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Three Ways To Mess Up Your Debt Settlement
1. Debt ratios for consumers across the country are at
historic highs in terms of debt versus income, as a
percentage of the Gross Domestic Product, and as a result,
a record number of consumers are seeking debt relief in
the form of debt settlement, debt consolidation, debt
counseling, and bankruptcy. As traumatic as going through
any of these processes from start to finish can be, many
consumers end up right back where they started, facing a
huge debt load with monthly payments that are again out
of reach. Having been buried with the burden of debt
once, how does it happen that these consumers end up in
the same predicament? Three behaviors typically put
consumers back in harm's way.
2. I'm glad that's over! - Letting a little complacency sneak in
is natural once the debt settlement process begins.
Collection calls are less frequent, there is only payment to
make, and there might even be a little money left over at
the end of the month. Relaxing a little is definitely
permissible. It's a mistake to get carried away however. A
consumer taking the attitude that "it's over" can fool
himself into the belief that it was all temporary and there
is no need to change all those bad spending habits, when
nothing could be further from the truth.
3. Whew! We just dodged a bullet. Let's party! - In a debt
settlement, a consumer's credit card payments are
reduced by around 50% per month. If that struggling
consumer was managing to stay current on the credit card
payments right up to the beginning of the debt
settlement, the reduced payment means that the
consumer will have extra money in his or her pocket once
the settlement is in force. Logic would have it that the
consumer should put that extra money in a savings
account or apply it to other debts but those actions would
require the changes mentioned in the first bullet point.
Instead, many consumers begin consuming again. If part of
that consumption is to make up for lost time, the party is
on and trouble is not far away.
4. What, I worry? - No budget, no plans to save anything, and
continued spending at levels that can't be managed. All
the issues that put the consumer into debt settlement in
the first place are in full force again. The discipline
required and the changes that should have been made
never quite materialized and the effort and the
opportunity to get back on solid financial footing have
been lost.
5. For consumers struggling with the burden of too much
credit card debt, a debt settlement can provide the
opportunity to rebuild and gain control of their finances
without going through a bankruptcy. The settlement
process, however, is only half of the formula and a
temporary one at that. Consumer behavior and spending
habits have to change as well or all the effort of the debt
settlement will go for naught. Fortunately, the needed
changes are not difficult but they do require a level of
discipline and commitment. For a lifetime of financial
freedom, that discipline and commitment can go a long
way.