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Tue 3 Jun, 2008 09:47 am
I have about $29,000 in credit card debt. I need to make one simple payment and having trouble finding a bank/company to offer me a loan.
I applied for one in Wescom which I have an account there. They denied me because I have too much debt. Well...I that's the reason I need a loan is to get rid of this debt!
I'm depressed...
Most banks offer a "consolidation" loan - why not ask your bank about that? They combine all your debts and you only make one payment. The interest will certainly be cheaper than the credit card rate you're currently paying.
Go to other banks and see what they say.
You may also want to try for a lower amount. That amount is high enough that even with a good credit rating a loan with no collateral is a tough sell.
my suggestion is to contact a NON-PROFIT !!!! credit counselling service for help .
check the "community help service" , credit union office or the yellow pages ; even the library might be able to help you locate such a service .
make ABSOLUTELY sure that it is NON-PROFIT - or you may be worse of than before . commercial credit counselling services usually take their cut before they do anything for you .
Banks and lending institutions see you as a bad risk. Your debt load is a red flag that you are someone who cannot handle money, they are not going to help you. You might be able to consolidate some of the money onto a lower interest card to start, but watch out for the instant huge jack ups after the agreed upon low interest period. In the meantime, start by paying off the card with largest interest rate. Make sure you keep everything else current by paying at least the minimum, but really focus on getting rid of the biggest interest rate first. Oh I forgot to mention - STOP USING THE CARDS! RIP THEM UP, DON'T GET MORE! Switch the whole family to cash and instant debit only. Make a budget and stick to it. Look around and see what you can return or sell to pay down the debt. Learn how to live on your income or get two jobs.
Remember - credit card companies love people like you, you make them rich, rich, rich. They think you are a jerk to pay their loan shark rates. If I was a salesperson, and I told you that anything you want in my store is going to cost you 26% percent more than the ticket price - would you still buy the items? I think you would walk away - well, walk away.
Check out your local library for books by Dave Ramsey. He has good common sense advice about getting out of debt. He refers to paying credit card debt as "the stupid tax". Try and find his book "Financial Peace" to start.
Good luck.
you might want to check out this website :
CONSUMER CREDIT COUNSELLING
theere is no cost for reading all the information and their actual counselling charges seem very modest indeed .
Man, this is tough. Just make sure you do your homework before doing anything.
I have seen first hand CCC services...do more harm than good to someone. If you have been paying as agreed upon ...on your debt and not missing any payments ( just strapped) ......the CCC will not get very far at all in negotiating your debt down. After all, the credit card companies could care less if you have any money left over at the end of the month...as long as you are getting their money to them on time. So keep that in mind.
Basically how CCC works is they will first figure out how much you can afford to pay a month. Once that is established, they begin the negotiation process with your creditors. Lets say your creditors take the worm and run with it. Your payoff to all of them is lowered. You are then required to make a payment monthly to CCC and they will distribute the monies.
Here's the ugly parts. A lender will see this on your credit report and look at it in the same way they do a BK. A chapter 13 to be exact. What that means for you is that you better make sure that you make those payments on time for a period of 12 months straight because that is how long they want to see you showing responsibility for the debt that you owe.
Another ugly is your credit score is going to take a dive. How deep of a dive depends on a few things. One being, how many accounts are placed in the CCCS. Another being ...how many of these accounts continue to report you LATE. Ahhhh you wouldn't think they would do this, eh? Wrong. They do it all the time. Because even though they negotiated a lower payment through CCC ....they keep reporting to the bureaus that you are late with your payment because you are no longer making the payment you were supposed to make before CCC stepped in.. PLUS in the very beginning you go 30 days (or more) LATE before the payments from CCC get into their hands.
It's a gamble though, really. I have seen (rarely) times where the creditors didn't do the nasty to the consumers credit report monthly. You just don't really know how that will play out till it's already played out.
One thing you might be able to do is negotiate with the credit card companies to get your rates lowered. Even if your credit score isn't the greatest. Most of them are willing to do that for a period of time ..but most people don't have a clue that it's even an option. I don't carry ANY credit card with a rate higher than 6.9%. And I have offers all the time for higher rate cards. Don't need em'. Don't want em'. Don't deserve em'. If anyone raises my rate......I pay em off and write em' off. You have to be strict with these yo-yo's.
Lots and lots and lots I could say to you about CCC. But really, the most important thing is for you to educate yourself and not go into it blindly.
Good luck