The Durham Bankruptcy Blog and Greensboro Bankruptcy Blog post today explores the decision many people have to make between (a) filing for a Durham Bankruptcy or Greensboro Bankruptcy or (b) trying to avoid a Durham Bankruptcy or Greensboro Bankruptcy by retaining a Debt Settlement Company to try to negotiate with creditors. If after reading this you have any questions about hiring a debt settlement company, please contact one of our Durham NC Bankruptcy Attorneys or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy Attorneys.
Debt Settlement can typically work in two ways: (1) you have a lump sum of money that you want to use to settle all of your debts, so you contact your creditors and offer a one-time payment in full settlement of your debt or (2) your monthly payments on your debts exceed your monthly income, so you contact your creditors to agree on a reduced monthly payment that you can afford. Both plans, if executed, will allow you to avoid a Durham NC Chapter 7 Bankruptcy or Greensboro NC Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.
The factors in favor of working with a debt settlement company are (a) you can avoid a Durham NC Bankruptcy or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy, (b) you can sometimes settle your debts for less than what you originally owed and (c) you avoid the uncertainty of having a lawsuit filed against you. The factors working against hiring a debt settlement company are (a) any settlement you make with a creditor will be negatively reported on your credit report and (b) your creditors do not have to negotiate with you, so you typically will have some creditors that decide not to participate (thereby leaving you vulnerable to lawsuits, collection calls, etc.). Most debt settlement companies require you to pay a down payment fee just for signing up for their service, and then you are required to pay monthly retainer payments. These fees can be expensive, and can be a burden if you are trying to pay off your debts and avoid a Durham NC Bankruptcy or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy. Some debt settlement companies have charged so much in fees, and done so little to help their customers, that new laws have been put in place to (a) prohibit money from be collected up front and (b) restricting how debt settlement companies can contact potential customers.
In our opinion, if you do not qualify for a Durham Bankruptcy or Greensboro Bankruptcy or if you wish to avoid filing a Durham NC Bankruptcy or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy, then avoid hiring any debt settlement company or debt consolidation company and instead contact the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC) at www.nfcc.org. In our opinion, the NFCC is the only legitimate alternative to bankruptcy (there may be some very helpful and affordable debt settlement companies out there, but there are far too many debt settlement companies that have scammed people out of their money).
For more information about the pros and cons of filing for a Durham NC Bankruptcy or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy or hiring a debt settlement company you can call one of our Durham NC Bankruptcy Lawyers or Greensboro NC Bankruptcy Lawyers at (888) 820-5885. You can also email our Durham NC Bankruptcy Attorneys and Greensboro NC Bankruptcy Attorneys at info@kregerthacker.com. All phone calls and emails will be answered the same day, free of charge by a Durham Bankruptcy Attorney or Greensboro Bankruptcy Attorney.