Freedom Debt Relief – How good a company is it?

I called a few companies for a free consultation, and Freedom was by far the best. They were very upfront about how the program worked, in particular about the downsides of the program like your credit rating taking a hit and collection calls coming in, and fully explaining the fees. I am still trying to make my payments, but if it gets to the point that I can't, Freedom is the company I would choose.

I am exploring the debt negotiation process and there are TONS of places --- can someone please recommend one that didn't take advantage of you and actually worked ??!!! thx

I'd recommend calling a few of the larger more established firms that have been around several years, are members of the industry associations, have proven systems and relationships and scale with creditors and are ethical.

While I have seen a few unhappy (and vocal) clients, I can tell you that Freedom Debt is a good choice for debt settlement. They are one of the largest and are ethical and have been around. Also, a firm like CNI or Provanta have proven track records and they are good at what they do.

Be aware, however, that it's no walk in the park. You have to take responsibility for getting debt free and you will likely get collection calls, and you could even get sued. What you want is a firm that stands behind you and fights for you with your creditors.

I'd still pick Freedom Debt but call several ones and see which one feels right for you.

(Andrew Housser) Founder and CO-CEO of Freedom Financial Network "FFN", LLC, and it's affiliated entities, Freedom Financial Network, LLC, Freedom debt relief, Inc.; Freedom Debt Relief, LLC; FDR; Alivio Holdings, LLC; Bills.com, Inc.;Bills.com, LLC; Bills.com; Freedom Tax Relief, LLC; Alivio Mortgage, LLC.

This guy is a BOARD MEMBER of the TASC (The Association of Settlement Companies). Sometimes I feel like I'm in the Twilight Zone. This is just bad comedy.

Sometimes you just have to let time take its course for people to wake up.

If you feel uncomfortable using a company that has a board member of TASC on it then you could always choose a company that uses TASC that doesn't have a board member on it.
Personally it wouldn't matter to me either way because knowing that TASC has certain guidelines and has kicked companies out of it for unethical practices is a good thing.

So lets see if they kick Housser out.

What are the names of the companies that they kicked out?

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I think this is ABOUT enough with all the SAME posts. YOU did this on another thread, too. To comment on which is the 'best' Settlement Company...as someone ( I think?) had said that you just 'feel' the company you pick is right for you. Make sure and do ALL your research, too. Companies MAY sound like they are on the 'upand up', but.....just research them and found out thier ratings, etc.

How people look at the bbb as a measure of credentials. Does anybody know how the bbb began. If you pay them enough money you can write your own report. Then people say well they got 68 complaints.lol. I've been doing debt settlement for years. 68 complaints is awesome if you got 10,000 clients. Then people go well their with tasc or not with tasc. Tasc is the biggest joke ever. lets say the tobacco industry did something similar. The association of tobacco companies. it wouldn't give anyone any more credibility but it sounds good. "i guess". truth is if you talk to someone about a settlement program the only thing that matters is they tell you that its gonna hurt your credit your gonna get collection calls and their is a chance you might get sued. Settlement is good for people who know their going to be passed due or already pass due. Cause the affects of settlement would not be changing the inevitable other than the "client" would actually get to pay their debt versus bankruptcy or garnishment. Btw when a debt is charged off and sold to a third party collection agency its the best thing ever because they have to abide by the fair debt collection practices act which means you can get them to stop calling and they buy debt anywhere between 8 to 12 percents so average settlements are usually pretty low 30 to 35 percent. Have a good day everybody and good luck. Your gonna need it.

that1guy I agree 100%. Finally some unbiased reason everyone. Take heed.

I am familiar with this company and they are on the up and up. There are MANY debt settlement companies out there using similar names, so be careful there. Yes, FDR has BBB complaints (as does everyone in this industry), but out of the 50 thousand + people working with them, that seems to be a very small percentage. Do not work with any company that requires a payment up front, that is a very bad sign. From what I understand Freedom debt relief receives their fees on a monthly basis, not all up front. So their interests are in line with ours. They do not get paid unless we are happy and stay in the program. If they are not doing what they said, you can pull out at any time.

My husband and I have been going thru FDR for 14 months to pay off debt. To make a long story short, they have done nothing! They haven't contacted the creditor AT ALL and now my wages are being garnished because of them. They tell you not to contact your creditor while on the program so we didn't, I guess they didn't either. We have called to get our $$$ back and they keep saying "we'll have someone call you back" or they are trying to give us less than what we have put in. We are in a worse situation now than we were in before.

I made an inquiry with FDR and was emailed a 13-page agreement to sign including a power of attorney and authorization for automatic debit from my checking account. If you read the agreement through, there are key phrases, such as "FDR makes no predictions, promises,or representations as to the outcome of its services or the time it may take to reduce or eliminate Client's debts" and "FDR does not make monthly payments to your creditors" and "Your creditor may raise the interest rate on your account and impose other penalties. Your account balance will continue to grow as your creditor adds accrued interest, late fees, over-limit fees and penalties." and "your creditors are likely to continue collection efforts on delinquent accounts while you are enrolled in a debt settlement program. Such collection activities can include phone calls and letters, charging off accounts, and sending accounts to collection agencies or law firms for collection. FDR makes no claim that we will be able to stop these collection activities..."
In addition, FDR fees are paid up front from the monthly payment you will be making to them. The rest goes into a "savings account" to eventually pay your creditor. This "savings account" incurs fees. All in all, this sounds like a real "iffy" setup and I plan to opt out and look elsewhere.

Hmmmm...it seems my post on Housser was EDITED. That's scary.

Sounds like each of you need access to a good attorney. I can help. Contact me at earlfutch#comcast.net.

Opps: email is earlfutch@comcast.net.