Choosing Credit Card Consolidation Versus Debt Payment
If you find yourself in trouble with credit card debt and do not know where to turn, you may have a couple options that you professional help in getting control of their finances. However you can reduce your debt on your own if you have and plan and follow it.
Basically you have a couple of choices in designing your plan. You have to decide if you are going to use credit card consolidation versus debt payment methods. The debt management method is basically what you are doing when making your monthly credit card payments to each of the card companies that you owe money to.
As you know each credit card company has its own set of rules you must abide with. Interest rates and late payment penalties are also different. In addition you will have a minimum payment that must be made to each company. When these minimum payments are added up they amount to a significant amount of money. In addition your ability to pay down the principle of each card debt is diminished as well. These are important points to consider when deciding to choose between credit card consolidations versus debt payment to eliminate your debt.
A much better alternative to making multiple credit card payments is to consolidate all your debt into a single loan with a single monthly payment. In general you can usually lower your interest rate and even you total monthly payment by doing a debt consolidation. All of which will save you significant money over time.
There are several methods that can be used to consolidate your credit card debt. One option that is pushed by credit card companies and that is to transfer all the debt from all your credit cards to a single card account. Frequently card companies will provide incentives in the form of reduced interest rates for the first few months after the transfer. While these offers appear to be a good deal they do have unacceptable risks. If you read the fine print of the credit card agreement or contract you will find that the card company can and frequently will increase the credit cards interest rate for almost any reason.
Credit card companies are no different than the mafia run loan sharks that charge high interest rates. They frequently change interest rates to prevent you from paying off your credit card debts. Even applying for an additional credit card with another company may be cause to raise your interest rate. Credit card companies are a real threat to you and to our country.
A better solution is to apply for a debt consolidation loan with your credit union, bank or savings and loan. If you have collateral in the form of real estate equity in your home or business you can frequently negotiate a low rate loan that has a longer repayment period. Even if you do not have collateral there are loan programs designed to consolidate debt that will save you money with reduced interest and longer repayment periods. Probably the most important aspect of this type of debt consolidation loan is that the interest rate can be locked in for the full term of the loan. However you can opt for an adjustable rate loan that is tied to the prime rate. Although this is not a good as a fixed rate you do not have to worry about waking up tomorrow to find that your credit card consolidation loan interest rate has been increased to 30%.
When deciding to use credit card consolidation versus debt payment methods to eliminate or reduce your credit card debt you need to do a good job of researching all your options. If you are disciplined and follow your plan you can get out of debt.