In the last article I spoke about debt settlement programs and whether it pays to agree to one or not. Keeping all of this information I relayed to you in mind, if you decide that debt settlement is not the best option for you, there are four other main choices: stay delinquent, come up with extra cash to make payments, work with a credit counselor, or file for bankruptcy.

Staying in delinquency will simply make your credit score lower, and the longer you wait, the harder your score will be hit. Just one thirty day late payment can cause your score to drop by up to one hundred and ten points. Ninety days? You are currently three times as late with your card payment, and you are only getting later as more time passes by.

Coming up with extra money to make payments may just be worth your while. Take a look at your budget and finances. Is there anything that can be sold or adjusted? Use any extra money to pay your debt and prevent any further damage to your credit score. For a lot of us, budgeting is not as easy as that. If you need outside help, look for a credit counselor. They will get to the bottom of the problem, and find a solution.

Additionally, you also have the ability to consider filing for bankruptcy. This means that you will not have to pay back the debt, but filing will cause your credit to drop even more than a debt settlement will, by as much as two hundred and forty points. If you are considering bankruptcy, have a consultation with a bankruptcy attorney to discuss the details.

Keeping everything in mind, analysts claim that speaking with a good credit counselor is the best option. They can help you assess your financial situation, offer possible alternative options, and show you how to avoid making the same mistakes in the future.

Rapid Recovery Solution is a new york debt collection agency.

In the last article I spoke about seemingly disreputable debt consolidation schemes that you should be aware of. Read on to find out more about these scams….

In the meantime, your creditors are not being paid. Unfortunately, while you are accumulating that payment, you are not paying your bills and you may be delving further and further into more debt.Instead of taking this gamble check out a not for profit credit counseling firm that might charge you only twenty dollars, if anything. Instead of billing the debtor, these non profit counselors will generally get what is called a fair share percentage payment from your creditors after your debts have been paid.

Finally, and most importantly, DON’T invest your trust in the debt consolidation counselor who tells you that “We will handle everything. You should cease all communication with your creditors.” Even though the fact that the idea of not speaking to creditors and ignoring their mail sounds like a real load off of your back, ultimately, it is your debt and your credit score at hand. Never send in a change of address form directing all creditor mail to a debt settlement company.

It is important to bear in mind that the creditor is the one with whom you signed your contractual agreement. When all of your statements are being sent to the debt settlement company, you relinquish that control. You do not know how much in interest and late fees are being tacked on. You also won’t know if your debt has been moved into collection.

A few final words of wisdom. If you think you need debt settlement, try debt management first. Get in touch with your creditors and request reduced interest, suspended payment or any other payment terms that may suit your financial situation more favorably. Although it may seem like a long shot, or a pain, it is always very important if you are about to miss a payment to call your creditor and say “Listen, I can’t make this month’s payment. I’d like to work something out with you.

Rapid Recovery Solution is a medical debt collection company.

Divorce, coupled with bankruptcy can pose serious problems for those involved. When a married couple who no longer wishes to remain together have debts piling up and are heading for divorce, bankruptcy might be one way to sort out the financial issues. Bankruptcy has the capacity to be filed by just one spouse, or jointly. The effects of bankruptcy on divorce proceedings? Abrupt at best. An automatic stay will put an end to all activities on divorce proceedings.

Even though one lawyer might seem difficult to deal with in a time of stress, two lawyers might be needed to sort the matters out, a bankruptcy attorney and a divorce lawyer to hash things out between the unhappy couple. Some good advice to take would be to immediately seek out a bankruptcy lawyer to guide you through your finance, in addition to the attorney who is assisting you through your divorce. The expert guidance with alimony, child support, property settlements, and other financial issues is key when you are suffering from the stress of bankruptcy and divorce simultaneously.

If the couple shares a large amount of debt, filing for bankruptcy jointly is a good option. This can even simplify the divorce settlement, and filing bankruptcy jointly is more cost efficient. If you are a spiteful ex, filing individually for bankruptcy is a good way to send the creditors after your spouse.

Then there is the problem of property that you have accumulated during the marriage. That’s marital or community property. If you are filing jointly for bankruptcy, and your former spouse has marked some of your own separate property as marital property, you should take these actions. Firstly, you should attempt to prove what is yours is not community property. The bankruptcy court will release the exempt property, and the remaining property that you share will be part of the bankruptcy estate and therefore will be utilized for paying off debts.

After the bankruptcy court has determined which property is exempt from bankruptcy, the divorce court can dole out the property between the divorcing couple equally. The non exempt property will be sold by bankruptcy trustees (representatives) to pay off the money that you owe.

