Are you currently head over heels in debts? Well, with the help of a reputable credit counselor, you can finally breathe a sigh of relief. A good credit lawyer will help you get out of bad credits without breaking a sweat. However, with the financial market being flooded with credit counseling service providers, finding a trustworthy and honest counselor can really pose a challenge to you. So, when finding the right credit counselor, taking extra precautions will not be an option. However, the following 6 tips will lead you to a great professional:
1. Is your prospective counselor a member of a national credit counseling organization?
A good counselor should at least be a member of one of the national credit counseling agencies, such as the National Federation for Credit Counseling. This membership means a lot, as you will be guaranteed that you are dealing with a competent counselor. So, if the name of your prospective counselor doesn’t appear in the national credit counseling directory, then there are a lot of questions regarding their qualifications.
2. Ask them if they charge additional fees
A counselor might not be honest with you regarding the actual amount they charge, so look for ways to find out if they have extra charges besides the actual cost of the counseling service. You want to deal with an expeditious counselor and therefore, all the payments you make to the credit counselor as part of your debt management plan should reach your creditors at the right time. Also, every penny you give your counselor should pay down your debts and not to be used in any other way.
3. Know whether a trustworthy third party accredits the counselor you intend to hire
Talk to local protection groups, state attorney general and the Better Business Bureau that make complaints against dishonest and incompetent credit counselors who serve the public. If you go through their history and find several complaints, this is a red flag you should not dismiss. Ask the Better Business Bureau officials or the state attorney general to provide you with a list of competent, reputable and trustworthy credit counselors they know.
4. Get assurance that the counselor protects your information and money
Most of the information that consumers in bad credit provide requires a highest level of confidentiality. Look for evidence that the counselor has valid insurance coverage to protect consumers’ money and information. Credit counselors with financial constraints may use your money in different ways and even share your personal information with other consumers as examples of the cases they have competently handled in order to win them.
5. See if they have problems with written agreements
Avoid credit counselors who restrict you to verbal agreements and promise big and enticing outcome. Counselors who promise to remove any negative information about you from the credit report or even reduce 50 percent of your monthly payments may have a hidden agenda, which you should discover.
6. Check if the counselor has certification from outside organizations
A good and competent credit counselor should be quick to understand the current personal situation of their clients. Moreover, they should not recommend debt management plans that would not work, but instead create a plan that meets all your debt needs. Most credit counselors who are certified by international organizations integrate ideas and plans that work best for their clients than those who only work with local agencies.
If you are looking for a competent credit counselor to help you overcome your debts and repair your bad credit, then the above tips are meant for you. These tips help you avoid dishonest credit counselors whose major aim in the industry is enriching themselves.
