Consumer Debt Consolidation

Hardship Programs

The economy has caused many issues for the average consumer. Unfortunately, many people have fallen into credit card account debt and are not sure what they can do about it. There are many options and to go over them all, you would be reading this article all day. However, you can find great ways to pay down charge card account debt at www.JemCreditCards.com. In this article, I will be going over how to set up hardship programs with your credit card company.

What Is A Hardship Program?

Hardship programs are programs that many charge card companies have designed to help consumers who are having a problem meeting their monthly expenses. Finally, charge card companies have decided to do something to help people. In most cases, when you are accepted into a financial hardship program, your credit card account gets closed and you get placed on a payment plan that you can afford. During this process, your interest rate will usually reduced from whatever you are paying now to somewhere below 9%. In most cases, these types of programs will have little to no negative effect on your credit. However, every credit card account company works different and your credit score is something that you should discuss with the representative that helps you set up the program.

What Does It Take To Qualify For A Hardship?

Just about every consumer these days will qualify for a financial hardship program. These programs are tailor fitted for people who have experienced a reduction in income or an increase in expenses over the past year. To qualify for a financial hardship with most credit card companies, you must have experienced one of these negative aspects in your financial situation. Also, if your income has dropped too low, you may not qualify. Credit card companies want to make sure that they will be able to help you without pulling every penny out of your pocket possible. If you have had too much of a reduction in income or increase in expenses, you may need to look into charge card debt consolidation and in rare cases credit card debt settlement. A general rule of thumb to follow is if after all of your expenses including rent/mortgage, utilities, child support, food, secured loans, unsecured loans, child care, medical expenses, ect… if you have between $50 and $150, you should qualify. This shows that you are having a hard time but that you are not yet to the point where you need to look into charge card debt consolidation, credit card account debt settlement, or bankruptcy.

How Do I Set Up A Hardship?

Setting up a credit card hardship program is actually fairly simple. The first thing you need to do is call the charge card company. Remember to always be polite no matter the outcome. You get more flies with sugar than you do with vinegar. Explain your situation to the customer service representative that answers the phone. In most cases, you will be transferred to a representative that specializes in setting up hardship solutions for people. Explain your hardship once again to this representative. I know this seems a bit redundant however, the outcome is worth it in most cases. The majority of the time, the representative will do a budget analysis with you asking about every penny that comes in and out of your home. Be honest! These programs are tailor fitted to the people budget so if you lie, you may end up in a situation where you still have problems paying your bills. After all of this, the representative will in most cases start to negotiate your payment with you. Ask for the lowest payment possible and make sure you don’t accept anything that you are not 100% sure you are able to afford.

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– Are you one of many consumers today who have been hurt by the recession and now find yourself drowning in debt? Then it’s important to make the right decision when it comes to choosing a debt consolidation program. At www.jemcreditcards.com, we can help you choose what’s best for your specific situation.

The airwaves are full of commercials today that promise to cut your debt in half and have you debt free in in 2 years. The companies making these claims are Debt Settlement companies. They normally promise to settle debts with your creditors for 40% to 60% of the principal you owe. These companies collect high up-front fees from consumers and then take monthly payments which are saved in an escrow account until enough is available to make settlements with their creditors. During this “saving time”, no payments are sent to the creditors at all.

There are few statistics available on the success rate of consumers in a Debt Settlement program, however, a survey by Colorado’s attorney general found that from 2006 to 2008, less than 10% of Colorado consumers successfully settled their debts through these programs. An investigation by the New York attorney general into an Arizona-based debt-settlement company found that only 0.3% of clients realized the promised savings*. Consumers typically find themselves in a worse situation after stopping payment to all of their creditors and allowing the fees and interest rates to grow out of control.

People who went through a failed Debt Settlement program like this end up filing for bankruptcy or find themselves with a judgment filed against them by one or more of their creditors. They are also thousands of dollars out of pocket in fees to the Debt Settlement company and their credit scores require years to recover.

www.jemcreditcards.com is a organization that can help you in making a smart financial choices that will keep you worry free. We can develop a payment consolidation program that works with your creditors to help you reduce your interest rates, eliminate fees, stop the collection calls and, best of all, you will have one convenient monthly payment that you can afford and be debt free in five years or less.

www.jemcreditcards.com is committed to empowering individuals to improve the quality of their lives through financial education and counseling.

If all else fails, seek out help from a debt reduction specialist or counselors who can help you formulate a plan for getting out of debt and staying out. Just make sure that you check out the service in advance. Many companies are simply taking advantage of Americans in debt and charging them high service charges.

This article is brought to you by www.JemCreditCards.com, Not just credit cards – we build financial stability! Your source for the best charge card including Discover cards, Chase balance transfer credit cards, and much much more!

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