A credit counselor can be an ideal professional to work with if you are struggling to repay the debt you owe. However, not all counselors offer the same service, can accomplish the same thing for you and offer the best overall experience.
If you are going to use consumer credit counseling, you need to be sure the person you hire to be in charge of your accounts is someone you can trust.
What’s the Problem? Some consumer credit counselors do not do a good job of exploring your needs and meeting your goals. In fact, the Federal Trade Commission and the IRS has gone after numerous organizations in the past for not being upfront about fees charged or misrepresenting their true status as a for profit organization and not a nonprofit. Some offer questionable advice – even advice that could get the borrower into further turmoil.
The good news is that these are not the common counselors. There are good counselors out there, in fact, many are top notch.
So the question arises, how do you find the best counselor? In order to find the best credit counselor, consider the following tips. It is a good idea to explore several options before making a choice, too.
• The United States Trustee’s office lists approved counselors for people to use. These are the only counselors you can use if you actually plan to file for bankruptcy (since credit counseling is one-step that many people have to go through first.) You can find a list of approved counselors on the United States Department of Justice website.
• Ask questions to get answers. In other words, flat out ask if the organization is a nonprofit and ask to see a fee schedule. You have the right to know this information before you agree to working with the agent.
• You can count on having a longer session with a credit counselor, some of which last over an hour. This session may cost a fee, this is common, but it should not be excessive. If you find the fee is too much, turn to another counselor first.
Talk to several counselors and find out what they can offer you. If anyone offers you, what you believe is something that is too good to be true, it probably is.
However, those who are good at their job are able to help you to pay off your debt faster and even reduce the amount you have to repay considerably. Others can help you to budget so that you can actually afford the process.
