The Debt Settlement Solution and a Better Alternative
When your personal debts become more than you can handle, a debt settlement solution is tempting. Debt relief companies that offer settlement services advertise those services aggressively, hoping to catch the eye of struggling consumers. But while a debt settlement solution may be appealing at first glance, this approach to addressing your debt problems has substantial disadvantages. Fortunately there’s a better way to get your debt under control.
Debt Settlement Solution Pros and Cons
On the surface, a debt settlement solution to personal debt woes does have some things to like. Seemingly, you do away with your debt in one fell swoop, and you pay less than what you actually owe.
But wise consumers know that there’s no free lunch. Along with the surface appeals of debt settlement come costs, risks, and problems:
- Implementing a debt settlement solution requires a large lump sum payment—a lump sum that many struggling consumers don’t have on hand. Any loan that you take out to make this payment is likely to have a high interest rate, and it will leave you still in debt.
- Debt consolidation companies that promote debt settlement services typically charge hefty fees for their role in negotiating and implementing the settlement.
- Your creditors are not obliged to participate in any settlement, and some may refuse to.
- A debt settlement solution has some important similarities to bankruptcy: you aren’t meeting your full obligations to creditors, and your credit rating will suffer.
The ACCC Alternative to a Debt Settlement Solution
Fortunately for consumers burdened with debt, American Consumer Crediting Counseling (ACCC) offers a debt management program that’s a good alternative to a debt settlement solution. ACCC is a non-profit debt management company that’s provided individuals and families help with credit problems since 1991. Our debt management program offers substantial benefits without some of the costs and risks associated with debt settlement:
- ACCC’s debt management program is a method of personal debt consolidation that does not require you to borrow more money. Each month you make one consolidated payment to ACCC, and we then pay each of your creditors.
- With ACCC’s debt management program, you are meeting your full obligation to your creditors. However, in many cases, creditors participating in the program will agree to lower your interest rates and waive fees that you may currently owe such as late fees or over-limit fees. As a result, your monthly consolidated payment may be lower than the monthly total that you’re currently paying, and you may be able to pay off your debt faster.
- As a non-profit debt management agency, we’re able to keep our fees very low.
In combination with the debt management program, we provide you with free counseling that helps you improve your credit management skills so that you can stay on top of your debts in the future.
