Is there any advantage to using a non-profit agency to handle my "debt consolidation/settlement" versus using another agency such as one that hires a lawyer, has retainer fees, etc?? Are there minimal savings with the n/p agency or are there better results achieved when using a f/p agency?
Im in NY and NYS law says that debt consolidation agencies can not charge you an upfront fee, however the f/p agency I have been talking with mentions that their policy is the first few months payments cover the retainer fee for the lawyer (appx 8% of your total debt) and they also mention a 15% fee for the amount that they are saving me... Doe these sound like outrageous fees or is this an industry standard?
Also, the f/p agency claims that it is over in roughly 2 years. However it looks as if my credit will be significantly hurt during the first portion of it due to me having to go deliquent on my accounts (at the request of the agency) - How bad is my credit being hurt, and its this a standard practice?
Thank you in advance for your help.
Regards,
D2BDF