Wealth is a general term that translates into a wide variety of terms that mean different things to different people. From the old English word “weal”, this meant “well being”. This word was used to describe the ownership of physical qualities a person or group had ownership of.

Today, this word as become more expansive to include not just possessions, but also different states of mind and being.

To have a wealth of knowledge about a subject is to say someone has a lot of experience with it. Yet, when most individuals think of wealth, they think about riches, money and a lucrative lifestyle.

Especially in the western world, “wealth” usually represents money, cold hard cash and everything this money can buy. This word “wealth” is relative to and varies between countries and societies. It also varies between regions and sectors within the countries and societies. It is safe to say “wealth” is a difficult word to define by itself. This word is implied and attached to more information to mean more than its sum total.

It might be helpful to understand that wealth might represent money, yet true wealth can only be associated with what money can buy. money of itself is nothing more than printed paper and coins made of metal. When money stands by itself, it is not true wealth, money is only the yardstick. money represents wealth because of what it can do. It could be said that money is a tool for attaining wealth.

If it helps you to think of money as real wealth, then you are not alone. This is a condition most of us are afflicted with. Mr. Drysdale was the banker on that old TV show called “The Beverly Hillbillies”. Mr. Drysdale loved to go into his bank vault and play with the all of the money. This crazy banker wished all of the money was his because he loved money for money’s sake.

Remember, it is us that put the value on money. It is the same thing with gold and diamonds. Diamonds are very expensive to buy with money. Diamonds are very beautiful stones, precious stones. Most people will buy diamonds in their jewelry simply because of what the diamonds represent. A woman receiving a diamond engagement ring from her sweetheart usually will sneak off to a jewelers shop later to have the diamond appraised. They want to know how much the diamond is worth in currency.

Why all of the attention to money and it’s relationship to wealth? Because it can be important to realize when you are setting goals for creating wealth that money, by itself, may not be your intended target. Your target is what wealth means to you.

Wealth creation might be your desire to have an abundant life. Again, this can mean different things to different people. We are all different yet the same with our deepest desires. We want our lives to be happy and fulfilling, yet we individually have different dreams about what true wealth means to us.

With that all said, there is nothing wrong about equating money to wealth. money is not the root of all evil. money will certainly help you attain a better lifestyle for you very quickly. It is also alright to want a lot of money. The world runs on this currency principle in some very real ways. Will money buy you love? It might not hurt it any.

Wealth creation is Deliberate Creation using intent. You must intend to be wealthy. This helps to engage the Law of Attraction in your life by bringing wealth to you. This Law of Attraction is always at work. The Law engages your belief system. If you believe you are living a life of sadness and turmoil, then you attract more of this into your life.

Sometimes people do not believe they deserve to be rich. You need to realize that everyone deserves this life. There is enough for everyone, more than enough to go around. Our belief systems of being undeserving stop us from allowing the Law of Attraction from working in a positive way.

When your truest intention is focused on creating wealth, then you are focused in this state, believing you deserve this wealth. Start unblocking these scarcity ideas you might have about yourself by realizing the good things you have right now and being grateful for them. Gratitude is a state of mind that eliminates the negative and reinforces the positive. These are the beginning stages to take creating wealth.

Author: Joseph Rettig
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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There are many sites and tools that help you to calculate your Net Worth (try Googling “net worth”… you’ll get about 16,500,000 ‘hits’!).

The trouble is, not one of them is right … at least when it comes to helping you understand if you are financially on track. The reason is that most people define Net Worth as:

Your Total Assets – Your Total Liabilities.

That means that your house, your car, your furniture and many other items that don’t put a penny in your pocket until you sell them are all included!

So, to REALLY see where you stand financially, when calculating your Net Worth, you should LEAVE OUT:

a) Any ‘equity’ in your house that you NEVER intend to release as investment (i.e. borrow against for purchasing, when the timing is right, income-producing-buy-and-hold-investment-real-estate).

b) Any supposed ‘equity’ that you have in your business.

c) Any depreciating ‘assets’ such as cars and furniture (unless they are PROVEN collector’s items).

Let’s call the result your INVESTMENT NET WORTH …

It’s the only one that matters!

Why?

Well, there are only TWO reasons to even bother calculating your Net Worth:

1. To ensure that your ‘portfolio’ matches the Rules of the Rich (e.g. the 20% ‘rule’ on home equity that I talk about in a recent post), and

2. To check whether your INVESTMENT NET WORTH (which should be in passive income-producing investments by then) can FUND your ideal retirement with at least 99% chance that your money won’t run out before you do.

