The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) recently addressed a popular consumer question regarding debt settlement and debt relief services. Because these services are appealing to those overwhelmed by debt, a lot of consumers want to know more about them. In Arizona, there are plenty of companies that offer debt settlement and debt relief services. However, not all of them are actually helpful to Arizona consumers. In fact, choosing the wrong debt relief service may do more harm than good. Unfortunately, some Arizonians spend hundreds of dollars on debt settlement services only to destroy their credit scores. You have to be very careful if you choose this kind of assistance, and it’s wise to look for alternative options before spending your money on for-profit debt relief.
Most debt settlement or debt relief services claim they can radically reduce debt by negotiating with creditors or debt collectors. Some of the better companies do this in ways that are not harmful to consumers, but others employ riskier methods. Almost all debt relief services are expensive. So, make sure that you truly will benefit from a program before spending the money that you could just put toward your debts.
Arizonians shouldn’t be surprised if a debt settlement company encourages them to stop paying their credit card bills. This is a popular tactic among shadier services, and it is almost always a bad idea. The logic here is that the credit card issuers will relent and accept reduced payoffs instead of no payment at all. Unfortunately, this strategy often backfires against Arizona consumers. In the worst cases, the credit card companies won’t back down. Instead, they continue to charge mounting late fees, then proceed with aggressive debt collection efforts.
Sometimes debt relief companies are able to settle some debts for their clients in Arizona. Yet, they seldom succeed in settling every debt. Often, consumers get some debts reduced, but they don’t end up saving any money. Sadly, the fees and penalties charged on unsettled debts, combined with fees charged by the debt settlement company cancel out the money saved on settled debts.
Credit report damage typically lingers long after debt elimination, but full credit recovery is possible over time. Whether you’ve filed bankruptcy, used some type of service, or tackled debt on your own, you should check your credit reports immediately after getting back on track.
Legitimate negative items on your credit reports will fall off in time. However, it’s likely that you’ll find errors on your credit reports that should come off immediately. This is especially true for Arizona consumers with recent bankruptcy discharges.
If you find errors and mistakes on your credit reports, including inaccurately reported discharged debt, call Credit Repair Lawyers of America in Arizona. Our experienced attorneys are credit pros who will clean up your credit reports quickly and for free.
Don’t let errors on your credit reports bring your credit score down. At Credit Repair Lawyers of America, we’ve been cleaning up credit reports for consumers since 2008 for free. How do we do it? All of our fees come from the defendants in settled cases. This is why our clients pay nothing for the work we do.
Let’s start the conversation about what we can do for your credit. Set up your free consultation today by calling Attorney Gary Nitzkin at (480) 771-6001 or contact us on our contact page.
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