Is Debt Relief the Right Option for You?

Deciding on a financial service might not be the easiest thing for you to do but at the end of the day it’s something you’re going to have to decide on, one way or the other.

If you carry debt, especially high interest credit card debt, you might think you don’t have so many options available to you. Well I’m here to show you that’s not the case!

There's many options available. You can negotiate the accounts on your own, you can sign up to a credit counseling service, a debt relief program, file for bankruptcy or even apply for a debt consolidation loan. There are some unknowns with some of the above options, so it's important to feel confident enough to make a decision you'll be happy with. It’s not always so easy deciding one way or another, but once we do, we need to stick with our decision and see where that path leads.

Debt can be costly in terms of both financials and mental health. It can be very draining and disheartening knowing that it will take such a tremendously long time to pay down. This is why it’s so important you understand the decision you're making, so that if you decide that debt relief is the right option you stick with it and see the program through until completion.

Doing research is one of the most beneficial things you can do. If not, you can be taken advantage of for your lack of knowledge and if you don’t know what you’re doing it could cost you both time and money.

How Do We Decide?

Deciding can be half the battle. Whenever you decide, it pays dividends to put things down on paper so that you can weigh the pros and cons properly.

Ideally you make two columns, one of them denoting the pros and the other denoting the cons.

Once you’ve done this you can take a tally of both sides. The winning side is what you should base your decision on.

No Regrets

We are better off when we don't have any regrets. It’s akin to ripping off a Band-Aid. You want to take the bandage off quick and make the decision soon instead of letting it fester and not heal properly. Otherwise the situation may get worse and once it’s worse, it could create new problems altogether.

Moving Forward

We all try our best to move forward with the right footing. When big decisions like these get made, we can feel a weight lifted off our shoulders and our burdens let go. It should go without saying, these aren’t small decisions and financial decisions are very important so we should try our best in deciding. These decisions could have a substantial impact on your life for years to come.

Debt Relief Might Not Be the Best Option for Everyone

So, who’s it not recommended for? There are a few groups of people who will likely want to look towards alternative options besides debt relief. It’s not recommended, for those who don’t have a large enough debt amount. Anyone carrying debt with individual account balances below $500 or below a $7,500 total debt amount should probably look towards a debt snowball, debt avalanche or other budgeting focused pay down method. It’s also not recommended for anyone that has no wages to pay into a monthly program or has the ability to pay anything back at all. If you have secured debts, debt relief is not going to be much benefit to you since secured debts are tied to collateral and not illegible for a debt relief program.

Weighing it Versus Alternatives

As previously stated, I’m somewhat biased against the alternatives but they are there for a reason. The marketplace has a lot of options some are good, some aren’t. What matters is that we make the most of the options we have and try to align them best with what matches our financial situation.

Timing

Timing also plays a big part in all these decisions. The better our timing is, the more opportune deals we’ll get, the more money we’ll save. These things all play off each other and help in the long term.

For example, when you work with a professional debt relief company the timing will tend to be very well mapped. Since they’ve likely graduated many clients, they’ll have a great idea of how to best move forward with your program in terms of approximate timing. A general strategy should be mapped out based on the accounts.

Decision

Ultimately the decision is up to you and is dependent on which path you choose. Either way, there are numerous options available for people in your situation so do not give up and always remain hopeful. Never become hopeless. Hope can give us solace in hard times and give us the will to continue, making it all the easier to push forward.