When to Seek Debt Advice

Not sure whether you need advice for your debt? Consider these warning signs...

Do you feel anxious every time the phone rings? Do you hate collecting the mail? Are you having trouble sleeping? These could all be signs that your debt is getting on top of you.

If you have this niggling feeling that your life is getting out of control and you avoid dealing with it, it probably is! That's the first sign that your finances are taking a turn for the worse.

Then you begin to avoid reading your mail. You just don't want to see another bill. All you ever seem to get these days are bills.

Finally, the phone calls start. Creditors begin asking for payment. Now you want to avoid the phone. As the calls become more unpleasant, your stress levels jump every time the phone rings. Soon the debt collectors will be knocking at your door!

Fortunately, most people recognize these signs early and intervene. Often all that it takes is a bit of belt-tightening and perhaps juggling your accounts to reduce high interest charges (particularly on credit cards). However, if you leave it too long, things can get worse - and fast!

When to get debt advice

Generally speaking, if you have more than $8000 in debt and are not able to make your payments, it's time to seek expert help. If you do this quickly, then the chances are that you will be able to recover without too much trouble. This is typically done with the help of debt consolidation. The concept here is to consolidate all your high interest loans to one low interest loan with only one monthly payment.

One thing to be aware of when taking this approach is that you are in effect adding another loan. Sometimes the cost of establishing a new loan and moving all your debt adds to your cost and the additional cost offsets any gains you might have made. So do your homework!

Another form of debt consolidation that many people don't know about is debt agreements. There require the help of a professional. We have helped many people establish successful debt agreements. This is how they work...

We contact all your creditors and negotiate an agreement with them. Sometimes creditors will agree to accept less money than what is owed. We then administer the debt on your behalf so that you only have one easy repayment each month.

Finally, when there is no other way, your only option is declaring bankruptcy. This topic is the focus of a future article.

So where is your situation? Are you avoiding reading the mail? Are you avoiding the phone? If so then you might need help. Why not contact us for a free consultation. There is absolutely no cost and you are not obliged to do anything. It might just lift that weight off your shoulders!

Your trusted source of debt solutions and debt advice.