having problems because the interest rates have gone up, or are too high, you can fix this yourself.
Call each company, and explain that you are happy with their service, but you are having a hard time with your interest rate. Tell them that you don’t want to have to close your account, and ask them if they can offer you a better rate than you presently have. They should be able to drop your rate by 1/3 to 1/2.
If you are unable to negotiate payments that you can afford, try contacting the National Consumer Rights Alliance for help. Their website is listed below.
Do not contact CCCS! They will destroy your credit rating just by being mentioned on your credit report. Having them listed can be more detrimental to your credit rating than a bankruptcy, and can cost you much more as well.
Another option is to consolidate your payments to another account with a low interest rate. Chase Bank is usually a pretty good choice for this, if you have good credit. Just be sure to pay as much as you can during the introductory period, so that you don’t get hammered again when your interest rate ticks up.
Good luck!