Now, what’s YOUR Investment Net Worth … more importantly, can it fund your IDEAL retirement?

Author: Adrian J Cartwood
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Under a debt settlement arrangement your creditor agrees to accept a lump sum payment of less than your account’s balance to resolve fully your debt. If you have a bundle of cash, debt settlement is a legitimate option for taking care of high-interest, unsecured debts.

But don’t hire anyone or any company to settle your debts. You can effectively settle debts yourself. Debt settlement company fees are high and generally non-refundable. If a settlement company can persuade one of your creditors to take less than the full balance to resolve a debt, then so can you.

What Debt Settlement Companies Do
A debt settlement company claims it will, for a fee, persuade your creditors to take as little as half of what you owe to resolve your debt. Sounds good! Since you probably don’t have a bunch of cash laying around, you’ll pay the debt settlement company a series of monthly payments. First, know that typically your payments go 100% toward the settlement company’s fee until the fee is paid. Only after the fee is paid do you start building a settlement fund. When you’ve built up enough in your debt settlement account, the company will try to settle one of your debts.

Here’s the Catch
Your creditors have agreed to nothing. During the many months you are making payments to the debt settlement company, the creditors you’ve been told will settle are starting or continuing aggressive collection activity. You get phone calls and letters and worse, and you could be sued and face garnishment while the debt settlement company is holding your money. Telling creditors that you’ve signed up for a plan with Settlements-’R-Us, Inc. and are making monthly payments will carry no sway whatsoever with your creditors. They won’t care. To avoid garnishment, you could be forced into bankruptcy. You can get back from the debt settlement company the money in your account, but the fee you’ve paid is probably gone forever, even if the company didn’t settle a single debt for you.

The moral of this story? Never consider signing up with a debt settlement company unless you get from each creditor involved a document, on the creditor’s letterhead, that states the creditor will accept a specific dollar amount on a specific date in the future to totally resolve your debt, AND, in the meantime, the creditor won’t pursue collection of the debt.

If you do have a lump of spare cash, you should consider doing your own settlement, along with other options, to pay off unsecured debts. Keep the following in mind:

• You need an Emergency Savings fund. Don’t use every spare penny you can scrape together to settle a debt and leave yourself vulnerable.
• It’s a poor idea to withdraw money early from a retirement account to pay toward debt.
• If you settle a debt, the creditor will probably report the amount “forgiven” to the IRS. The IRS considers forgiven debt to be part of your income, and you likely will owe income tax on it on April 15th of the next year. Your debt settlement strategy must include a plan for having the cash to pay the tax on the forgiven debt. You don’t want to come out of a debt settlement with new IRS debt.
• Because you would be repaying less than the full amount due, debt settlement has a much worse impact on your credit score than any method that would result in full repayment of the debt, like a Debt Management Plan. After a debt settlement is done, your credit report should show the settled debt balance as $0, but may also show a notation-the exact wording is negotiable-to the effect of “less than full balance paid.” This notation may stay on your credit report for up to seven years after settlement.

