|
Educating yourself about the
ins and outs of debt negotiation is a good first
step. Please note that the term 'debt
negotiation' is also known as debt arbitration
or debt settlement.
For starters, a lender
has little motivation to arbitrate anything less
than the full amount unless the person is two to
three months behind in payment.
To answer the question is
debt negotiation bad? you need view it as a
last-resort measure. The truth of the matter is
it's one step away from declaring
bankruptcy.
Remember, your lender
gave you the money or property in good faith. He
or she has every right to expect that the loan
be repaid in full. Morally, you should do
everything that is within your power to pay your
debt(s).
However, this is not
always possible and despite how much you would
like to repay the loan in full you just can't -
not now and not in the foreseeable future. This
is where debt negotiation comes into play. It
may be your only logical course of action.
And, in the case of an
old debt that you've long since forgotten about,
debt negotiation would be the best way of
dealing with it. There's no point in keeping a
small blemish on report when a little
negotiation can easily turn things around.
But if you find
yourself overwhelmed with your current debt
load, credit counseling should instead be your
first action step. A credit counselor will give
you some tools and suggestions for reducing your
payments.
Debt consolidation may
be more appropriate. A credit counselor will
walk you through the process. In a nutshell, it
means creating a whole new loan for a longer
period of time. This would hopefully lower your
payments enough so you can get back on
track.
Please know however,
that debt consolidation can be nothing more than
a way of putting off the evitable. It really
does little to correct the problem. That's why
many people come back to debt negotiation as a
way of getting out of their financial problems
and starting fresh start.
If you're determined to pay
of your debt(s) and turn over a new 'financial'
leaf you may wish to contact your creditors
yourself. By doing so, you may be able to
negotiate a lower interest rate or a more
realistic repayment plan. This is known as self
arbitration.
So, is debt negotiation
bad if you really need it?
The bottom line answer is no.
When your debt is very delinquent, negotiation
is often in your best interest. If this is the
case, now is the time to either consider self
arbitration or seek out the help of a debt
negotiation company.
Although such a program
will lower your credit score for as long a
you're in the program, you'll also find that
most companies require the creditor to make sure
that the final credit report reflects the
account is now paid in full. Therefore, once
your account is settled you will no longer have
a negative report.
A number of debt
negotiation companies also include a credit
repair service as part of their debt negotiation
program. This repair service removes any
negative items caused by the program. Although
it is part of the program there are additional
fees associated with this service.
Is debt negotiation
bad? Ultimately, you're the best person to
judge whether debt negotiation is right for you
or if it's in your best interest to consider
another alternative such as debt
consolidation.
|