Living well can mean different things to different people, but most probably consider they're living well if they have good health, a comfortable place to call home, they're able to provide food, clothing and the other necessities for their family, and they have stable employment. It's the American dream, but that dream is expensive.
With house payments or monthly rent, probably at least one car payment, along with utilities and other monthly expenses that are on the rise, it's easy to turn to credit cards or other loans in order to give your family a few extras, or even just to get by till the next payday. Add to that the loss of income from layoffs or illness, and Americans are carrying more debit today than ever, and that can cause a lot of stress. The affects of stress on our health have been well documented. So you know it's causing harm to you, but you don't know how to get out from under the pile of debt you've accumulated.
Normally you have four alternatives. Credit counseling services will act on your behalf with your creditors to reduce interest rates and fees, but not the balance itself, and it can take around 5 years to get out of debt. Debt consolidation services provide a loan that transfers your debt to them and may appear to lower your monthly payments, but it doesn't reduce the amount you owe. With bankruptcy, you no longer have the debt but your credit will be severely damaged for 7 to 10 years, and any new credit you get will have a higher interest rate. And paying the minimum monthly payment on credit cards sets you up for long term debt as you're paying almost all interest and not the principle - a $10,000 debt will cost as much as $40,000 and take the next 10 to 20 years to pay off if you only make the minimum monthly payment.
Thankfully there are organizations such as Freedom Debt Relief that provide solutions for people struggling with the burden of large debt. They will negotiate with your creditors on your behalf to lower your debt by 40 to 60 percent, saving you money and reducing the amount of time before you're debt-free, most likely in 2 to 3 years.
A quick 10 minute consultation by phone can tell you if a debt reduction program is the best way for you to go to reduce your debt, relieving your stress and improving your chances of living a healthier and happier life.
