Know about Debt Settlement

From Jason Holmes Your Guide to Debt Solution Methods. Want a Free Debt Counselling SignUp Now! Last Updated on 5th May 2008

What is debt settlement?

Debt settlement is a process to eliminate your outstanding debts for less than the amount actually owed to the creditors. In this process, you stop paying monthly installments to your creditors and instead save the money. When you have saved at least 50% of the total amount, you start negotiating with your creditors for a settlement. This process is also known as Debt Arbitration or Debt Negotiation and it can be a good alternative to bankruptcy.

How to start a debt settlement program?

You can do it yourself by contacting your creditors directly. If you are not comfortable in dealing with them, contact a debt settlement company to represent you against your creditors. The settlement company will create a trust account for you. Every month you will save a certain amount of money in that trust account. The maximum amount that you can deposit in your trust account depends on your disposable income (monthly income and monthly expenditure = disposable income).

The settlement company then negotiates with your creditors for a reduced and affordable amount. An efficient settlement company can reduce the payable amount to 40% - 60% of your original amount.

It is true that creditors and collection agencies often deny negotiating with consumers. They prefer to create pressure on the consumer to collect more money. If they deny coming to any agreement, contact a reputed settlement company to make it happen. The settlement companies have the experience and know very well how to deal with creditors and collection agencies.

Why creditors will agree to accept the reduced payment?

Creditors always try to recover default or charged-off loans in some way or other. When you are offering a debt settlement plan, creditors need not spend money for collection. They also become assured that you are trying to pay them and thus they won't need to sell your account to collection agencies at a much lesser price. Thus a reduced payment amount is always more than what they would get from collection agencies.

Benefits of debt settlement:

• Pay less:When a debt becomes delinquent, late fees, over the limit charges are accumulated with the total debt amount. So you have to pay higher interest towards the debt. Majority of the debt settlement companies negotiate with your creditors and restructure the debts that you owe. In most cases 40% - 60% of the original amount is reduced and it saves you thousands of dollars.
• Avoid rude and harassing creditor calls:You can stay away from dealing with abusive creditors and harassing debt collectors and debt buyers. Your settlement company will directly deal with them. They will also make sure that you do not get abusive and harassing calls anymore.
• One monthly installment for all your debts:In this process you will have to pay one monthly amount to your debt settlement firm in order to settle all your debts. They save the money in a trust account and starts negotiating with your creditors. The more you save each month the lesser time you take to become debt free.
• Get more time to pay:Most debt negotiation plans are worked out for an extended time period. In such cases you have the provision to extend the time span from 2 to 4 years or sometimes even longer. This is helpful for people who cannot afford to pay the whole amount at one go. It is also less likely that you will have to fight with the creditor later to actually delete the negative listing.

Right time to settle your debts:

It is very important to take the right decision at the right time to get full benefit from a debt settlement program. We have discussed some specific cases here to explain how a settlement offer is handled when your debt turns older. However, we suggest you to discuss your situation with a settlement company or some experts in the field before taking the final decision. You can also discuss your situation with our community - they would be happy to help you.

• Few months delinquent: When you are few months behind with your payment, your creditor might agree to reduce 40% - 60% of the original debt amount.
• Charged-off account: If the account is charged-off, it is likely that your creditor would sell the account to a debt buyer. Dealing with these debt buyers is a nightmare. They often charges collection fees and deny accepting any repayment plan. However, a professional debt settlement company can help you settle your account with collection agencies too.
• Creditor is going to sue you: Creditor can file lawsuit against consumer. Once a judgment enters your credit report, it stays there for 7 to 10 years. If you have received summon already, settlement companies are unlikely to work with you. However, there are certain law firms and attorneys that can guide you to get an out-of-court settlement.

If you feel you owe a large amount of debt, settle them and lead a debt free life. If you are not sure about how to approach creditors or collection agencies, please browse sample letters compiled by our community members.