Monday, August 20, 2007

Communication Is The Key To Effective Debt Management

Whilst it can be hard to admit that things aren't going great for you at the moment, telling this to you financial institution could have a very positive outcome, both for you and for them.

Human nature tends to dictate to us that when you get badly into to debt, not to let anybody know that you are in need of help. When it comes to debt management, not only do you badly need help, but you also need to communicate with your creditors if you want to get out of debt.

The underlying principle of any organisation lending money is to have as few bad debts (debts that will never be repaid) as possible. It is this fact that is your greatest asset in working with them to come up with a viable strategy to help you repay the debt.

Many people may doubt this thinking that the financial institution will just pass the debt onto their debt collection agency, however you need to remember that these agencies literally buy the debt usually for 50% of its actual worth. It is of course in the financial institution's best interest to recover the entire debt, not just 50% of it!

First you must talk to each of your creditors and explain to them your current situation, and also let them know about all the other debts you have outstanding and that you want to work towards paying them all off. Most financial institutions will be happy to work towards a payment plan that may be quite reasonable, even as low as $5 per month over a 10 year period.

If you can put in a lump sum up front, even a couple of hundred dollars, this will go a long way to reassuring them that you are genuine and will encourage them to work with you.

Once you are on a payment plan it is imperative that you stick to it. If things change for you, contact your creditors immediately and let them know. By keeping communications open it will reassure them that you are taking control and not just ignoring the problem.