When most people hear the words, How to settle credit card debt their minds go straight to using a debt settlement company. In my experience you do not need to pay a company large sums on a monthly basis to get the knowledge to know how to settle credit card debt. That knowledge can be found elsewhere, but once found, the road to debt settlement is not extremely difficult.
Before I start getting into the ins and outs of debt settlement, I want you to understand that debt settlement is usually not total financial freedom. Debt settlement can lighten the load of debt but sometimes is not the most desirable outcome. One thing that makes debt settlement less desirable is the high likelihood of being forced to pay 1099 imputed income tax. Basically this tax forces you to pay taxes on whatever amount was knocked off your original debt. This can be quite pricey.
If you decide that you want to go down the debt settlement path you need to learn a few more things to know how to settle credit card debt. Arguably the most important thing to understand is what motivates your creditor to offer settlements to other consumers. In most cases the creditor must feel that you are putting up a legitimate fight and know what you are talking about. Once the creditor feels this way they will often offer settlement agreements.
Some consumers try a little bit too hard to make themselves undesirable to collect on and send their creditors cease and desist letters. This is always a mistake. The only choice you then leave your creditor is to sue you. If your creditor feels that their only option for collections is to sue you will have slim chances of receiving a settlement offer.
Once you have successfully made yourself a great candidate to receive a settlement offer, you then need to know what amount is a good settlement amount. Understanding this is crucial to learning how to settle credit card debt because if you don't settle for a reasonable amount you may as well not settle at all. In my experience you should always aim for a settlement of less than a quarter of your original debt. This may sound ambitious to you but I have often seen settlements offered around 5% of the original amount.
Before you decide to accept a settlement agreement, there is something you should know. Over the years as I was helping consumers figure out how to settle credit card debt I realized something interesting. Many of the people I was helping had their debts forgiven once they became tough enough to collect on. I share this with you now to encourage you to search out all available options before accepting any sort of settlement agreement.
Before I start getting into the ins and outs of debt settlement, I want you to understand that debt settlement is usually not total financial freedom. Debt settlement can lighten the load of debt but sometimes is not the most desirable outcome. One thing that makes debt settlement less desirable is the high likelihood of being forced to pay 1099 imputed income tax. Basically this tax forces you to pay taxes on whatever amount was knocked off your original debt. This can be quite pricey.
If you decide that you want to go down the debt settlement path you need to learn a few more things to know how to settle credit card debt. Arguably the most important thing to understand is what motivates your creditor to offer settlements to other consumers. In most cases the creditor must feel that you are putting up a legitimate fight and know what you are talking about. Once the creditor feels this way they will often offer settlement agreements.
Some consumers try a little bit too hard to make themselves undesirable to collect on and send their creditors cease and desist letters. This is always a mistake. The only choice you then leave your creditor is to sue you. If your creditor feels that their only option for collections is to sue you will have slim chances of receiving a settlement offer.
Once you have successfully made yourself a great candidate to receive a settlement offer, you then need to know what amount is a good settlement amount. Understanding this is crucial to learning how to settle credit card debt because if you don't settle for a reasonable amount you may as well not settle at all. In my experience you should always aim for a settlement of less than a quarter of your original debt. This may sound ambitious to you but I have often seen settlements offered around 5% of the original amount.
Before you decide to accept a settlement agreement, there is something you should know. Over the years as I was helping consumers figure out how to settle credit card debt I realized something interesting. Many of the people I was helping had their debts forgiven once they became tough enough to collect on. I share this with you now to encourage you to search out all available options before accepting any sort of settlement agreement.
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For the most successful information available on How To Settle Credit Card Debt, make sure you grab Allan Henry's excellent Free Course on how to settle debts with the perfect Debt Dispute Letter.
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