Posted on June 5, 2009 at 10:10 am The benefits of consolidating your credit card debt, with one of the most important being the peace of mind you will have when you need to make just one payment a month, all while getting in control of your credit card debt. If you have good credit, you can also benefit by being able to negotiate a lower interest rate. After all, the zero percent rate is usually introductory, but depending on how much money you bring onto the card, the credit card company may respond by offering you a lower interest rate. No matter what, getting in control of your debt and your spending, although hard to do at first, will eventually offer you a great sense of accomplishment.

Posted on June 5, 2009 at 12:13 pm Yes, debt consolidation can give a person peace of mind that is true. Also, it allows people who are past due on their credit card accounts to find a solution to resolve their debts once and for all. Also, debt consolidation, depending on the situation can help people avoid bankruptcy. Credit counseling and debt settlement programs specifically assist people often who are on the brink. But what about the drawbacks of debt consolidation? Are there any?

Posted on June 5, 2009 at 1:58 pm Yes, there are indeed drawbacks to consolidating your debt. It sounds like inot07 may be referring to the standard debt consolidation loan, so I will specifically address a few problems that are associated with them. 1) If you take out a home equity loan, you secure the debt with your home and essentially turn an unsecured debt into a secured debt. This is a serious risk to take if you are having financial issues anyway, since defaulting on a loan payment could lead to a foreclosure. 2) A lot of unsecured consolidation loans are issued at high interest rates since their is no collateral attached to the loan to secure the debt. As a result, while you may be able to get rid of the credit card debt right away, you may end up paying back your consolidator a whole lot more than what you owe now! 3) A lot of debt consolidation lenders use the "get a lower monthly payment!" pitch that initially sounds great to a lot of borrowers. However, keep in mind- even at a decent interest rate, if you are making a really low monthly payment you may be paying that loan off for years on end. Again, this leads to the situation where the borrower pays back more than what they owe at the time they take out the loan. That is a start, does anyone else have anything they would like to contribute?

Posted on June 7, 2009 at 2:31 pm That is helpful information regarding consolidation loans. The other consolidation methods that are popular these days are debt settlement and credit counseling. The benefits of debt settlement include lower monthly payments, a potential reduction of the principle amount of debt owed and a short program length. Credit counseling provides people with the simplicity of making one monthly payment as well as a potential reduction on the interest rates of each credit card enrolled into the det management plan.

Posted on June 16, 2009 at 9:20 am Exactly. Debt settlement allows people who are on the brink of filing bankruptcy an alternative to get out of debt without filing. Settling your debts has better long-term implications for someone's credit as opposed to a bankruptcy. And those who are a good fit for credit counseling can remain current on their monthly payments, and if the interest rates are lowered pay off their debt faster. This will prevent their payment history from suffering, as it does for those who are past due.

Posted on June 16, 2009 at 12:30 pm So how much money exactly can someone save by consolidating their credit cards?

Posted on July 30, 2009 at 8:47 am And what are the benefits of consolidating your credit if you are behind on monthly payments?

Posted on July 30, 2009 at 1:16 pm There are many potential benefits of consolidating your credit cards if you are behind on your monthly payments. For example, some people who aren't too far behind enroll with a credit counseling agency. With lower interest rates, they can catch back up and remain current moving forward. Others who are pretty far behind consolidate by using a debt settlement company. Ultimately, these people can potentially settle their debts and save a lot of money in the process.

Posted on July 30, 2009 at 4:33 pm What are the benefits of consolidating your credit cards if you are current on your monthly payments? I have no issues with the payments but I don't feel like I am getting anywhere. I don't want to be in debt forever!!

Posted on August 6, 2009 at 8:27 am What are the benefits of consolidating your credit by taking out a loan? I have heard that taking out a consolidation loan can be risky? Why I don't get it?