Recent college graduates have some of the most crushing debt in modern history. Inflation has caused the cost of everything from homeownership to health care to skyrocket; meanwhile, wages remain flat for the newly graduated workforce who landed their first job during “The Great Recession.”
The volatility of the financial structure of the United States has caused a lack of confidence among the youth. Americans live longer now than ever before, but studies show that the youth are not bothering to save for retirement because of factors like debt, inflation, flat wage growth, and lack of guidance.
So if you’re among the growing number of young — and not-so-young — Americans struggling with debt or financial insecurity, you are not alone.
If you have debt that you want to eliminate, but the prospect of using a credit or debt consolidation loan makes you uneasy? With a proven system and the help of a credit counselor, you can take control and become debt-free!
What is a Credit Counselor?
Agencies delegate professional counselors to help you manage financials; certified credit counselors can help you develop a plan to handle your debt and avoid future problems. These plans usually include reviewing your budget, helping you understand the difference between good and bad debt, getting creditor agreements to reduce interest rates and payments, creating spending plans, and working with overextended creditors for payment arrangements.
Credit counselors provide you with resources and tools that will be required to get out of debt. They will teach you how to create financial plans, organize your finances properly, and develop strategies that will make you pay your bills on time; all of these things are about managing your money wisely.
5 Ways Credit Counselors Can Help You
Credit counselors are experts at helping you to reduce your debt and get back on track. Whether it’s restructuring your finances, lowering monthly payments, gaining access to cash for emergencies, or finding solutions that will improve your credit score, a credit counselor can help you.
The goal of a credit counselor is to listen to the consumer and then provide a solution to the debt problem. The following are some examples of common issues that taxpayers (not necessarily the consumers themselves) encounter and a credit counselor can help with:
1. Financial Budgeting
Do you have questions about your money? Do you know where all your money goes? Are you sometimes surprised by the amount of interest or fees you pay? If so, a budget counselor may be able to help. A budget counselor can meet with you one-on-one to discuss ways to help get your finances on track.
A free financial counseling session with a trained credit counselor will help you evaluate your financial situation, highlight areas that need more attention, and take the first steps towards improving your finances. A typical session lasts about an hour, takes place over the phone, and the counselor designs the session to be helpful without requiring any money upfront.
A certified credit counselor can help you better understand and work out a plan that will be best for your situation. This will give you a map of how to start climbing out of debt. First, they may want to review your current budget and see how much money is going toward total debt payments, like where and how much you spend each month. The counselor will then help you devise a plan that could cut your total monthly spending to put more money toward paying off your debts. In some cases, counselors will try to help you make interest-only or even no payments on your debt.
2. Debt Management Planning
A debt management plan from a credit counselor can help you get out of debt faster and stay out of debt for good. Credit counselors can help you consolidate your consumer debts into one monthly payment and reduce the interest rate on those debts. They also offer budget counseling to help you manage your money more effectively in the future.
Debt reduction will help you pay off your credit card bills and other consumer loans much faster than with standard repayment without ever worrying about late payments or penalty fees again.
3. Bankruptcy Counseling
Bankruptcy counseling is financial education that takes place before and after a bankruptcy petition is filed. The goal of these counseling sessions, required under U.S. bankruptcy law, is to help you understand the impact filing for bankruptcy will have on your life, finances, and future. In other words, this counseling is meant to help you think about what bankruptcy means for you and your loved ones.
Bankruptcy counseling is mandatory before you file for bankruptcy. At this meeting, you and your bankruptcy attorney will discuss your situation and the bankruptcy process.
4. Student Loan Counseling
No one likes to think about it, but the time will come when you must discuss your student loans and begin paying them off. But don’t let fear stop you from getting financial information and advice for handling your debt. There are different repayment options available for your federal student loans. In addition, there is a repayment plan available to suit your individual needs.
Student loan counseling is a personalized service that can help. Counselors will work with you to develop strategies, set goals around managing your debt, and improve the likelihood of remaining current on your loan payment obligations. By getting your payments under control, you ultimately become credit-worthy since every lender wants to extend credit to people they believe will pay back their loans.
5. Housing Counseling
Financial experts have proved that housing counseling will help prevent lapses in rental payments, eviction, and homelessness. Homeowners can also benefit from housing counseling if they have trouble getting loan modifications or need help dealing with foreclosure. Carefully weigh your options and learn the best ways to invest in your future; housing counseling may be able to help.
Affordable housing counselors can help you review your options, evaluate your resources, and develop a plan that meets your goals. They can also work with you if you face foreclosure or dealing with housing discrimination issues.
Credit counseling supports achieving all of the above, leaving you with less worry about accumulating even more significant debt along the way. Find the right agency and the learned credit counseling professionals to help you. This assures you that you are heading in the right direction towards a better, debt-free life.
Don’t do it alone! Call the Allied Enrollment Center team to talk to one of our credit counselors and get your finances under control. With customized plans, expert advice, and a wide array of education options, you won’t have to face your debt alone. Let us help you out of debt today.
Our highly trained credit counselors are ready to listen, offer advice, and can even walk you through precisely what to say when you’re speaking with creditors. In addition, the Allied team is here to help you sort out your finances. Our experts will help you create a solid plan to tackle your bills and give you peace of mind.
