Posted by 101livescan on 7/7/10 9:59am
Msg #343990

OT Credit Solutions Companies

I hear a lot of people signing up with these companies to clear their credit card debt by paying these "help" agencies $5 to $6 thousand to "halt" all the payment requirements of credit card companies. The agencies say to the consumer, don't pay any more, we'll negotiate all the fees. What really happens is the consumer is out the upfront money that could have gone to toward their debt, and the credit card companies are still hounding the customer because they won't negotiate with the Credit Solutions Companies.

They are predators of desperate families who will pay anything for relief. There is no such thing as a workout for credit card debt. Many people end up having to declare BK any way. If you know of anyone in this situation and they ask your advice, (not UPL!), they should be referred to a BK attorney or legal service, not referred to one of these rape artist credit solutions companies. Just another consumer ripoff. Makes me sick!

A friend of my sister's was $10s of thousands in debt with credit cards. She had been married for years, and after her alimony and child support stopped, she had no way to pay her bills. Someone in Las Vegas contacted her and said she'd help Trish, just send $5000 to her and she would make it all go away. Trish called me, and I found the person on a blog with her picture. She was covered with tatoos and had purple hair, pierced everywhere. I said to Trish, is this really the person you want to entrust your $5000 and all your personal information to. Doesn't seem to be a very professional organization.

RIPOFFs abound in a bad economy!

Reply by CopperheadVA on 7/7/10 11:10am
Msg #343995

I've also heard radio commercials for these places, and one actually said something like, "It's not your fault [that you're in debt]" and "You have the right to settle your debts for a fraction of what is owed." Excuse me???? Yes, it IS your fault and you should pay the debts in full. I'm talking about the folks who continually live above their means, not the people who may have had a catastrophic event in their lives.

The problem is, no one wants to suffer through the tough work it takes to get rid of your debts. In the past, I have run up credit card debt just like everyone else, but the difference is that I have been working for nearly 3 years to pay it off. By working the Dave Ramsey program, I have paid off ALL my credit cards and CLOSED seven credit card accounts. I kept one just in case (don't tell Dave). All I have now is a car loan that I'm getting closer to paying off, and my mortgage. It CAN be done with hard work and discipline. Everyone is always looking for the quick fix.

Reply by Ilene C. Seidel on 7/7/10 11:33am
Msg #343999

There was news on this today on the morning news, Today Show. So sorry

Reply by Shoshana/AZ on 7/7/10 2:32pm
Msg #344027

From all I have read, it may not have been a good idea to close all those cards. It generally hurts your credit to do that. The best thing to do after you pay them off, charge something small on them a couple of times a year. Then pay it off right away.

Reply by CopperheadVA on 7/7/10 4:00pm
Msg #344033

The beautiful thing is, I no longer need credit cards or a credit score to manage my finances. Well, yes I guess one may need a credit score to get a good rate on car insurance and things like that. Dave Ramsey's program teaches you to live on a cash budget. I do maintain one credit card - I use it and have my Dave Ramsey cash set aside for each purchase, so I pay it off in full every month without fail (and get about $500 in cash-back rewards each year). I'm now telling my money where to go instead of it telling me. I don't need seven cards. I pay my car, mortgage, and utilities on time every month so I'm not worried about my credit score being low. Having no credit card debt is much more rewarding than having seven credit cards and worrying about what might happen to my credit score if I closed all those cards. All that "unused" credit available to you can also hurt your credit score. I'm happy with my decision. :-)

Reply by Susan Fischer on 7/7/10 6:51pm
Msg #344051

I used the Susie Fischer program - (nothing against Dave),

and got debt-free in a couple of years.

I Blitzed.

Took advantage of the "0 interest for 6 mos" offers, when offered.

Paid the smallest one off first, making as big a payment as I could possibly make, as often as I could - sometimes a few times a month. Blitzing. Made min payment on all others.

Paid off the next smallest, blitzing with money - as much and as fast as I could.

Pretty soon I was down to the last few largest - still taking advantage of the "0" interest offers when offered. Blitzed until, one by one, they were gone. During our heyday, some months allowed me to make HUGE dents. Since I pay with Bill-Pay, after a juicy deposit, I turned that into a juicy blitz.

Cut them up as each one got paid off; it became a ceremony. My credit score is perfectly acceptable - and I'll be dipped if I'll "charge-to-pay" just to play some evil credit game -

Same thing with my car loan. It's almost gone. I make myself "pay" ~me~ now - with my savings account. Makes me think very hard before buying anything - and when I do? Guilt-free, no bills, it's *mine*. Needed a new computer last year - paid cash to my computerGuru. It's cash and carry all the way, and so satisfying.

I agree, Copper, nothing feels better than that last payment! Back when I used paper checks, I remember paying something off and writing "Yahoo" and "Whoopee" all over it. Of course they cashed it!

I'm glad you found Dave - anything that works - like actually making the effort - is a boon - and those "Debt-free" gimmickers are nothing but scams.

To everyone else - YOU CAN DO IT TOO! Just...DO it.

Reply by CopperheadVA on 7/7/10 7:29pm
Msg #344058

Re: I used the Susie Fischer program - (nothing against Dave),

I agree - whatever program works for you, then go for it!

It's extremely liberating, isn't it Susan? When I first started the program in Jan 2008, I never ever dreamed how well it would work for me. The steps you described seem similar to Dave's program, just different terminology.

Reply by taxpro on 7/7/10 10:50pm
Msg #344091

Congrats, Susan!

Glad to hear how you have overcome your debt monster!! No one knows how good it feels to owe NOTHING, until you are there! We have even paid off our home mortgage, and while some may say that's a bad idea, I say it's the best thing we've ever done! Why would anyone think a tax deduction for mortgage interest is better than not paying the interest at all? Only if they don't understand the concept of tax deductions, as opposed to tax credits!