How Does Debt Consolidation Or Debt Settlement Affect Your Credit Report?
The short answer is, it doesn't. Credit-counseling information hasn't been used to calculate consumer credit scores since 1999.
The thing you need to be aware of if you're considering either debt consolidation or debt settlement is that chances are good you've already missed payments or made late payments, and those will absolutely have a negative impact on your credit score. Late and missed payments are routinely reported, and those marks have an immediate and lasting impact on your credit score.
You should know that if you chose to make payments through a debt management company there may be a notation on your credit report indicating that this is what you're doing. Don't be alarmed if you see it there. It's not a negative mark.
If the company you choose makes the full payment for you, as with debt settlement, your balance will be shown as paid in full as soon as it's made. However, it is possible for such payments to be marked as late, depending on where you are in the billing cycle when you begin the settlement process. Basically, you need to know that it is important for you to keep making the payments until your settlement is complete.
It's also possible for payments to be late when you are using a debt consolidation service, which is a mark against your credit, not theirs. To avoid this, make sure you're doing business with a reputable company, same as you would for anything else. Check with the better Business Bureau (BBB), check references, and make sure you know what all the fees are in advance. Also, make sure to choose a company that has a strong history of working with both consumers and creditors to achieve good outcomes.
A reputable debt consolidation company can make a complicated and overwhelming situation a whole lot simpler, and though many won't let you apply for new credit until your current debt is fully paid, this is definitely not a bad thing. When you do apply for credit again, you won't have any late payment marks during the time your payments are being made through the company. You'll also have had a chance to change your spending habits, so when you start out again you'll not only be debt free, you'll be in a better position to stay that way.
In Conclusion, by a thoroughly researching and then comparing as much debt consolidation agencies, consumers are able to identify the one that meet your your very own financial situation, plus the cheaper interest rate available on the debit consolidation market. For example, read our latest debt relief service review: PriorityDebtSettlement Review.
However, it is recommendable to work with a trusted and reputable debit counselor before arrive to any conclusion, this way you save time through specialized advise & cash by obtaining better results in a short period of time.
Hector Milla is editor of the Best Debt Relief Programs website – where you can see his best rated debt consolidation company recommendation.
Find online debit consolidation tips and bad credit debit management advise respectively. We'll be glad to help you.
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Tags: Debt, debt consolidation, debt relief, debts
