Debt Settlement vs. Consolidation vs. Bankruptcy

If you have spent any time online in the last several years, you have assuredly found no shortage of companies offering assistance with debt consolidation and/or the process of declaring bankruptcy. What you may not realize, however, is that these two prominent means of handling sizable debts are far from your only possibilities. More to the point, they are rarely your best means of handling debt loads with which you are having significant difficulty.

As most savvy consumers are aware, debt consolidation can do much to streamline and simplify (and even lower somewhat) your monthly payments. If your debt load is manageable, but you are having trouble staying organized or you are paying more interest than you need to be paying, debt consolidation can provide an elegant, simple solution. What it cannot provide, however, is a reduction in your overall debt load–a reduction which consumers in far over their hands often desperately require.

By the same token, bankruptcy has its time and place: notably, when one’s debts are so unforgivably high that paying even a fraction of the total debt load becomes out of the question. Short of situations this perilous, however, bankruptcy is almost invariably a bad decision. While companies interested in profiting from your declaration of bankruptcy may claim otherwise, a step this drastic will likely impact your financial situation for the rest of your life. After all, even after your bankruptcy filing “falls off” your credit report, every major financial transaction will involve answering whether you have ever declared bankruptcy.

So what is a debtor in over his head to do? Thanks to a select group of experienced and innovative financial experts, a new kind of debt settlement that avoids the pitfalls of both consolidation and bankruptcy has become available. Indeed, the two-stage debt settlement process with which the best of these new firms can assist you has proven itself to be the smartest path by far for legions of consumers facing daunting debt loads.

The process is surprisingly straightforward. First, experienced financial experts work with you to devise a customized savings plan that will allow you to put a modest amount of money aside each month. Simultaneously, these experts negotiate final debt settlements with your creditors on your behalf. Ultimately, your new savings are used to pay these debt settlements, after which your debt balance is not reduced, but eliminated outright.

Top debt settlement experts can typically reach final settlements that allow you to clear your debts for an average of 35 percent of their current value. Best of all, with the proper help, the entire process can usually be completed in three years or less. Far less ineffectual than debt consolidation and far less devastating than bankruptcy, this innovative intermediate solution allows you to clear your debts quickly, honorably, and completely.