Debt counseling....?

So I owe about 12000 in debt for credit cards, the accounts are in a debt consolation company which I%26#039;m paying about 400 a month to clear the debt, I recently came into $8000.00 and I want close the accounts and pay them all off. IS there a way I can negioate with the creditors to lower my balances since I%26#039;m paying it off?

Debt counseling....?

Generally if you are current, companies will not settle on the account. You actually have to be behind before they start to make arrangements. Since you are on a program currently you are considered current so they probably will not accept a settlement. However, there is nothing that says you can not ask and see what they will do.

If you do get them to settle for less, any amount over $600 you will receive a 1099-C and it is considered unearned income. So if you had a $5,000 debt and they settled for $4,000 you would owe taxes on the $1,000

You might be better off to pay off as many of the accounts you can with the $8,000. Then continue to pay the $400 a month on the remaing cards. Since you have less cards you will be paying more on each one so those amounts will go down faster.

Debt counseling....?

Yes. There is no way that I can explain this without having to write a book. I%26#039;ll try my best.

Creditors are willing to %26quot;settle%26quot; with you if you have cash to pay upfront. In the business world, money now is worth more to them than later. And it also increases the chances of them getting some of the money than none. Following me? 10,000 can be settled for 5,000 and higher amounts for pennies on the dollar.

Important Tips

Never mention that you have %26quot;money%26quot;. If you do, chances are that they will deny your settlement because you have enough to pay for the whole debt.

Get everything in writing. If they are willing to settle, make sure you get that in writ ting. Write a check and have %26quot;PAID IN FULL%26quot; along with any other information that may help you if there is a dispute.

There are many do%26#039;s and dont%26#039;s to settling your debt. Please do as much as you can to educate yourself. Find out where in your community you can seek free debt counseling

Business and Marketing Student.

Debt counseling....?

While you could attempt this yourself, I would suggest letting a professional debt settlement company handle your situation. The best approach is to let your accounts fall behind, the companies will then sell off to 3rd parties, you can then settle these debts for much less. This is going to affect your credit score while the accounts are behind but the accounts will show settled with a zero balance at which time your scores will come back up. Check out www.ccdebthelp.com for more info.