OT: debt relief programs

[My4SunshineGirlsNY]

I'm sorry for the off topic subject, I just need some help/input from others that may have gone through this or know about it.

A brief history...3 years ago my husband lost a very well paying job with heafty bonuses...our credit cards/small unsecurred loans fell behind and we never caught them up.

We are finally back on track now with him at a good job and me now running daycare but have about $25,000 in debt to clear up (a big portion was due to a car we couldn't make payments on when he lost his job and were left with almost $10,000 left to pay after they auctioned it). We thought about filing bankruptcy so we can rid that old debt without getting behind on all that we pay now.

But I hate the thought of that, we filed bankruptcy 10 1/2 years ago and promised myself we would never need to go that route again. So I contacted a debt relief program today and the program sounds wonderful, then started reading about all the relief program scams so now I'm so confused.

Has anyone ever used a debt relief program and did it work for you? This is for debt settlement, all my accounts are 1,2, and 3 years old so settlement is the best option for us. With so many relief programs out there, I have a headache wondering which one I should choose.

[Unregistered]

I am registered (and a frequent user) here but I don't want to be found

My husband and I finally buckled down and went to a debt relief program. It's called AFS Accelerated Financial Solutions. They have been EXTREMELY helpful. Hubby did the background check on them and they seem legit. I was extremely skeptical (still am) about it but deep down I knew we need help. However they are doing everything they said they would.

Our situation was that hubby had bad credit due to a bad divorce. I had excellent credit. Never missed a payment. Never had ANY credit debt. We got married and we had to start from scratch. We had to buy EVERYTHING. Washer/dryer, couches, tv, bed, bedding, dishes, etc. That and plus a few stupid mistakes landed us $60,000 in debt.

We always paid on time and always paid the minimum. What hurt was the most was when a certain president passed the credit card laws and the cards I had saw the balances and whoosh! down came my credit limits.

Finally we just said hey we need help. Like I said, AFS are doing everything they said they would.

I wish you the best of luck. I hate the thought of being in so much debt. However I have seen couples in worse cases than ours and they made it through You can too!

[Unregistered]

You are right, lots of scam out there. However, there are good programs that you can find through non-profit groups such as Luther Social Services--my Mom used to work there. I'm not sure if Lutheran Social Services is a midwest thing or not, but I did a quick NY search and found this...

http://www.creditadvocates.org/services.html

The biggest thing is to make absolutely sure it is a non-profit group.

Good Luck

3kidsmom

[marniewon]

www.daveramsey.com. You can get his Financial Peace book/workbook pretty cheap online and do it yourself. He has pretty sound ideas and many people have been able to erase their debt fairly quickly using his methods. Many churches will run his program for a small fee too, if you do better in a class type setting instead of just reading the book.

[Luna]

We went to one that was recommended by our bank when we told them we were struggling with payments. Maybe your bank will have a suggestion?