subject: Obama's Personal Debt Settlement – Tips on How to Settle a Personal Debt Settlement [print this page] Personal debt, especially those concerning credit cards, is the most common form of debt incurred by the average American. Now with the government reforms, it is also one of the easiest forms of debt to get rid off provided you are cautious in your approach towards settlement and are committed to not get into further debt while repaying the amount.
As a first step, you need to make a list of all your credit card debts to get a clear picture of the actual total debt. You need to take into consideration all the factors like the amount of the debt, the interest rate being charged on each of the credit cards, the schedule for paying back the debt and the monthly minimum payment that is required to be made. After you have all this information listed down, you will find it easy to prioritize which card debt to repay first. It is generally recommended that you start with the credit card that has the highest interest rate and the smallest debt amount owed. You need to also make a list of your existing income and monthly expenditure to figure out how much disposable income is available with you to repay your debts.
While it is possible to conduct negotiations on your own, you could take the help of debt settlement companies to act on your behalf and get you a better settlement offer through their skill and experience. Before you take a decision to finalize a debt settlement company, do not forget to verify the details of the fees that will be charged by them, the final settlement amount that the plan to negotiate on, the procedures that they normally follow in such cases and the terms of payment. It makes sense to take the help of the debt settlement company only if they are able to save you a minimum of 40% of the original debt balance after making allowances for their fees and incidental expenditure. And irrespective of whether you do the negotiation on your own or take the help of a settlement company, ensure that you research your legal rights involved in debt settlement in terms of procedures involved, credit card company rights, effects on credit ratings, and other financial implications.
Obama's Personal Debt Settlement Tips on How to Settle a Personal Debt Settlement