If you have been having financial difficulties then you know it is difficult to try and fix them.
You may not have a lot of options but you must be aware that you may have alternatives.
Before your credit is totally destroyed you will want to investigate your options.
If you still have a good credit score then you may want to investigate the following: · Transferring your balance to a lower interest rate card.
You might even investigate getting a new card with an introductory rate and do a balance transfer to that card.
· Investigate getting a personal loan from your bank or credit union.
If you can get a good interest rate then paying off your credit cards will also help your credit score.
If you have a retirement account then you might be able to get a hardship loan that would pay off your credit card debt.
But be careful and investigate every detail regarding this loan type.
You may have to pay taxes on this type of loan.
If you own your home then you might qualify for an equity line of credit.
But if you get either of these types of loans pay off your credit card debt in full.
Even if you get these types of loans, you should buckle down and work on better money management.
This means setting up a budget so that you can use your disposable income to pay off either your credit card debt or those loans.
The budget must be a realistic budget so that you will be able to follow the budget.
It will also help you to know what can and cannot be paid.
Knowing and understanding your financial situation is critical.
You must know if it is temporary or a permanent situation so that you can better prepare.
Telling your lenders that it is a temporary problem and knowing that it is a permanent problem will hurt you worse in the long run.
If you became permanently disabled and was unable to work but told your lenders that you were hurt on the job so you will be back to work soon will make matters worse.
The old adage "honesty is the best policy" is true especially with your creditors.
Working with your creditors directly is often better than working through a credit counselor.
A counselor will have to follow what terms and rates your creditors tell them.
This may not help you in your financial problem.
Additionally, if your debts are too big and your income too small you may not get any help from a credit counselor.
No matter which way you decide to go keep detailed notes on every conversation you have with either your creditors or your credit counselor.
Don't be afraid to ask for a supervisor if the person you're talking with isn't helpful.
Additionally, the first person you speak with may not have any authority to help you.
Once you have an agreement make sure that you get the agreement in writing.
You may also want to discuss how it is going to report to your credit history report.
If you know how it is going to affect your credit score then you can prepare to begin fixing your credit report.
Make sure that everything on your credit report is accurate.
Dispute anything on your report that is inaccurate.
Once your financial problem is over make sure that you start good credit habits again.
This means paying your bills on time and in full.