Tuesday, 6 May 2008

Is A Debt Consolidation Loan Your Best Option?

By William Blake

Dealing with too much debt can lead to a great deal of anxiety and stress. If you can barely cover the minimum payments on all your credit cards and other bills every month, a debt consolidation loan may be a good way to get on top of things. There are several things you need to consider first, however.

A debt consolidation loan is a loan for the total amount of your outstanding debt including car loans, credit cards, etc. The loan will be used to repay the debts. The result will be that you have a single monthly payment at a lower interest rate.

Although a consolidation loan may be your answer, consider alternatives before making a final decision.

1. A Lower Interest Rate

Credit cards tend to have the highest interest rates of most debt, but quite often it is as simple as calling and asking them for a lower rate. There are plenty of competing credit card companies just itching for your business and if you call the one you already deal with and ask them to match someone else's rate, 9 times out of 10 they will do so.

2. Manage Debt Effectively

A debt consolidation loan may be overkill. You may be able to deal with your debt by learning how to manage it more effectively. There are plenty of places on the internet to get this kind of information, such as www.debtopedia.com, and most cities have non-profit groups that will help you learn better debt management skills.

3. Bank Loans

If high-interest credit card debt is the major problem, consolidating with a loan from your bank, rather than a debt consolidation loan might be a simple solution. Ask for a low interest loan from your bank.

Debt consolidation can save you considerable money on interest, not to mention ease the stress of having to find the money to make all those payments every month. If you're dealing with large debts, this may be the answer you're looking for.

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