With Those Cautions in Mind, Here’s How to Settle a Debt

1. Understand the source of your power in the settlement negotiation: You may not pay the debt at all. Before any creditor will agree to settle a debt, it must be convinced it will be better off accepting 40% or 50% of the total balance today instead of trying to collect 100% of the debt over many future months or years. This means few creditors will negotiate a debt settlement until the account is seriously past due and successful collection is clearly, from the creditor’s point of view, in doubt.
2. If you reach a settlement agreement, the creditor will want the payment in a lump sum right away. Don’t start settlement negotiations until you have in hand the cash you’ve decided you can spare for debt settlement.
3. Write a letter to the creditor proposing a specific settlement. You can find many example debt settlement letters on the Internet by searching “debt settlement example letter.” Photocopy for your records this and all correspondence with the creditor. Send all creditor correspondence by certified postal mail, delivery receipt requested. E-mail is not acceptable.
4. What dollar amount should you propose as a settlement? There is no pat answer to this question because it depends on the situation. The more severely delinquent the debt, the less the creditor is apt to settle for. The lower the creditor judges the odds of collecting the debt in full, the less the creditor is apt to settle for. If you’ve missed two payments on a credit card debt, the credit card company is unlikely even to engage in settlement negotiations, period. But if you stopped paying on a credit card debt two years ago and the credit card company has charged off the debt and sold it to a collection agency, and you’ve paid the collection agency nothing and ignored their collection letters and calls, and your credit score is in the dumps, you may find the collection agency willing to agree to a settlement very favorable to you. Most settlements end up at 40%-60% of the original balance. As with any negotiation, you’ll want to leave room to improve your offer, so in most cases it’s probably smart to offer less than 40% of the balance.
5. Say you’ve decided you have $3,000 of spare cash you can devote to settling a $6,000 debt. Start negotiations by offering less than $3,000, perhaps $1,500 or $2,000. If the creditor counters your offer with $4,000, you can, if you choose, improve your offer to $2,500 or $3,000, but don’t offer or agree to a settlement over the $3,000 you’ve decided you can spare. If the creditor won’t budge, politely end the negotiation by inviting the creditor to re-contact you by letter if it reconsiders.
6. If a creditor answers your offer letter by telephone, make detailed notes of any proposals made in the phone call and include in your notes the date, time, and caller’s name and employee ID number. Agree to nothing on the telephone. Even if a verbal counter offer is acceptable to you, tell the caller you need the offer in writing before you will agree to it. If the creditor refuses to make the offer in writing, tell the caller you will not agree to any settlement that’s not documented in writing, and politely end the call with an invitation to the creditor to re-open negotiations with a letter specifying all terms of its settlement offer.
7. Do not agree to any settlement offer unless it’s in writing and 1) names the dollar amount agreed to; 2) names the date by which the settlement amount must be received by the creditor; 3) states that the creditor agrees that this dollar amount will fully resolve the debt and it will not pursue further collection; 4) states the creditor agrees to report the account balance as $0 to all credit bureaus that include the debt on your credit report; 5) includes the exact wording of the notation, if any, that the creditor intends to send to the credit bureaus indicating less than full repayment.
8. Once you have in hand a written settlement agreement acceptable to you, make the settlement payment promptly, by cashier’s check or money order and keep the receipt that accompanies the check or money order. Send the payment by certified mail, and be sure to get a receipt from the postal service indicating the date of delivery to the creditor. Don’t cut it close-mail your payment at least 15 days prior to the due date in your settlement agreement.
9. Follow-up: Get every four months your free annual credit report from one of the three reporting bureaus. Examine closely each of the three free credit reports you’ll get over the next year. If the settled debt still appears, the balance should be $0. If the creditor agreed to specific wording for any notation that appears with the debt record, you should see only that wording.
10. If the creditor fails to live up to the written settlement agreement, don’t waste your time contacting the creditor. Instead immediately pursue resolution by following the Federal Trade Commission’s procedures for disputing information on your credit report. Your evidence is the written settlement agreement from the creditor, your cashier’s check or money order receipt, and the postal service receipt showing the date the payment was delivered to the creditor.

Finally, nothing above is legal advice. Consult an attorney to assure a legally binding, watertight settlement agreement with a creditor.

Author: Kurt Fischer
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Money has been traditionally defined as a medium of exchange for goods, and services. Money is a tool that was originally invented as an alternative to the barter system and is a more efficient system than carrying goods around to exchange for what you want. Money is neither good nor bad. Like any tool, it is how we perceive money that determines how it affects our lives.

Wealth is characterised by an abundance of valuable material possessions or resources and riches. Wealth usually refers to the possession of money, property and assets. It is the abundance of possessions of value and the state of having accumulated these objects. Wealth is the state of being rich and affluent, having a plentiful supply of material goods and money.

Both money and wealth mean a variety of concepts to different people. For a start, you need to determine your individual personal definition of money and wealth to understand their power and demystify them, if necessary.

• Is money a path to a prosperous life?
• Could money improve the social and financial well-being of your family?

A wealthy or rich person is someone who has accumulated substantial wealth relative to others in a society or reference group. The state of being wealthy is a relative term and the concepts of wealth vary among societies. Having a net worth of one million may place you among one region’s wealthiest citizens, yet that same net worth would be considered quite modest somewhere else.

It is important to note that money is not wealth and vice versa; but money is what usually buys wealth. Wealth is power, with which many things are possible.

As part of the preparation for my eprogram, I asked a number of people to state what their biggest question or challenge was with regards to money and wealth. One of the intriguing responses I received was from an old friend who simply posed the question: Can one be wealthy without money? She went on to answer the question herself and added, Yes.

