Comparison Between Debt Settlement and Bankruptcy

July 16th, 2010

Debt settlement and bankruptcy both are debt relief options. These options are chosen when an individual had stuck deep in debt and looking to get out of it. When a person is knee deep in debt meaning he/she has no sources of income to clear the debt in a fair way. Hence, one has to look for debt relief options to become debt free.

Debt settlement and bankruptcy, each has its own advantageous and disadvantageous. Before taking decision to choose one particular, it is very important to know about each option and how one differs from other.

The main difference between debt settlement and bankruptcy is that, debt settlement is an agreement between you and lender that is taken care of out the court steps whereas the bankruptcy is legal procedure that is taken care of attorney inside the court steps to discharge liability.


If bankruptcy is filled perfectly and one who files qualifies for it, the court can order or enforce the creditors to discharge the debt. In general there are two types of bankruptcies for consumer to file. They are chapter 7 and chapter 13.

Chapter 7 bankruptcy is to be filled when you want to eliminate debt and chapter 13 to restructure debt into a repayment plan based on how much the debtor can repay, not necessarily the whole amount the debtor owes. According to earlier laws of bankruptcies laws, a person who files bankruptcies will manage to discharge whole debt that he incurred till then but recent laws that amended do not allow to discharge some debts like student debt secured by federal government, taxes etc.

In addition, the bankruptcy filled will be reported to credit rating agencies and that will stay on your credit report for at least 10 years. Bankruptcy on your credit report will have negative impact on your credit score and as a result your future credit will be impacted.

On the other hand, debt settlement is a process that is carried out of court agreement made between debtor and creditor. The agreement is made for the benefit of both the debtor and creditor. With debt settlement, the debtor will not manage to discharge the debt as in case of bankruptcy instead a repayment plan that is in favour of all the creditors of debtor will be made. For debt consolidation to work, it requires that each and every creditor must agree to debt settlement and its repayment plan terms.

Debt settlement in the same way as bankruptcy will be reported to credit rating agencies. Debt settlement will remain on your credit report for 7 years. It is natural that credit score will be impacted in either of the option and if you are in such a position to opt either of the option, then you are already half way down of your credit score and at the same time with any option total debt will not be discharged.

Since the impact of debt relief options is much less than bankruptcy and they are easier for you to handle the procedure. Choosing the debt relief option enables the lender to get some amount from you instead of walking away will all the debt.

Author: admin Categories: Debt Tags: ,

Be Careful When Taking a Payday Loan

July 13th, 2010

Payday loans, also known as payday advance or cash advance loans are becoming very popular these days due to bad economy. Americans are doing everything they can to stretch their dollars and paychecks.  However financial emergencies do happen and since banks isn’t lending as easily and credit cards are reducing their limits (and in many cases closing credit cards), it is becoming more difficult to get financing for financial emergencies.
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That is when and where other type of short term loans such as payday loans and title loans come to play. Payday loans in particularly re becoming very  popular online. Simply because they are easier to get. A person who needs cash can search for payday loan online with a direct lender or a payday loan affiliate. And since payday loans are usually below $1000, that person can apply for multiple payday loans from different payday loan lenders. But that is where the problem starts.

Most people who are in need of a short term cash loan because they need money for bills, will not shop around enough to find the cheapest and most affordable loans. It has been documented that average payday lenders charges more than 400 annual APR on payday loans because of the nature of the loan (very high risk and expensive to the lenders too). And therefore the borrows default, piling up debt, and hurting their credit score that eventually can drive them to bankruptcy.

So our advice is that, if you ever have to take a short term loan such as a payday loan, make sure you have tried borrowing money from other sources such as friends or families, and if you end up having to take a payday loan, make sure you educate yourself about payday loans.

Author: admin Categories: Credit Tags: ,

Secured Your Family with Life Insurance Policy

July 8th, 2010

One of the greatest gifts that you can give to your loved ones is buying a good life insurance policy. Life insurance is the only way to assure that your family will be taken care of if you die. Although we do not want such misshapen, but to be on the safe side I would always suggest you to be insured by a life insurance policy for the benefit of your loved ones.
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Life insurance is a policy where you can enter into an agreement with the insurance company to pay an amount of beneficiary to your family once you die. Usually a spouse names the other spouse or may be the children to get the beneficiary. For this you have to pay a monthly or yearly premium to match up with the promised amount to pay. The premiums generally depend on the age, gender, occupation and medical history of the concerned person. Some life insurance companies also give benefit to you and your family while you are still alive.

While shopping for a life insurance policy you will find a number of them available in the market. You have to choose the right life insurance policy as per you and your family needs. Life insurance is a long – term proposition, thus you should pay particular attention while buying a particular one. You should know your needs, do a research well for the best price and always look for the best premiums. There are basically two types of life insurance policies – Term life insurance, where your family gets the benefit once you die; and Permanent life insurance, where you get a benefit of return – on – investment component for your policy.

Rates and coverage may vary from state to state. It is you who have to decide how much insurance you require and the type of life insurance policy will best suit your needs. If you find it hard then consult a financial advisor for choosing the right kind of life insurance policy and secure the future of your family members.

Author: admin Categories: Insurance Tags: ,