What is pre-filing credit counseling?
When you have too much debt and are considering filing for bankruptcy, you’ll be required to seek pre-filing credit counseling from a nonprofit debt counseling agency. Pre-filing credit counseling is intended in part to help you determine whether bankruptcy is the right choice, or whether there are other ways to handle your financial issues.
During a pre-filing credit counseling session, a credit counselor will work with you to analyze your current financial condition and understand the causes that created your financial trouble. Your credit counselor will also share information about alternatives to bankruptcy and help you develop a plan to avoid taking on more debt.
Your pre-filing credit counseling meeting, which usually takes 60 to 90 minutes, must take place before you file for bankruptcy and these debt counseling services must be approved by the U.S. Trustee’s Office.
American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) is a nonprofit credit counseling and debt relief counseling agency that provides pre-filing credit counseling along with other financial services.
ACCC: pre-filing credit counseling and other financial services.
ACCC has been providing free credit counseling and low-cost financial services to individuals and families since 1991. Our mission is to help consumers regain control of their financial lives and make a plan to live without debt. Our highly trained and certified credit counselors are available six days a week via phone or in person and can provide information about a wide variety of credit solutions to help you resolve your financial issues.
In addition to pre-filing credit counseling, our bankruptcy services include post-bankruptcy online counseling and resources to help you rebuild your financial life after bankruptcy.
Explore alternatives to bankruptcy in pre-filing credit counseling.
In your pre-filing credit counseling session, we’ll help you understand the alternatives to bankruptcy. For many people who are deeply in debt, we often recommend a debt management program as an alternative to loan consolidation or bankruptcy. Under a debt management program, we combine all of your payments to creditors into one monthly payment and directly disperse payments to your creditors on your behalf. We also work with creditors to lower your monthly payments and reduce your interest charges.
A debt management program is designed to help you get out of debt in 60 months or less. The length of the program is determined by the total amount you owe, and whether you can increase your monthly payments as you become more financially stable.
Learn more about pre-filing credit counseling and debt management programs.