This further inspired me to seek more views on the question of being wealthy without money. Granted, this is a subject that will remain subjective. So I will let you answer that question for yourself.

The definition of the word wealth itself implies the abundance of valuable material possessions or resources, the acquisition of which, begin with money. True wealth comes from the self-assurance and the sense of well-being that comes from knowing that you have as much money as you need.

Action:

• Determine your individual personal definition of money and wealth.
• What does money and wealth mean to you?
• What would you do with it if you had all the money in the world you ever wanted? How would your life be like?

Prosperity is the point where you exceed all your reasonable wealth accumulation goals for successive generations. It is the epitome of financial security, independence and freedom. As with money and wealth, prosperity is relative and different for every person. For most people, it means having enough money to feel secure about the future, to do whatever you want, and to have the things you want without feeling limited in any way.

Prosperity is very much an internal experience, and is not tied to a finite amount of money. Although prosperity is related to money, it is not caused by money. It is possible to experience prosperity at any level of income. Money is usually the tool or means to realize our goals, and prosperity is the inner experience we have when we exceed our worthwhile goals.

Since prosperity is the inner experience of exceeding our worthy goals, in order to experience it we must do three things:

1. Know what our true goals are, our real needs and desires.
2. Develop the ability to meet our goals, and
3. Recognize, appreciate, and enjoy what we have

You will become prosperous when you can consciously acknowledge your true needs and desires, and learn how to fulfil them. The best way to determine what your true needs are is to clarify your personal core values.

Author: Margaret Ntifo
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital Camera Information

The secret to becoming rich is really quite simple.

First of all you must spend less than you earn – Then you must invest the difference.

But don’t stop there – You then need to re-invest the profits that your initial investment created as well as the original investment. In time this will create a big enough resource that you will be able to comfortably live of the income that your investments create.

Does this sound a little bit scary or like too much hard work? Well don’t worry because all you need to do is to create some savings and investment strategies and the rest will fall into place.

The first step is to create a Savings plan that works for you. When it comes to saving money there are generally two different types of people.

The first type are people who are somehow able to save money without any great difficulty. They have good restraint when it comes to purchases and they always have a sock full of money somewhere. When they are ordered around and given strict rules to abide by they tend to want to rebel and do the opposite.

The second type of person needs strict rules and regulations to achieve most things. Left to their own devices they would happily spend all their spare money on a new pair of jeans or car. When these people are given clear rules they seem to be able to save money with much more success.

Which type of person are you? Do you need strict Savings and Investment Strategies to save money or are you at your best when you are given more freedom. To be completely honest I think that everybody could become a better at saving money if they applied a few simple ideas.

One of the best savings and investment strategies that I have come across is this.

Reward Based Savings System

The first step of this system is to actually create a savings plan. For instance you need to focus on some areas in your life where you think you could save some money eg.

Bring your lunch from home
Quit smoking
Less alcohol from expensive bars
Cook your own meals
Public transport
Cut down on snacks

Isn’t it fumy how most of the things that I have just mentioned would be beneficial to your life in more ways than just saving you money? The problem is that all of the above things are actions and pastimes that you really enjoy.

So is it realistic to try and cut these activities out of your life and expect to be happy just because you are saving some money?

No, I don’t think it is. What about if every time you saved money you simply rewarded yourself? Then you might actually enjoy saving money rather than growing to resent it.

For example if you were to give up smoking then I would suggest that you keep a tally of the money that you are saving and use a portion of it to reward yourself with something that you love but don’t usually get, for instance a massage or a night at the movies. This way you are creating a savings plan that will actually work. Why? Because you want it to work so that you can get your rewards. Too many people create Savings and Investment strategies that don’t have inbuilt reward systems. The best thing about a reward based saving system is that you really enjoy the feeling of saving money. Then if you are smart enough to invest the extra money that you are saving you will have begum your journey towards financial freedom.

Author: Banjo Smyth
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital Camera News

Countless consumers across the nation have been harried of late by the ravages of credit card debts, and many Americans are desperate for any kind of relief. As they seek to take care of a seemingly unending string of bills, more and more Americans are turning to debt management solutions to provide some help in ridding themselves of the burden of credit card debt. Now, as you probably know, debt management can refer to a whole host of different techniques with which borrowers and their debt manager professionals may try to take charge of their household economics. In this article, we will briefly run down some of the more popular methods for debt management. It is important to remember, however, that this is only the tip of the iceberg as regards the information every borrower must know before they enter the world of debt management. Much as it may help to read some cursory explanations of the various alternatives available, smart debtors must investigate every single option before they begin to alleviate their own financial difficulties.

