Resolve to Live Debt Free: I am debt freedom fighter

Credit Cards Debt Options (99):  Your credit cards are full. The amount you owe is growing out of control because of finance charges and late fees. You are getting dunning notices from creditors? Your accounts have been turned over to debt collectors? You are feeling overwhelmed and want to reduce or erase your debt by paying pennies on the dollar. To relieve and resolve the financial stress, you might consider the following options:  (1) Credit Counseling (2) Do It Yourself (3) Debt Settlement) (3) Debt Consolidation (4) Bankruptcy. To help you select a plan of action, take into consideration: your level of debt, your level of discipline, and your prospects for the future. The Federal Trade Commission, the nation's consumer protection agency, recommends you slow down and consider how you can get out of the red without spending a whole lot of green.

Coping with Debt (98): You’re not alone if you are having trouble paying your bills?  Many of us face or have faced a financial crisis at some point in our lives.  Whether the crisis is caused by personal or family illness, the loss of a job, or overspending, it can seem overwhelming. There are ways to eliminate debt and stop your financial situation from going from bad to worse. The first step to take is perhaps the most important and the easiest. Start with realistic assessment of how much money you take in and how much money you spend. BTW – the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act covers personal, family, and household debts, including money you owe on a personal credit card account, an auto loan, a medical bill, and your mortgage. The FDCPA doesn’t cover debts you incurred to run a business

Credit Counselor (99): can advise you on managing your money and debts, help you develop a budget, and offer free educational materials and workshops. Counselors discuss your entire financial situation with you, and help you develop a personalized plan to solve your money problems. An initial counseling session typically lasts an hour, with an offer of follow-up sessions.

Do It Yourself with Help (97): To complete a journey, you have to take the first step. An easy but critical first step is to perhaps use the worksheet at URL 97 below to gather data so that you can begin to turn data into information that you can use. The worksheet will help you gather critical elements as a starting point. Don’t let the process scare you. It is just the first of many steps in a process to do a realistic assessment of where you are right now. Start by listing your income from all sources. Then, list your "fixed" expenses — those that are the same each month — like mortgage payments or rent, car payments, and insurance premiums. Next, list the expenses that vary — like groceries, entertainment, and clothing. Writing down all your expenses, even those that seem insignificant, is a helpful way to track your spending patterns, identify necessary expenses, and prioritize the rest. The goal is to make sure you can make ends meet on the basics: housing, food, health care, insurance, and education.

Contact Your Creditors (97): if you’re having trouble making ends meet contact your creditors and tell them why it’s difficult for you, and try to work out a modified payment plan that reduces your payments to a more manageable level. Don’t wait until your accounts have been turned over to a debt collector. At that point, your creditors have given up on you.

Dealing with Debt Collectors (96): The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation’s consumer protection agency, enforces the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which prohibits debt collectors from using abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices to collect from you. Federal law dictates how and when a debt collector may contact you: not before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. or while you’re at work if the collector knows that your employer doesn’t approve of the calls. Collectors may not harass you, lie, or use unfair practices when they try to collect a debt. And they must honor a written request from you to stop further contact. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act covers personal, family, and household debts, including money you owe on a personal credit card account, an auto loan, a medical bill, and your mortgage. The FDCPA doesn’t cover debts you incurred to run a business. Every collector must send you a written “validation notice” telling you how much money you owe within five days after they first contact you. This notice also must include the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money, and how to proceed if you don’t think you owe the money. If you send the debt collector a letter stating that you don’t owe any or all of the money, or asking for verification of the debt, that collector must stop contacting you. You have to send that letter within 30 days after you receive the validation notice. But a collector can begin contacting you again if it sends you written verification of the debt, like a copy of a bill for the amount you owe. If you don’t pay a debt, a creditor or its debt collector generally can sue you to collect. If they win, the court will enter a judgment against you. The judgment states the amount of money you owe, and allows the creditor or collector to get a garnishment order against you, directing a third party, like your bank, to turn over funds from your account to pay the debt. Wage garnishment happens when your employer withholds part of your compensation to pay your debts. Your wages usually can be garnished only as the result of a court order. Don’t ignore a lawsuit summons. If you do, you lose the opportunity to fight a wage garnishment.

Debt Settlement Companies (99): Although a debt settlement company may be able to settle one or more of your debts, consider the risks associated with these programs before you sign up. The settlement is another word for a lump sum that's less than the full amount you owe. To make that lump sum payment, the program asks that you set aside a specific amount of money every month in savings. Debt settlement companies usually ask that you transfer this amount every month into an escrow-like account to accumulate enough savings to pay off a settlement that is reached eventually. Further, these programs often encourage or instruct their clients to stop making any monthly payments to their creditors. Working a debt settlement company or organization is just one option for dealing with your debt.

Bankruptcy (95): The Department of Justice’s U.S. Trustee Program approves organizations to provide the credit counseling and debtor education required for anyone filing for personal bankruptcy. Only the counselors and educators that appear on the U.S. Trustee Program’s lists can advertise that they are approved to provide the required counseling and debtor education. By law, the U.S. Trustee Program does not operate in Alabama and North Carolina; in these states, court officials called Bankruptcy Administrators approve pre-bankruptcy credit counseling organizations and pre-discharge debtor education course providers. Pre-bankruptcy credit counseling and pre-discharge debtor education may not be provided at the same time. Credit counseling must take place before you file for bankruptcy; debtor education must take place after you file. You must file a certificate of credit counseling completion when you file for bankruptcy, and evidence of completion of debtor education after you file for bankruptcy — but before your debts are discharged. Only credit counseling organizations and debtor education course providers that have been approved by the U.S. Trustee Program may issue these certificates. To protect against fraud, the certificates are numbered, and produced through a central automated system.

Resolving Consumer Problems (94): Things don’t always go right. Sometimes you don’t get what you ordered; sometimes you get an item of the blue. What are your obligations? And by the way, are there advantages to using any particular method of payment in terms of consumer protections? This is different than coping with debt.

  (99) Settling Credit Card Debt:  https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0145-settling-credit-card-debt

(98) Coping with Debt: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0150-coping-debt

(97) Worksheet for budget:  https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/pdf-1020-make-budget-worksheet.pdf

(96) Debt Collectors: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0149-debt-collection

(95) Bankruptcy: https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0224-filing-bankruptcy-what-know

(94) Consumer Problems. https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/topics/resolving-consumer-problems