Ask anyone that has debt how they feel and they will use words like overwhelmed
, out of control, smothered and confused. The truth is if you have debt, your life is on hold and cannot move forward or grow. You just feel like you are overwhelmed with stress and that you have had many limits placed on you. And you are going to need a plan to be able to change any of that. Just know that this situation can be changed and the sooner can get started the sooner the sooner the limits will be lifted and you can begin to move forward with your life.
There are a number of great plans that are documented in books by well known financial experts. Most of these can be purchased for less than $20 new. You can also purchase them used in most cases at the online websites or your local library will most likely also have a copy. Oprah's website has a great plan. Larry Wingett, Dave Ramsey and Suze Orman have all written books that will give you the information you need to get out of debt. Ideally, this is the way to do it and there have been many people that have paid off thousands of dollars in debt by changing the way they spend money and following one of these plans.
If you have debt that has been charged off, settling it will most likely be your best option. Charged off debt is debt that has been written off by the lender for nonpayment. This usually happens at about 180 to 270 days after the last payment was received. Once the lender has done this they are usually willing to accept less than what is actually owed on the balance of the account. If a lender sues you for nonpayment of debt, offering to make a settlement will often stop the legal action.
If you are somewhere in between being able to manage your debs on your own and wanting to settle them, you may want to consider credit counseling. They offer a debt management plan that will consolidate your unsecured debts without a loan. You will make one payment each month to the credit counseling company and they will pay your lenders. As long as you are able to follow the plan as agreed, you should be debt free in 3 to 5 years.
Which one of these options you choose will depend on how much debt you have and how long it has been since it was paid on. You may elect to use more than one method. The important thing is that you pick on and you get started.