Whatever Happened To Bankruptcy Protection?

For the entire lives of virtually all Americans, bankruptcy has existed as the final solution to unchecked debts. However, over the past generation, more and more changes to the United States Bankruptcy Code have seriously weakened the protections previously available to all consumers. About twenty years ago, the first blow to bankruptcy protection was struck when the congress removed student loans (both public and private) from the type of debts that bankruptcy could effectively deal with. Then, in 2005, pressured both by lobbyists from the multinational credit card conglomerates and their own Internal Revenue Service, the government drastically changed nearly everything about Chapter 7 protection as it was formerly understood. Bankruptcy was never a glamorous choice – indeed, it has always been considered disastrous for credit and embarrassing to personal reputation. Nevertheless, American borrowers always assumed that bankruptcy would remain a final resort for debt management and that, sadly, is no longer the case.

One thing, however, has not changed. Bankruptcy still has irrevocably (at least, for up to a decade) ruinous consequences as to FICO scores and overall credit ratings. If anything, the modern breed of debt analysts who have been specifically trained to look over credit reports for findings above and beyond the Fair-Isaacs score will treat borrowers who have declared bankruptcy even worse. These sorts of notes can have repercussions for debt management that linger well past the bankruptcy has been cleared. In even the best of situations, twenty four months will have to pass after the formal discharge before consumers would qualify for new loans or new credit accounts, and, even then, those that have declared bankruptcy will face interest rates beyond horrendous. It has always been a difficult road to pursue – taking into account the loss of assets and credit privileges that Chapter 7 associations usually necessitate – but nowadays it is almost unthinkable for borrowers with any other choice.

While recognizing all of the negative consequences regarding credit that follow borrowers who have filed for bankruptcy, it is still not surprising why the notion of Chapter 7 protection yet appeals to so many Americans. Even taking into account the not inconsiderable costs that ever more expensive bankruptcy attorneys will charge (and even for the initial consultation!), the temptations to eliminate most unsecured debts have an obvious attraction. As has been said, some debts are immune to bankruptcy proceedings. Student loans would not be able to be included under Chapter 7. Most tax liens, familial support, funds owed from criminal proceedings, and assorted other debts are also ignored. Still, to be sure, Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection, when successfully declared, can be a powerful debt elimination tool even though, under the current guidelines, borrowers would risk the loss of most salable assets or possessions. However, with these new strictures in place, borrowers would only qualify for the Chapter 7 program if they earned less than half of the average income of their state of residence as determined by an arbitrarily chosen period. Not only will bankruptcy protection be more corrosive and eliminate fewer debts than before, as things stand many debtors might not even to be able to declare!

Spend Wisely!

Of course, for debt management to have any sort of success, the borrowers must re-learn many of their most damaging behaviors. To be fair, there are many different reasons why people may find themselves overwhelmed by debt. Still and all, even those borrowers who have suffered catastrophic accidents (sudden unemployment, accidents, hospitalization or other medical emergencies, and other such unexpected disasters) could have attempted to make sure they had proper savings just in case such misfortune would befall them. This is not the most exciting form of debt management, to be sure, but it is of the utmost importance. Spending foolishly is by far the most common reason that most families start to drown in debts of their own making. Thoughtless purchases that you do not need (or, in many cases, even want) shall quickly lead to a reflexive pattern of overspending that will only result in credit card debts beyond your own control.

Unfortunately, once behaviors of any sort have become fixed toward conditioned habits of over spending, it is that much harder for consumer to even recognize their misdeeds. For this reason, it is a good idea for anyone beginning to investigate the various alternatives available to first do whatever they can to figure out how to cut their expenses to the bone before even approaching a debt management professional. One tip we would suggest would be to spend a month recording all household expenses. This does not mean simply adding up utility bills or calculating the grocery costs of any given month. Instead, actually write down all of the niggling little purchases that families tend to forget about. By this, we do mean every single cent that is spent by members of the household. The most seemingly chintzy or capricious buys often, once they are properly tabulated, end up proving vibrantly the underlying causation behind the larger debts.

