I work for Freedom Financial. I go to work everyday knowing that I will receive several calls a day from everyday people around the country looking for help. We're not a scam company! We tell our potential clients every negative aspect associated with debt settlement. There is no free lunch as they say when you want your debt settled for half of what you owe!
We charge a 15% fee on the the total debt enrolled and spread the fees over a period of 19-22 months. We are not fully paid until the client is about halfway through the program.
Unfortunately in today's world, people don't really have as many choices to rid themselves of unsecured debt. This is one way we can help people with payments that are lower than their minimums combined and get out of this debt in 42 months or less!
Most people can't qualify for a chapter 7 BK, home refi or a bank loan consolidation so what are they to do? Not pay their creditors and eventually face the risk of judgments placed against them or even garnishment?
We're in a society where no one trusts anyone. Attorneys are crooks, car dealers will steal you blind, mortgage companies sell exotic mortgages that raise the principle of your balance, EBAY will take your money and not deliver your product. The list goes on and an and on.
Debt settlement is not for everyone. We understand this so we make folks aware of all their options including settlement. CCC may be a good match for someone but their payments usually don't change a lot from what the client has already. It is no secret that the biggest ripoff in the country today is ironically the credit card companies. People inadvertently forget to mail in a credit bill on time and the credit card company raises the rate to 25%!! Who's ripping off who here? And on top of that, when you call to get some relief, they do nothing! Now you're stuck.
I love my job! I can sleep soundly at night knowing that someone I helped can go to work the next day knowing that they can actually be out of debt in a reasonable period of time vs. paying the credit card companies minimum payments for God knows how long. Think about that.

So Silhawk, what did you do? I am with you and currently talking to Freedom Debt Relief. Don't know what to do either.

Silhawk
In the same boat as you with this company. What did you decide to do? I'm nervous also.

There is NO reason to pay up front fees. Period. There are many companies that only charge a percentage of the money they SAVE you. When the work is done then they get paid. Do not fall for this. For the first 22 months HALF of your money will go to the settlement company. This is unacceptable.

Keep looking or ask me and I can give you 3 companies that work on back-end fees.

never been on a forum where a moderator is so harsh to one of the forum users.

i can say with some authority that TASC and IAPDA and such should NOT be used to validate credibility. Im not BASHING debt settlement, nor am I speaking from an uneducated point of view. I held a management role in one of the nation's leading companies. They hurt people. Their employees are very well aware of what they are doing but are pushed to go for the sale in order to make a paycheck.

Debt settlement itself is a good solution. Paying an agency to do what you can do on your own (and saving literally thousands and avoiding some dangerous pitfalls) is kinda silly. Check out the website in my signature for some major media reviews of debt settlement. Don't take my word for it...

fdr ripped me off for over 4000 dollars

fdr just takes your money like obama

fdr,the sec is watching you very closely

Marie,
I completely understand what you are saying and I respect your right to say it. With that being said, Debt Settlement companies do offer some advantages over settling the debt yourself.
1. We bring the creditors multiple accounts, rather than just one account. I'll use the car buying example, if you go to a car dealership and try to buy one car, you will get no where near as good a deal as if you went and bought 1000 cars.
2. Our arbitrators are experienced and do this for a LIVING. Our arbitrators have extensive knowledge in Federal & State consumer laws & exercise the Fair Credit Reporting Act, Fair Credit Billing Act, as well as the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to help settle your debt.
3. The fees are disclosed ahead of time and everyting that we guarantee is writen in the contract. There are NO surprises.
4. Our counselors are genuinely there to help people eliminate debt. There are jobs out there that pay a lot more for the same amount, if not less amount, of effort. Our employees are there for the sole purpose of helping you, not to earn a paycheck.

I work for Lifeguard financial and have enrolled not only friends but also family. I believe in our program and its abillity to help people eliminate their debt. I'm not here to rant and rave about my company but to provide information. I believe that you should do your homework and research all possible solutions. Check the BBB for the company with the best rating, check this blog site which provides information on many different companies. ADVERTISING REMOVED PER TOS

would you guarantee item #1 in writing? that you can get a better deal than a client on their own?

i'm pretty sure the answer is no. i'm very familiar with this pitch as well. but i've seen plenty of clients quit and even more successfully go at it on their own.

By the same token, I've seen plenty of people attempt their own settlement and fail, not to mention they could not come up with the amount requested in a lump sum payment or in the terms agreed with the creditor.

you insinuate that you come up with the amount requested for them. the only reason they have the amount with you is because it's been saved up, in addition to fees. by learning/researching how to implement a self-run debt settlement program, they can be successful.

i assume you would not guarantee #1.

I would like to point out how Freedom Debt Relief is operating as a company and what services you will obtain.

They will sign you up and you start paying towards their fee, which is the majority of the initial payments.
Then they will talk to you and the creditors as things move forward.
In the meantime the interest and fees are growing on your account.
At some time they will call the creditor to see if a settlement is possible and question the creditor what the current amount on the account is. The creditor will give them an amount which may be, say 60 % higher in 6 months, and Freedom will negotiate based on that amount. NO effort will be used to address the validity of the creditors amount and how it could increase so much in such a short time. It is merely telephone calls between two companies that are playing a Mid East haggling game. I know you will haggle, so I will ask for an initial sum of money so I can still obtain an amount close to the original.

Freedom WILL NOT question the amount quoted by the creditors and it is all merely shadow boxing, or collution.

Hey everyone,

These past 3 months have been extremely scary for me, as I have put myself in a terrible debt situation. I have literally seen my hair turn from brown to grey in a matter of months.

I have reached out to several debt relief companies and freedom debt relief seems to provide the best overall customer service. Out of all of the reps I have spoken too, their reps seem to genuinely care about me and have offered the best advice on how to consolidate my debt.

Other services I have tried contacting include franklindebtrelief.com and thinkdebtrelief.com, but they just don’t seem to care (it’s just business to them and nothing more).

I am happy to have found my rep named Tim at freedom debt relief, who is with me every step of the way. It’s nice to know that there are businesses that care about an individual’s well-being, especially with an issue as scary as debt.

Sincerely,
Thomas

potty mouth rant removed

Before choosing any Debt Settlement company please read my blog. I have a long article that I wrote outlining the various things to watch out for.

tstevens345 sounds like a commercial. I would be leery of his claims.

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Check out my blog.
http://debtundercontrol.blogspot.com/
Read this before choosing a Debt Settlement Company
http://debtundercontrol.blogspot.com...t-company.html