Management services are designed to help you when you have problems with credit card debt. Most of us begin using credit cards with complete confidence in our ability to pay the monthly bills. We dont anticipate using credit irresponsibly or charging more to accounts than we are able to pay.
Unfortunately, the area of credit management is rampant with fraud. It is important to choose a service that will help you solve your credit debt problems and avoid con artists who will take advantage of your financial crisis.
How do you know if you need to find the best credit card management service? There are warning signs of impending credit card problems that you might ignore as a temporary setback but when there are multiple small problems with your credit card accounts, finding a management service is a wise decision. Some warning signs are:
- Moving debt from one card to another without paying it down.
- Missing a payment.
- Paying only the minimum due on all your credit accounts each month.
- Counting on extra money from overtime or gifts to meet your monthly payments.
- Having credit cards that have reached the maximum spending limit for the account.
- Applying for a new credit card without evaluating the terms and conditions.
- Borrowing to meeting monthly payments.
- Taking cash advances from any credit card.
- Using money from savings or retirement to cover monthly bills.
1. American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC)
This non-profit credit counseling provides services for debt management plans, presents options to you for debt consolidation and provides educational financial services throughout the U.S.
Credit counselors are professionally trained with the goal of providing you with a workable plan to provide relief from credit card debt. The ACCC is widely praised by financial experts as a trustworthy source of help for debt burdened consumers.
2. Debt Helper non-profit credit counseling rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau
The best credit management services provide a wide range of options and this company is no exception. Debt Helper provides counseling and education for bankruptcy and housing issues as well as credit counseling and debt management services.
The stated goal of Debt Helper is to help you take control of your credit card debt. They will help you reduce monthly payments, stop harassing phone calls and even show you how to reduce your interest rates on current credit accounts.
3. Consumer Credit Management Services (CCMS)
Consumer Credit Management Services (CCMS) is approved by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) as a full service non-profit credit management option.
The debt management program at CCMS was designed to help with credit cards and other unsecured debt for those unable to keep up with payments.
The goal is to lower your total payments each month on your credit cards and those using the service must also participate in budget counseling to help them avoid future problems.
The ability of CCMS to help you negotiate lower payments and/or interest rates on your credit cards can save you thousands of dollars and help you regain peace of mind.
Advantages of Debt Management Services
The intervention of a reputable debt management service will increase your ability and improve your skills to negotiate with your lenders for better payment and interest terms.
In many cases, counselors negotiate directly with your credit card issuers on your behalf. You pay one payment per month to the counseling service and they then send separate payments as agreed to your credit card accounts.
Disadvantages of Debt Management Services
Should you choose a management services that is not trustworthy, you are putting your financial future at risk. These services are not always easy to identify.
For that reason, its better to look for the best companies rather than choosing one management service randomly to evaluate it. I recommend Equifax Debt Wise as their service is great!
There are some claims that should raise a red flag when you are seeking the management services, such as:
- Requiring large up front deposits
- Claims of easy debt cancellation
- Claims of huge reductions in monthly payments
- Promises of reduced interest rates
- High monthly fees
Using a management service can have a negative impact on your credit rating. However, the damage is short term when compared with bankruptcy or accounts written off unpaid.
Conclusion
Choose a management service with excellent business and consumer ratings and have that contact information available to use if the need arises.
If you are cautious about fees charged, claims of success and unrealistic promises, you will eliminate the more dangerous companies and websites. Look for a non-profit large management service that offers help for all financial areas.
