Posted on July 13, 2009 at 9:08 pm hi, hope someone can help me.i have been bothered by credit card collectors day and night and they keep insisting that i pay my bills. i tell them that i cannot afford my payments. my amount totals $10000 and i cannot pay it all off in full at one time. i have not been paying for my bills for almost six months now, my hours from work were cut and im only making enough to get by day by day.since my debt has been this far behind on payment, do you think i should consolidate my debts now? when should you consolidate credit card debt anyway? do you always hav to do it as soon as your behind, or can you do it even when your current?

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 1:40 am Hi Lady Marmalade, I'm sorry to hear about your situation.Since you've mentioned that you have not been able to make payments for six months now, I believe that you do need to consolidate your debts--of course, as long as you have the means to do so. Consolidating your debt may also prevent you from falling further into debt and get back on your feet sooner. Now, debt consolidation covers three methods, and we may need to discuss them to you in further detail. One option is debt settlement, where you'll only be paying a portion of your balance and your creditor will forgive the rest of that amount. The next option you have is credit counseling, and a third example is by obtaining a debt consolidation loan.Feel free to ask any more questions. We may also be able to help you with any further concerns on these matters.

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 1:51 am To answer your question, "when should you consolidate credit card debt?" here are some things that you can think about.1. If you're barely able to make the minimum payments on your credit cards.2. If you've been consistently late in making your payments.3. If you've tried to make reasonable payment plans with your creditors, to no avail.4. If you've been contacted by collectors and creditors on a regular basis.Have you tried contacting your creditor in making a reasonable payment arrangement with them?

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 2:23 am i have but they want me to make payments that i couldnt afford. i diliberatly forgot the amounts because it was too much for me to bear.i still have kids to feed and everything.please tell me more about consolidating, those three options please.

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 3:26 am when you should consolidate credit card debt?-when you feel like your life is spiralling out of control because of yor debt-when you're loosing sleep because of it-if you're hiding your debts from your spouse-if you don't want to file for bankruptcy-when all your income goes towards you debts

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 3:56 am i stumbled upon this thread, and i am interested in the debt consolidation loan as well, how can i qualify for that?? do i have to have a certain credit score or income level jus to get that?

Posted on July 14, 2009 at 10:00 am Typically if you are looking for a debt consolidation loan the potential lender will pull a credit report to verify things like your credit score and debt to income ratio. If they extend an unsecured debt consolidation loan to you and your credit is not strong, you can bet that the interest rate will be very high. Or, even worse, they may require you to secure the debt with collateral. This essentially means the consequences become more severe if you ever fall behind on the loan payments for any reasons, as you would be putting an asset at risk.

Posted on July 15, 2009 at 2:39 am that's a scary thought. do you have any idea how much interest they would charge? i mean it may be so easy to get that loan because i really do need to pay all my bills and i have a limited source of income. ive been thinkning of getting a payday loan to do the trick.

Posted on July 15, 2009 at 4:37 am Getting a debt consolidation loan will not help you out at all, because it would be defeating the purpose of why you're trying to eliminate debt in the first place.

Posted on July 15, 2009 at 5:33 am I agree. Getting another loan to pay off another loan may work in the short-term, especially if the second loan in particular has a zero to minimal interest rate. The thing is, these promos can only stay for so long, and once interest rates hike up, you'll be having an ever harder time paying back the second loan--on the basis of interest alone. Very risky if I may say so myself.Besides, if your credit isn't really very good to begin with, you just might end up with a higher interest rate, anyway. Once lenders review your credit report on your application, seeing a not-so-stellar credit history can bring about two things: either they'll deny your application, or give you a higher interest rate, even if it's your first time to apply for that particular lender.