Credit Counselors?

Question

My husband needs to fix his credit. I told him to go talk to a credit counselor. He says that he's heard they charge you money and are a rip-off. Anyone know the facts?? Thanks.

Answer 1

Yes, I did it and I wouldn't do it again. They do charge you even though they are not credited. I did CCC and they were even late with some of the ones I gave them.

CCC calls the creditors and gets them to bring the interest rate down.

You pay the counselor money to do that. When your payment goes down with the rest of the debtors, they do not make their personal payment go down either. You have to ask them. I found out the hard way.

Your husband can do the same thing. He can call the debtors and tell them he is trying to pay off his debt with so many and he wants the interest rate and payments to go down. Ask them if they can work with him. The counselors just do the same thing, saving you the "hassle" of doing yourself.

I wouldn't do it again. I wound up paying them more than the debt I owed to my debtors. It took years to do it.

Answer 2

First, I'm glad your husband is choosing to fix his credit. Credit is increasingly important in today's society, whether your goal is to buy a house, get a job or just rent a car.

Credit counselors are not all the same. It used to be that the industry had a heavy social service attitude, but a lot of sharks have entered the water in the past decade, so you need to watch your step.

The most important step toward making sure you're not ripped off is to check whether a credit counseling agency is a member of a national accrediting organization, which imposes standards and training standards. The two largest and most reputable such agencies are the National Federation for Credit Counseling or the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies. Some states also impose requirements for credit counseling.

Don't be fooled if a counselor says it's a nonprofit. Most counseling agencies are set up as nonprofit corprorations, but you can make a lot of money from a nonprofit.

More details on how to check out a counselor are available from the story on the CreditCards.com Web site, "Selecting a credit counseling agency" at http://www.creditcards.com/Select-a-Credit-Counseling-Agency.php.

Good luck!

Answer 3

Someone pays their bill, either a government agency or you.
You can look on line or in a library and do as much as they can. Logic and income can fix credit but all require time.
They contact who you owe and offer smaller amounts and charge you a fee in most cases.

Answer 4

Here is a link to the FTC recognized credit counseling agencies. They may charge a modest fee, and in some cases will waive the fees.

http://www.usdoj.gov/ust/eo/bapcpa/ccde/cc_approved.htm
Govt approved credit counseling agencies.

Here are some more links to free info

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre03.shtm#improve
Building a better credit report.

http://www.ftc.gov/gettingcredit/
What you need to know about your credit.

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/crdright.shtm
Credit and your consumer rights.

Hope this helps.

Answer 5

they might't do something you need to not do your self. All they do is negotiate your debt as low as they might, then organize a fee plan. you may call your lenders your self and do the comparable project. in case you're a superb communicator, you're waiting to do a extra physically powerful job than they might besides. the secret's being honest and honest. in case you finally end up chatting with a brick wall, ask for a supervisor till you get somebody keen to artwork with you.

Answer 6

some of them take more money than they pass to ure creditors ..it best to deal with it ure selves...ive had the same probs ..i rang my creditors and offered them £1.00 each per mth ..we dont even have that but paying a token payment..they ok with that 4 now ..well its either a £1.00 a mth or we go bankrupted..and im sure they will rather something off the debt