Business & Finance Credit

Settle Your Credit Card Debt - You" ll Be Glad You Did

Credit card debt is becoming common with a lot of people because of prevalent economic difficulties. It's so easy to buy anything these days and just charge it to your card or to one of the several that you have. It starts little by little but before you know it, your card debt has grown beyond what you can easily handle. A lot of people have considered not paying their credit card debts, but this might be a very bad decision in the long run. Not paying your credit card debt has a lot of negative consequences.

Credit Card Companies will start calling and will continue to call you to demand their money back. They will call several times a day at home and at work. They will get phone numbers of your family, relatives colleagues at work and even your boss and call them. This might be illegal, but they still do it. You will start getting continuous demand letters in the mail. Whenever they get you on the phone they will use all manner of threats to make you pay. This can build up a lot of stress in you and start affecting your health.

If you start missing payments or outrightly stop paying your credit card debt, the card company starts charging you the maximum interest on your debt. This is always written somewhere on the card agreement form that most of us don't bother to read. They can also charge you late payment penalty fees that could be up to $60.

Credit card companies can report you to credit bureaus after 30 days past the due date on any of your credit cards. You will be reported to the credit bureaus and negative marks will be made against your credit. The missed payments will show up in your credit report and this has a terrible impact on your credit score. It will become a bit difficult for you to get credit in the future and when you do it will be at high interest. A bad credit scores is not a good thing. Every time you apply for any type of loan or a job, your credit score is checked.

The worst of the consequences of not settling your credit card debt is that the card company can sue you. Depending on the amount you owe, the company might decide whether or not to take legal action against you. If you are sued and judgment is made against you, it stays on your credit report for 7 years. The judgment order gives the credit card company the right to garnish your wages, seize your bank accounts, joint marital property etc. It also brings down your credit score by 50-100 points making it difficult for you to qualify for credit. Even if you can't pay the judgment amount, it is never written off. It is renewed indefinitely.

Rather than take this route, it is better you find a way to settle your credit card debts. You can call the card companies to negotiate a reduction. You can contact credit counseling agencies that will look through your debt situation and recommend the best solution for you.

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