The recent barely-averted recession has caused us all to tighten up our belts and hold on to our money especially tightly. But for all too many, that's not enough. The real estate roller coaster has put many people into huge pits of debt. There are many solutions for tending to debt, but without a little guidance far too many debtors pick the wrong option for them, harming their credit rating for years to come. Debt counseling, consolidation, settlement and even filing for bankruptcy are all necessary and useful services for people in debt, and it's up to you to find which one is best for your situation. Bankruptcy and settlement have, for better or worse, become the most commonly used methods of getting out of debt, due to simplicity and various other advantages they provide.
For clients, the two most used bankruptcy types are Chapters 7 and 13. Out of these, Chapter 7 gives users a more superior outcome and it still gets rid of most, if not all, of the existing debt. Before the bankruptcy code was overhauled in 2005, Chapter 7 bankruptcy was very popular due to that very reason. After that, a court now makes the decision as to which type of bankruptcy is the best for the customer depending on the outcome of a means test, which must be done prior to getting a bankruptcy.
The required mean test is an evaluation of the petitioner?s income and expenses which is compared against debt redemption standards as determined by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). If the petitioner?s income falls short of the IRS standards they are eligible to file under auspices of chapter 7, however they may elect to file under the reorganization standards of Chapter 13. Chapter 7 guidelines are very strict. If the means test shows that the petitioner has the ability to pay any amount towards debt repayment, the filing will automatically be entered as Chapter 13 bankruptcy.
Debt settlement, also called debt negotiation, is a somewhat new and hard line way of debt relief that gives a lot of advantages over counseling, consolidation, and bankruptcy. First, the benefit the borrower sees immediately is that their payments are about half when all their bills are put into a settlement compared to their current payments. The types of credit accounts that you can place into a settlement are credit cards, department store accounts, unpaid utilities, doctor bills, and additional kinds of unsecured debt. Additional pros of this method are: If you get your debts settled, you can stop your salary from being attached or garnished - If you let your creditors know you?re trying to settle your bills with this procedure, they will be assured they will get at least some of the money you owe them. Because of this, they aren?t as likely to sue you while the settlement process is ongoing. Debt elimination ? Existing amounts can go down by between 40 to 70%, depending on your account holder. Most of the time, the combined accounts in a settlement get taken down by 50%.
Added security for secured assets ? Getting your payments down and getting rid of some of your unsecured debt helps you get rid of the pressure on your secured assets. For instance, debt settlements are mixed in with loan modifications to assist homeowners in lowering all their payments geared towards their debt and thus, improve their chances of being able to get new terms on their mortgage.
Those very same loans outside of a settlement process could easily stick around for a decade or two, and so settlements are tempting for people who don't want to live half their lives in debt. This also makes your credit score improve more rapidly, which in turn allows you more ease of use in financial matters, creating positive feedback that helps to get you on your feet.
This article has spent a fair amount of time praising debt settlement and pointing out the disadvantages of bankruptcy. But the truth is, there is no one right procedure that fits all people in all circumstances. You should analyze your situation either on your own or with the help of a financial expert, and then make a decision about what procedure is most likely to give you the best possible outcome.
Author Resource:
Layla Vanderbilt is the webmaster for a leading website that offers for bad debt consolidation advice and guidance.
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/icon_Rss.png "XML Feed For RSS"){kind=icon}
Category Rss Feed
Print This Article
Add To Favorites
![[Valid RSS feed]](http://www.look4articles.com/images/rss.jpg "XML Feed For RSS")