One other way to steer clear of financial loss on account of your former spouse’s debt is to attach a property of your spouse as a security lien. This lien will permit you to seize the property and utilize it to pay off your spouse’s loan if he or she is thinking of ditching and having you pay. The property with a lien might obtain less than the market price, but this is still a good way to protect yourself from a spiteful ex partner.

Finally, you can work an indemnity clause into your divorce decree. This will help guard you from creditors who are coming after you to pay for your ex spouse’s debts after the divorce. If your husband or wife files for bankruptcy, don’t worry. The judge will enforce it to protect you.

Rapid Recovery Solution is a credit debt collection agency.

10 Tips to help you recover money:

PREPARE: Reviewing the paperwork prior to calling is important. If you know the history of the account, the promises kept/broken and payment history you sound better on the phone. Have all records in front of you, ready for reference.

ATTITUDE: Adopt a professional attitude. You have a contract or you delivered goods now money is owed to you and you have a right to expect payment promptly. Never ever let it become personal. Don’t yell or raise your voice; and NEVER swear. Don’t threaten physical harm; legal action is your recourse.

CONTACT: Make sure you’re talking to the right person. Don’t let the individual brush you off with “You’ll have to talk to the bookkeeper.” Identify the person who will pay the bill. If you cant get through after several calls, tell the secretary that you know your calls are being screened. Indicate the purpose of your call and if necessary give deadlines.

CONTROL: Always control the conversation. Keep it focused on the debt and on the repayment schedule. Do not let the debtor sidetrack you with personal history, excuses, etc. Remember, the objective of your call is to collect money, or get a commitment to pay not to become friends with the debtor or win arguments.

FLEXIBLE: Be ready to adjust to the situation. Think about the kind of customer you’re dealing with and adapt to meet the circumstances. Be prepared to accept a reasonable payment schedule, and a willingness to deal with a customers circumstances.

NOTES: Try to Keep detailed, accurate notes of every single contact with the debtor. Always probe for additional information on the debtor. Notes of these contacts will help you in later phone calls, and may be invaluable if litigation is needed. Great notes will also help in credit decisions in the future or in cases where skip tracing may be needed.

PRODUCTIVE: Keep contact brief and to the point. This is a business call, not a social one. View your efforts on a ratio of time expended to results achieved. Long conversations probably mean the customer is stalling you, or trapping you in the buddy syndrome.

PRECISE: Never leave a call open ended, such as “Well talk next week,” or “Ill send what I can.” Every single call should result in a commitment to some kind of payment, You need a specific amount, by a specific date, even the check number the customer is using to pay the promise.

TIME: The longer an account is outstanding, the less likely it is that it will be paid. If payment is not arranged or a payment plan is not established within 90 days, place the claim with a collection agency or start legal proceedings.

PLACEMENT: Try to choose an agency that does not have to pay to get your information. Just type in “Collection Agency” to any search engine and pick a firm that ranks organically.

Mallory McGuinness is employed by a collections agency that works with a debt collection lawyer. She also does pieces on business, finance, consumer spending and collections agencies.

There is no doubt that text messaging has become a major medium for exchanging information. Easy, painless, no speaking on the phone. No wonder that according to the latest statistics that have been taken there were almost 750 billion text messages sent in the U.S. in 2009, almost double the number from one year before. Actually, technology and research firm executive Jacob D. Almeida recently predicted that money transfers will be the top mobile application by as early as 2012.

Debt collectors have stayed out of this field for now; The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was a landmark legislation that went into effect in the late 1970s and has strictly outlined how debt collectors can call and when. Seeing as this act is even older than a stereotypical “Saved by the Bell Cell phone” from the 90s, it might be due time to adjust the law. But analysts are saying that any change in this area would have to come from consumers seeking change, not collectors.

Under the FDCPA, communications with consumers require a notice that the text is in fact from a debt collector, which leads to issues with the 160 character maximum length of money transferring messages. Another hurdle is determining who will pay the message. There is no current way for a collection agency to know if a consumer has a plan that includes unlimited text messages; the kicker being that if a contact is paid for by the debtor, it is illegal.

Another potential hurdle for debt collection agencies is determining the ownership of the device itself. The debtor might be utilizing a company owned wireless device for example. Said company might be monitoring the usage of the device, which would lead to third party disclosure issues if there were communications based in text that discuss a debt.

Sadly, Congress has to vote on health care, the budget, cap and trade and many other issues first before it can get down and tackle this text message issue. So time will tell.

Mallory is employed by a debt collection agency. She also writes articles on consumer spending, the credit industry and debt collection.