Thursday, July 5, 2007

Credit Repair Through Debt Consolidation

In today's society, it's very rare to meet anyone who doesn't carry some sort of debt. It might be only a small amount of debt, such as an outstanding credit card balance or a store card. It can also be a large debt like a home mortgage or car loan. Nowadays we are all so used to having debt that it's almost become difficult to live without it.

Because it can be difficult to function without even a small level of debt, keeping your credit history clean is now more important than ever. Unfortunately, however, if you get into default on a bill, or miss payments due to a creditor, the credit bureaus will keep a record of it. Next time you want to apply for finance, you may find yourself rejected because of your poor credit history. Having a poor credit rating isn't temporary - many of the black marks against your name will be there for years, limiting your ability to get finance.

That's why credit repair can be a good strategy. There are a number of steps involved, and every individual needs to pursue steps that are specific to their situation. One popular strategy, however, that is effective for many people with credit issues, is debt consolidation.

If you know you're having problems meeting your repayments, it's important to act quickly. The longer you take to fix the mess you're in, the worse it's going to get. Missing one payment may give you a black mark, but missing multiple payments looks a lot worse on your credit history. Credit isn't just "good" or "bad", there's a whole range of levels in-between. So even though your credit might not be perfect, keeping it as close to the "good" end of the scale as you can will still be better for you long term.

Whatever the level of your credit issues, it's a necessary part of credit repair that all your debts are repaid. It's easy to give up at that point and say, "Well, if I had the money to pay the debts, I wouldn't be in this mess in the first place!" This is why debt consolidation works well for many people. You take all of your debts and consolidate them into one loan. If you choose well, you may even be able to get a loan that has a lower interest rate than some of your outstanding debts, reducing your payments. That makes it easier for you to meet your payments each month. Plus you only have to make one payment, so it's much simpler to manage your debt.

One thing to remember is that debt consolidation doesn't reduce the amount of money you owe - that will still be the same. But a lower interest rate, or a longer repayment term, can easily mean lower monthly payments. It also means you can pay off all your outstanding debts, which is the first step in repairing your credit. The defaults on you credit history will show up as having been paid, which is definitely in your favor.

Debt Consolidation is a great way to assist you in repairing your credit, because it improves your financial position very quickly. Instead of being in default to multiple creditors, now you've paid off all your outstanding debts and only have the one loan. It helps to stop any further damage occurring to your credit history, and reduces the pressure of multiple, high repayments. It gives you the chance to start again and focus on meeting your reduced repayments each month. So by using debt consolidation wisely, you can accelerate the process of credit repair.

Related Link: Debt Consolidation & Management Make Easy

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