Mom’s Money

Time To Do More Than Clip Coupons

If you have been cutting back on every single item on your budget, but still the balance on your credit cards doesn’t seem to be dropping, it may be time to do more.  It may be time to consolidate your debt.

This is a hard step for many families to take because it requires a lot of time, a great deal of investigating, and ultimately, trust. There are some steps that need to be taken before you get anywhere close to breathing that much needed sigh of relief.

1)  Call each credit card company and request a lower interest rate and lower payments each month, plus reversal of any late fees and overage charges.  You’ll need to make this effort before you consider debt consolidation because it may save you money.  Your debt consolidator will do this very same thing for you and charge you for the service, so if you have already done your best to work with your credit card companies, that step is done and you should not be charged for it.

2)  Talk to friends and family about debt consolidators in your area.  Call the Better Business Bureau to get all the information they have.  If you have a good relationship with your bank, stop in and discuss your plans with them.

3)  Once you have the name of a couple reliable debt consolidators, call each one and set up an appointment to meet before any financial information is shared.  You want to meet face-to-face as that is the only way to involve someone in your personal finances.  If you decide this is the person you want to hire, ask what specific information and paperwork you’ll need to bring along with you and how much time is permitted for your appointment.  Have everything together when you go.  A forgotten document could cost you in time and money.

4)  When you go to the meeting, be fully prepared, both with your paperwork and emotionally.  It will be unnerving to talk about your financial situation.  Money problems always touch a raw nerve in people, so take a deep breath, and realize that this is a professional who has your best interest in mind.  That is precisely why you met in person before this first session involving actual financial detail.

5)   Follow your debt consolidation expert’s advice to the letter.  Once you get a plan developed, the trick is to stick to it.  After several months, you may want to revisit your debt consolidator to review any changes or address any concerns you still may have.

Now, debt consolidation is not for everyone, but it may be the best route for you and your family to take if you’re not getting anywhere near your goals.  If, after you do the research, you decide it’s not for you, there’s no harm done.  It’s worth the time to find out what your options are and if debt consolidation is something that will work for you.  Everything you do to save money will help save your family’s financial future.