Debt Consolidation -- Where do I start?

[Train]

So I have gotten myself a few credit cards, a student loan, and a car payment. After being laid off, I cant pay these off as fast as i would have liked to. So im looking into debt consolidation or some type of low(er) interest loan to get me out of the high interest debts I have now.

But the question is, theres a million places online that all offer the same thing, i get tons of junk emails a day promising to get me out of debt, and ive also heard a lot of these advertisements are scams. Where does someone with bad credit go to get help with debts?

 

[Carbo]

The Mob.

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

I'd be wary of online stuff. Just look in the phone book for counseling services. Most of them are free to go and talk to. That's where I would start.

 

[Damage]

I agree.. WHO you are dealing with is just as important as what they "say" they can do for you.. Make sure they are referencable, and read EVERYTHING they give you.

 

[flot]

#1 - can you make every minimum payment on your debts? Make sure you do that, no matter what. If you can, and think you will be able to for the foreseeable future, don't make your life more difficult than you have to.

#2 - consider consolidatign your own debt. If you have credit cards that allow balance transfers (yes, almost all do) then think about transferring most of your debt into one or two places. That typically makes your monthly payments go down substantially (one $200 minimum payment is better than three $80 minimum payments).

#3 - there's an easy way to get rid of a car payment - sell the car

#4 - Student loans often have special clauses where you can suspend payments and only pay the interest, or even take a year off of paying, or whatever. (not sure exactly how this works, but I know its possible)

Any of these things would probably be safe to your credit rating (which is very very important to keep high). Also, you'd be surprised - just calling and asking your credit card companies to reduce your interest rate usually works... so lower your interest rate just by asking, transfer some balances, and talk to the student loan people. The best bet is to do EVERYTHING YOU CAN on your own before ever "admitting" to anyone that you're in a financial bind. That way there's no chance of impacting your credit, a good chance you can save some $$, and less hassle you might have to deal with down the road.

You didn't give many details of your situation (some people think $3000 is a lot of debt, some people think $20,000 is fine) so can't offer much advice otherwise. But if you are truely over your head, going to one of the non-profit debt councling places isn't ab ad idea. DEFINITELY go to a "Counciling" type place before you use one of the services that offers to "fix things" for you. Some of those are legit, but others are not, and will harm your credit rating in the process.

Remember, YOU are the only person who is TRUELY concerned about keeping your credit rating in good standing. Don't trust anybody else to make the right move for you - whenever you can, do it yourself.