Debt relief is in the news in this period of high unemployment and economic recession, as many people find that they need help with overwhelming debt . The process is complicated, and extreme care should be taken to evaluate options offered by individuals or organizations. If you find you need help with finances, you can seek help from your creditors, private financial counselors, Christian counseling organizations, and for profit and non-profit companies. Business owners, may be eligible for government programs that can help.

Not being able to make regular monthly payments, with the accrued interest charges, may cause you to consider bankruptcy. This extreme step has a long lasting, negative effect on your credit score, and should be a last resort.

It will be a good idea to ask for help from your credit card company or other lenders before trying a debt reduction company. Creditors will sometimes reduce or defer interest and late payments if a request is made with good intentions to repay the principal amount.

If you are a small business owner, check the government programs that are available under the stimulus efforts to restore the economy. There are grant programs you may qualify for, and grant money does not have to be repaid.

Credit counseling is a great first step in getting control of finances. There are many programs that offer guidelines for financial management. Most of these start with making and keeping to a budget. A budget is a plan to balance income and expenses, with goals and time frames for paying off debt and increasing savings. Counseling plans are progressive: create a budget, build a three-month cushion for emergency cash, and then start paying off debts. Make the minimum payment on all debts but the smallest, which will be paid off as rapidly as possible. Then the next smallest debt is attacked.

Practicing this self-discipline and keeping to the plan in spite of the inevitable set backs can have amazing results. By the time your debts are paid, you will also have learned to live within your income and can pay as you go with cash. Most people have enough money to get out of debt and live comfortably if they use their available funds wisely.

Debt roll-over or consolidation is paying off individual loans with one large loan. You can do this with balance transfers to a new card, or by getting a personal loan, such as a home equity loan. The debt will still be owed, but you will probably have a lower interest rate and longer, easier repayment terms.

Consolidating your debt gives you only one payment a month to remember and budget for, rather than a depressing pile of bills. This means only one late charge if you miss a payment, and one error against your credit rating. If you resist the urge to incur more credit card debt, this can be a good solution.

Debt reduction is another option, which can help if you are overwhelmed by unsecured debt. This situation can be caused by bad habits of over spending, but can also be the result of student loans, periods of ill health or unemployment, and emergencies (like major car repair bills) that catch you without savings to fall back on.

If you are falling behind every month, with snowballing interest and late fees, you may want to work with one of the many companies that offer to help you get out from under the burden. Not all companies are effective, or honest, or really on your side. Extreme care and a lot of research can help you find a good source of help.

There are many sales promotions promising to cut your debt by half or more, have the problem solved in as little as two years, require no credit check, and be the answer you need. Don’t fall for a sales pitch, but investigate each company for valid credentials, a track history of actually helping people ( that the representative can prove ), a good rating with the Better Business Bureau, and a written guarantee of performance. There will be a negative impact on your credit score, you may have to give up all credit cards, and there may be tax consequences. Ask questions, and make sure you understand the answers and the procedure by which your money will get to your creditors.

Whether your debt relief comes from personal persistence in paying your bills, or is a result of consolidation or reduction, there is hope that your future can debt free.

Are you stressed over bills and tired of being in debt? Well, let us help you climb out of debt relief and try a debt settlement today. Stress isn’t a good thing to have at all and we can help try it happen.

Debt settlement firms want you to have at least $10,000 in credit card debt. They want $1500-2000 of that $10,000 in fees paid first before they begin working on settling your debt. They tell you to stop paying your credit card and to send those payments to them for their fees and to save for a lump-sum settlement.

What happens if they cannot settle with your credit card bank? What happens to the money you have paid them? What happens to your credit card account that is in arrears? What happens to your credit rating? How long will it take you to save $7000, $2000 for the debt settlement firm and $5000 for a 50 percent lump sum settlement?

$500 a month will total $7000 after 14 months of payments to the debt settlement firm. At that pace it will be over one year before $5000 can be paid (after $2000 in fees is taken) in a lump sum to end the debt. But, that debt may no longer exist because the banks charge off unpaid credit card debts after six months. Then within the year, they sell those bad debts for about 10 cents on the dollar.

That means your debt is owned by a junk debt buyer before the debt settlement firm has settled it. It also means the bank has no motivation to remove that debt’s bad mark on your credit report and that the negative listing will be there for seven years.

The junk debt buyer will make an effort to collect the debt, and you need to be ready for that, according to the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide. On the other hand, if you are unaware and waiting for the debt settlement firm to finish what they started, you could be vulnerable to a debt collection attorney.

So, your settlement fee is gone. Your debt is not settled. Your credit is bruised. And, you are fighting debt collectors. If you are lucky you still have $5000, but only if the settlement firm put it in a third-party escrow account.

Matt Highlander spent months researching strategies for credit card debt relief. Read the complete 230-page Credit Card Debt Survival Guide