My Loan Modifications Blog – By Jody Boyd

Have you been having difficulty paying your debts? Have you been getting dunning notices from creditors? Are your accounts being turned over to collectors? Are you concerned about having your home repossessed or your automobile?

If you are receiving collection notices or having difficulty making your house or car payment, you aren’t alone. Whether the crisis is a result of illness, loss of a job or simply overspending, it usually is overwhelming. Don’t let your circumstances go from bad to worse through inaction.

Consider:

• Realistic budgeting
• Credit counseling from a reputable organization
• Debt consolidation
• Bankruptcy

How would you know which could work best for you? This will depend on your level of debt, your level of discipline as well as your prospects for the future.

Contacting Your Creditors

Speak to your creditors immediately when you are having difficulty making ends meet. Tell them why it’s difficult in your case, and try to figure out a modified repayment schedule that reduces your instalments to a more manageable level.

Dealing with Debt Collectors

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act dictates how and when a debt collector may contact you. They may not:

• Call you before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
• Call you at work if the collector knows that your employer doesn’t approve of the calls
• Harass or threaten you
• Make false statements
• Use unfair practices, such as deposit a post-dated check, when they try to collect a debt

Debt collectors must honor a written request from you to stop further contact.

Developing a Budget

Taking control of your state gets underway with a realistic assessment of your budget: Just how much comes in and how much is spent each month. Of course, conventional logic tells us we should spend only what we bring home in pay, but it sometimes doesn’t work out like that in particular if a crisis arises.

Writing down all of your expenses – fixed and variable – is a great way to track spending patterns and weed out those that aren’t as significant as rent, car, utilities, food, etc.

Credit Counseling

You may consider contacting a credit counselor if your debts are frustrating you and can’t determine how to fix it yourself.

Creditors could be willing to accept reduced payments by entering a debt repayment plan with a reputable company. In these plans, you deposit money monthly with the service who then pays your creditors.

Successful plans require regular, timely payments and could take 48 months (four years) or even more to finish. Some service providers charge a minute fee or nothing for managing your financial situation. Others charge a monthly fee that may add up after a while. In addition there are credit guidance services that are partly funded by creditors so you might not need to pay a fee.

While a debt repayment plan can eliminate a large amount of the stress that comes from handling creditors and overdue bills, that doesn’t mean you can forget about your debts. You still are accountable for:

• Paying any creditors whose debts are not included in the plan
• Reviewing monthly statements from your creditors to make sure your payments have been received
• Making sure that your billing statements reflect any agreement your creditors made to lower or eliminate interest and finance charges, or waive late fees

A debt repayment plan doesn’t erase your negative credit standing. Accurate information about your accounts can stay on the credit score for an estimated seven years. A demonstrated pattern oftimely payments, however, will help you get credit in the future.

Auto and Home Loans

Debt repayment plans usually coverunsecured debt. Your auto and home loan, that are considered secured debt, is probably not included. You need to continue to make payments to those creditors directly.

Most automobile financing agreements allow a creditor to repossess your vehicle any time you are in default. No notice is needed. In case your car is repossessed, you may have to pay for the full balance due on the loan, as well as towing and storage costs, to get it back. If you fail to do that, the creditor may sell the automobile. If you see default approaching, you may be more well off selling the vehicle yourself and settling Your Debt: you will avoid the added costs of repossession and a negative entry on your credit report.

Should you fall behind on your own mortgage, speak to your lender immediately to stop foreclosure. Most lenders are willing to talk with you when they believe you’re acting in good faith and the situation is temporary. Some lenders may reduce or suspend your instalments for a short time. After you resume regular payments, though, you will have to spend an additional amount toward the past due total. Other lenders may agree to change the terms of the mortgage by extending the repayment period to lower the monthly debt.

For help with a Macon GA chapter 7 bankruptcy, consult with a Macon Georgia bankruptcy lawyer. A bankruptcy lawyer Macon Georgia could give you the help you need.