Do you really need to spend one dollar for a soda at the office every day? Should you spend five dollars for a magazine at the store as opposed to a monthly subscription? Can you afford forty dollars for a family night out at the movies each week? At the end of the process, you will be surprised how much of your spending could be curtailed. Do you really need premium cable channels? Couldn’t you mow your own lawn yourself instead of paying neighborhood kids? Everyone must have some sort of entertainment budget, of course, but many households spend far too much on unnecessary foolishness. Even those borrowers who do not have excessive problems with credit card debts should always keep a close eye on household spending in order to maximize savings in case of emergencies.

What To Do When Your Debt Is Out Of Control

While curtailing purchases and controlling family spending habits are, as we have explained, quite important parts of debt management, there are some borrowers whose debt obligations have increased to the point that such stopgaps will not be of much use. Fortunately, there are now a number of alternatives to bankruptcy that debtors can take advantage of when trying to reduce their overall burdens. As you would imagine, the correct strategy would depend upon each debtor’s specific scenario. The first thing we would advise is to discuss options with your credit card companies. Believe it or not, your creditors will often work out payment schedules to make sure that they are not overly onerous. After all, the last thing they want is to put debtors’ backs against the wall so that they would consider Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Even if they will not significantly reduce the monthly minimum payments, they will generally waive past due fees and lower the cards’ interest rates. Whenever your accumulated debt has grown to the point that you have trouble making your minimum payments, it is always a good idea to talk to representatives of your various lenders to see what could be done. For those borrowers that have only come to such dire straits because of injuries, lack of employment, or other unforeseen events, obviously there should be even greater lenience expected from the credit card companies. More than even bankruptcy protection, the lenders’ corporate offices fear bad publicity for unduly punishing the forthright.

All the same, once debts have grown to a certain amount, even a drop in interest rates or an extended payment schedule may not be able to sufficiently aid borrowers. At this point, debt management professionals would likely urge such borrowers to consider investigating the debt settlement industry. In a way, this method is not terribly different than when borrowers contact credit card representatives individually to ask for special terms, but there are several aspects of this approach that deserve further explanation. With debt settlement negotiation, the debt specialists attempt to convince the credit card companies and whomever handles their sides of the negotiation to actively reduce their overall debt load – sometimes by almost fifty percent! Sounds incredible, but not all borrowers will be able to enter a debt settlement program, it should be said. Qualifications are extremely important within debt settlement because the settlement firm not only works on the debtors’ behalf when talking with the various lenders if they actually absorb the debts themselves.

It should now be more clear why the debt settlement alternative is considerably harder to take advantage of. Obviously, the settlement firms will only wish to take on the consolidated loans and credit accounts of those borrowers that they believe will repay their trust. Furthermore, not all credit cards will agree to the demands of settlement negotiators – though more and more are recognizing the benefits of the program every day. However, for those borrowers that successfully work with a debt settlement company, they can see their debt balances drop by tens of thousands of dollars within weeks. The reason that settlement specialists have so much more success in this form of debt management is not purely because of experience, training, (there is a national certification board) and prior relationships with lenders. No, this is why it is so important that the debt settlement company consolidate all of their client’s debts before they ever start negotiations. Settlement reductions only work when the creditors truly believe that all debts are being treated equally. It’s not just that the credit card companies would be less likely to listen to amateurs attempt to carve down their obligations. They will only agree to cut debts if they know that their competitors are doing the same.

Of course, as with any professional debt management program, there are disadvantages to be felt as well, particularly in the pocketbook. While the costs are negligible (and, generally, do not exist for first consultations) compared to the amount of money saved from successful debt negotiations, the settlement specialists do not work for free, and you will find yourself with additional charges tacked onto whatever balance they manage to barter down. Also, credit reports will take a hit after debt settlement. Credit accounts labeled ’satisfied’ rather than ‘paid’ look somewhat worse to debt analysts, and FICO scores will suffer a drop – though, once again, when set next to the carnage wrought from bankruptcy debt elimination, most borrowers wouldn’t be able to tell the difference. As it may be harder for those borrowers who have gone through debt settlement to find credit cards just after the process has been completed, they will also have to close all open accounts so as to reassure the creditors that they are not planning some sort of scam. This can make it trickier for households to survive during the three to five years that debt settlement traditionally takes, but, as will all of the debt management tactics, the alternative is incalculably worse.

Author: Cole Collins
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital Camera Times