Hiring a Debt Settlement Attorney

by Vincent Polisi on July 26, 2010

In today’s economy, far too many people are finding themselves dealing with credit card debts that they cannot afford to pay.  If you are worried about being hit with credit card judgments that will ultimately end up with you having your wages garnished, you may want to consider hiring a debt settlement attorney.

Debt settlement is a process that is often used when a person wants to pay their debts but does not have the means to pay them in full.  It is where you and the creditor negotiate to reach an amount that they would accept to consider the account paid in full.  Typically, you should expect to save somewhere between 40% and 60% of what you owe.

While you can handle debt settlement on your own and save some money, many people are uncomfortable with the negotiations and do not want to deal with it on their own.  Because of this, many debt settlement companies have sprung up.  Unfortunately, few of them actually leave the client in a better situation than they were when they hired the firm.  Most will take fees of up to 20% up front.  They keep these fees regardless of whether they are successful in negotiating on your behalf.

A far better option is to hiring  debt settlement attorneys.  This is an attorney who will work directly with your creditors to negotiate the best deal they can.  Essentially, it is their job to make sure that they convince the creditor that you are contemplating filing for bankruptcy and that you do they will receive nothing.

When you hire an attorney for debt settlement, they will also work to protect you.  Some collection agencies are sly and they will agree to a settlement but not put this agreement in writing.  Numerous unknowing consumers will think that they have heard the last of a certain debt, only to find themselves contacted by another collection agency for the remainder of the unpaid balance at some point in the future.  A debt settlement attorney can make sure that an agreement is in place that relieves you from having any further liability for the debt.

If you decide to hire a debt settlement attorney, may sure you do some research and pick a company that has been around for a while.  You should always check with the better business bureau to make sure that the company does not have excessive complaints.  It is important to remember that attorney based debt settlement is a much better alternative than simply hiring a debt settlement company.

It is important that you understand that debt settlement will hurt your credit. The account will count against you about the same as a charge off would.  It is much better, however, than dealing with credit card judgments or in filing bankruptcy.

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