Credit Counseling Review

Prepare for credit counseling to save time, and help your counselor give you the best advice.

Here are the basic steps to prepare for credit counseling:

• Make the initial contact
• Prepare a draft of your current household budget
• Gather together:
  • payroll stubs (last one for each income source)
  • last 2 years of tax returns
  • copy of last received billing statements on all debts, utilities, mortgage, car payment, etc.
• Prepare a list of your assets with an estimate of current market value
• First consultation (by phone or in person)

During your first consultation you may be told whether or not you qualify for their services (yes, you do have to qualify). However, if the counselor needs to do a deeper review of your financial situation after the first consultation, it could take longer to notify you.

Qualifying for The Debt Management Program is usually pretty straightforward:

• you may have to meet a qualified unsecured debt minimum;
• you must place all qualified unsecured debt into the program; and
• all parties must be able to maintain reasonable payment expectations, including how long it will take to pay off your debts and your monthly payment amount.

After your first consultation, the debt consolidation service may obtain a copy of your credit report, contact creditors, prepare a list of recommendations, and draft the Debt Management Agreement (DMA) outlining what they will do, what you need to pay, etc.

At this point, you will likely have another consultation, again free, either by phone or in person. You will receive a copy of the proposed DMA to review, and accept, if you decide to use their services.

Making Payments For Credit Counseling

If you enter into a Debt Management Agreement with CCCS, you will be making monthly payments directly to them. They will deposit your payment in their escrow account, then issue checks to your creditors in accordance with the DMA each month.

In most instances, you can make weekly instead of monthly payments if it fits into your budget better. The only restriction is you need to make sure the total minimum monthly payment is paid on time.

This highly recommended credit counseling service can save you thousands of dollars and they deal with your creditors directly. They adhere to AICCCA standards and offer online account management. Take the initiative, and make the initial contact for online debt management.

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