There is no one more vulnerable than someone who is in serious financial trouble.
When money grows tight, it is hard not to panic.
Fear takes over.
What is going to happen? Can they take my house? My car? What does a judgment mean? Can they take my furniture? Most people make poor decisions when they are under terrible pressure and fear dominates their thinking.
With increasing frequency commercials are airing on television and on the radio.
"Eliminate your Debt"...
"Pay off your Mortgage"...
"Restore your Credit"...
The ads throw out time frames of three to six months and promise debt reductions of up to 80 per cent.
I have had client after client tell me, with complete disbelief in their voices, that for a up to a year, they sent monthly payments, their hard earned money, to a debt settlement service in Nashville or Los Angeles or Baltimore.
They kept sending the money until the debt settlement company stopped answering its phones.
They later found out that the company never settled anything, that nothing was done to reduce debt or prevent lawsuits.
The company simply vanished.
"How can they get away with that?" The sad answer is, they just did.
At a time when they can least afford to waste money and time, when every dollar becomes more important than it has ever been, the poor people have just been ripped off quite viciously.
Can the company be sued? Of course, but suing some fly by night operation 10 states away, which existed only to run a big national ad campaign and then disappear, is a very questionable proposition.
It takes time and money, both of which are in short supply.
Oddly, the theories espoused by many of these companies are good.
Disciplined savings and professional negotiation, together with the passage of time, ought to yield a reduction in overall debt and an improved financial picture.
It might take 3 years, but done correctly it is a good solution.
The theories however remain theoretical, as these companies steal your money in a very tangible fashion, booking the payments as fees and then collapsing behind a corporate shell.
Stay local.
Get experienced lawyers who can really negotiate and can litigate.
Do business with people you can physically meet, not some website or an "800" number.
Maybe there are good debt settlement companies out there, but I have never seen one.
When money grows tight, it is hard not to panic.
Fear takes over.
What is going to happen? Can they take my house? My car? What does a judgment mean? Can they take my furniture? Most people make poor decisions when they are under terrible pressure and fear dominates their thinking.
With increasing frequency commercials are airing on television and on the radio.
"Eliminate your Debt"...
"Pay off your Mortgage"...
"Restore your Credit"...
The ads throw out time frames of three to six months and promise debt reductions of up to 80 per cent.
I have had client after client tell me, with complete disbelief in their voices, that for a up to a year, they sent monthly payments, their hard earned money, to a debt settlement service in Nashville or Los Angeles or Baltimore.
They kept sending the money until the debt settlement company stopped answering its phones.
They later found out that the company never settled anything, that nothing was done to reduce debt or prevent lawsuits.
The company simply vanished.
"How can they get away with that?" The sad answer is, they just did.
At a time when they can least afford to waste money and time, when every dollar becomes more important than it has ever been, the poor people have just been ripped off quite viciously.
Can the company be sued? Of course, but suing some fly by night operation 10 states away, which existed only to run a big national ad campaign and then disappear, is a very questionable proposition.
It takes time and money, both of which are in short supply.
Oddly, the theories espoused by many of these companies are good.
Disciplined savings and professional negotiation, together with the passage of time, ought to yield a reduction in overall debt and an improved financial picture.
It might take 3 years, but done correctly it is a good solution.
The theories however remain theoretical, as these companies steal your money in a very tangible fashion, booking the payments as fees and then collapsing behind a corporate shell.
Stay local.
Get experienced lawyers who can really negotiate and can litigate.
Do business with people you can physically meet, not some website or an "800" number.
Maybe there are good debt settlement companies out there, but I have never seen one.