I Cant Pay Credit Card Debt – What Do I Do

So, you have decided that settling your credit card debts on your own is the better path instead of hiring a debt relief company for the purpose.If you have the skills and talents to compete with these professionals when it comes to negotiation, communication and documentation then give it a shot.  After all, if a nurse with little background in taxation and the law can single-handedly take on the Internal Revenue Service and win, then so can you where debt relief is concerned.

Keep these points in mind when you are settling credit card debt on your own.  These three tips will ensure that you are one step closer to successfully taking on those credit card companies.

You must ensure that your accounts are considerably delinquent

You might want to negotiate for lower principal amounts on your credit card bills as soon as you cannot pay the minimum monthly payment required or as soon as you feel that you cannot pay your debts due to other financial obligations.  Keep in mind, however, that the debt relief process cannot be availed of until and unless your credit card accounts are significantly delinquent.

How deep should you be?Delinquent credit card accounts are written off by creditors once the 180+ days windows has completed.  The write-off subsequently devalues the account so much so that third parties can purchase it for as little as 5 percent of its face value.

To prevent this from taking place, the credit card company will be eager to settle the debt through a negotiation process.If the creditors get half of what you owe, thats much better than the 5% they would’ve gotten from the third party collection agencies.

Keep Descriptive And Detailed Documentation

The days of verbal agreements holding any value are long gone and especially when it comes to credit card debt settlement.  After all, it will be your word against the word of the collection agents and you should know by now that nobody wins in such a case.

The other option is that you maintain excellent written records of all the matters related to the settlement and negotiation process with your creditors.  Always send out letters with complete information to the proper addresses and addressees.After that, file the letters and other forms of communication in a binder that is easily accessible.

If you do have a conversation on the phone, record the details.  Take note of the time and date, the persons you spoke to, their contact number and the general flow of the conversation.

Use Mail That Can Be Tracked

Once the settlement has been reached, send your payment through certified mail or any mail that can be tracked.Send the check along with a memo clarifying that the check is the full payment along with a copy of the settlement that was reached.Now, you will have pretty good documentation.

Dont forget the specific strategies that you need to use to settle the debt by yourself.  Just remember these three tips and you should be alright during the entire process.

These are some specific steps that you can take. For more tips on how to fix a bad credit report you should read our articles about getting the best credit card debt relief help

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