 With the struggling economy, many people are finding themselves deep in credit card debt. Therefore, consumers are forced to turn to debt consolidation in order to get control of their finances. However, before a person decides to consolidate their credit card debt, they need to be aware of the credit... |
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Living with debt is by no means easy. There’s the constant concern of living paycheck to paycheck and the never ending issue of covering monthly bills and living expenses. While most of us pride ourselves on being self-sufficient, it’s hard to ignore that we all sometimes live well beyond our means.... |
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As many Nebraska residents can attest to, there has been a significant rise in debt consolidation agencies and consumer credit counseling programs being advertised on television, radio, and online. Despite the prevalence of debt management in our media, there is a great deal of public misconception about how debt relief works. Even worse, a surprisingly low number of consumers understand how to differentiate the best companies from the worst. The purpose of PayingPaul.Com is to educate consumers so they can make better financial decisions when it comes to their debt. For starters, there are generally two types of debt consolidation services that a consumer can choose from. Credit counseling is a service for helping consumers with budgeting and managing their finances. If your situation permits, you may want to consider a debt management plan, which is a consolidation program offered by credit counselors. These plans can help you combine your credit cards into one payment and lower your interest rates. Many of the organizations offering this type of program are not for profit, although most do charge fees. Before choosing this route, however, consider the downsides and risks, such as whether it is even affordable and the effect that it may have on your creditworthiness in the eyes of lenders. The second popular form of debt consolidation is credit card settlement. Also known as debt negotiation, these services aim to reduce your actual balance owed, not just interest charges. The reason why creditors are willing to do this is some cases is because they are worried that a consumer may not be able to pay the full back debt as is. In order to prove that you are in this financial condition, one must be delinquent on their credit card accounts. Due to this and the fact that your account will read as”settled” on your credit report, settlement typically has a negative effect on your credit report. Some other things to consider: due to the fact that you are past due during the course of the program, you will experience collection calls and creditors are reserved the right to pursue legal action on the debt. Would you like to speak with someone about how to get out of debt? Submit a form and PayingPaul.Com will match you with a company for a free consultation! Nebraska Debt Management Laws Nebraska has regulations in place to ensure that residents in the state are not only receiving debt management services that are affordable, but also of a decent quality. Much of the laws that deal with the consolidation industry are pertaining to fees, insurance requirements and other issues. Nebraska law defines debt management as the “planning and management of the financial affairs of a debtor for a fee from the debtor and the receiving there from of money or evidences thereof for the purpose of distributing the same to his or her creditors in payment or partial payment of his or her obligations.” It should be noted that the regulations exempt the following entities, among others, from regulation: -attorneys -banks -title insurers and abstract companies while doing escrow business -anyone acting under a court order The fee limits that are outlined by the regulations requires that debt management companies abide by the following: -the total fees cannot exceed 15% of the amount the debtor agrees to be paid through the debt counseling agency -$25 as an initial set up fee *Note: contracts are not in effect until after the debtor has made a payment to the debt management company for distribution to his or her creditors. If you want more information about debt consolidation and consumer credit counseling, please follow this link: (Warning: PDF) http://www.sos.ne.gov/business/pdf/debt_mngt_statutes.pdf Licensed Debt Consolidation Agencies Acredex Credit Counseling Help Ministries Debt Free Take Charge America Consumers Alliance Processing Corp Springboard Non Profit Credit Counseling & Debt Management & Consolidation Debt Free America CCCS of San Francisco CCCS Midwest – Consumer Credit Counseling Services American Credit Counselors American Debt Solutions Credit Guard of America National Foundation for Debt Management - NFDM Debt Management Counseling Center Consolidated Credit Counseling Services InCharge Debt Solutions Family Credit Counseling Care One Credit Counseling & Debt Consolidation American Consumer Credit Counseling GreenPath Debt Solutions Alliance Credit Counseling Consumer Education Services Credit Advisors Foundation NovaDebt Credit Counseling & Debt Consolidation Family Life Services Money Management International – Consumer Credit Counseling Services CCCS ClearPoint Financial Solutions Safe Harbour Consumer Credit Counseling Services * Debt Management American Financial Solutions Family Financial Education Foundation Pioneer Credit Counseling & Debt Consolidation Consumer Credit Counseling of Nebraska Creditability Credit Counseling, Repair & Debt Consolidation Stratix Financial Group T & S Mortgage The Master Plan’s Financial Counselors, LLC Other Resources Filing Bankruptcy in Nebraska Bankruptcy Laws in Nebraska Debt Collection in Nebraska |