A Financial Workbook for Engaged Couples By Larry Burkett Because you deserve the best in your marriage, now you can disarm two of the most potent threats to your upcoming marriage: mismanagement of money and poor communication. You can do this by putting Money Before Marriage to work for you. In this workbook you will learn to: Apply to your marriage what God’s Word says about finances Understand your personality profile and that of your future mate Discover the practical aspects of managing your personal finances Answer the tough questions relating to debt, credit card use, life insurance needs, and separate bank accounts Prepare your new family’s first budget In Money Before Marriage , Larry Burkett summarizes the key insights of wise money management that come from more than twenty years of intense Bible study, coupled with his experience of counseling literally hundreds of couples in financial trouble. Get off to a great start! Learn how to avoid the most common financial and communication pitfalls experienced by thousands of newlyweds. “The prudent sees evil and hides himself, but the naive go on, and are punished for it.” Proverbs 22:33 Publisher: Moody Publishers Format: Paperback Pages: 119 ISBN 10:0802463894

Continue »

This video is from our series of educational resource videos designed to help you
handle your finances and learn how to be a more well informed consumer. Christian
Credit Counselors is a non-profit credit & debt management company that is dedicated to
helping you get out of debt. Contact us on the web www.ibudget.org or call 1-800-557-1985
for a consultation.

Duration : 3 min

Continue »

The 2005 supplement includes the following updates: Legislative proposals and a new chief at the helm of the IRS Exempt Organization (EO) Division signal serious change in the regulation and oversight of tax-exempt organizations in the future. The four key initiatives the division will focus on during its 2005 fiscal year include credit counseling, antiterrorism, excess compensation, and abusive schemes. Details of the plans for fiscal 2005 are set out in the IRS Exempt Organizations Implementing Guidelines issued November 2, 2004. New Form 1023 has also been significantly redesigned. The good, challenging, and missing aspects of the format are presented in new Chapter 18.1A. Proposals to enhance governance of tax-exempt organizations have come from several sources this year: the IRS’ s compliance studies, state attorney generals and legislatures, and the Senate Finance Committee.

Continue »

This video is from our series of educational resource videos designed to help you handle your finances and learn how to be a more well informed consumer. Christian Credit Counselors is a non-profit credit & debt management company that is dedicated to helping you get out of debt. Contact us on the web www.ibudget.org or call 1-800-557-1985 for a consultation.

Duration : 4 min 27 sec

Continue »

Technorati Tags: credit

In today’s world, it is often easy to get in over your head and find yourself spending more than you make. It seems that everything is going up but wages, and it is all too easy to fall behind. As the result, debt incurred and accumulated over the time; initially, you are able to pay your credit card balances in full on each month and when more and more accumulated, you may go for minimum payment, then when come to the, your income may not afford to even support the minimum payments.

Like many who trap into unbearable debts, you may want to get rid of your debts by filling a bankruptcy. But bankruptcy can carry a legacy you will have to live with for years. A bankruptcy filing will stay on your record for a minimum of seven years, and you may find it difficult or impossible to obtain necessary credit in the interim.

Luckily, there are still others possible alternatives before you make up your ultimate decision on bankruptcy. You can enroll into a debt reduction program or enroll in a credit counseling program. These are the most popular debt solutions for many debtors, but you may confuse what are the differences between these two popular debt solutions, making you hard to decide your choice to enroll to credit counseling program or debt reduction program.

While there are some similarities between these two types of programs, there are some important differences to consider as well. Let us consider a few of the most important differences between debt reduction and credit counseling.

1. Close Your Credit Accounts

In credit counseling program, you will require to close all your credit accounts, exception for some exceptions like accounts for business needs, accounts with zero or very small balances. Whereas, debt reduction programs do not require all credit accounts to be closed. Sometimes, it’s good to keep a few of credit cards for emergency purposes.

2. Completion Period

Credit counseling services typically take longer to complete than debt reduction services. The average length of time to liquidate debt through a credit counseling service is 5 years whereas in debt reduction programs can be completed in less than a year.

3. Cost Saving

One of the advantages of debt reduction program over credit counseling program is in term of cost saving. In debt reduction program, you may only need to pay a settlement amount of 20% – 60% of amount owned. Whereas, in credit counseling program you normally need to repay a full amount owned with some discount and interest waived.

4. Credit Score

Your credit score is more affected in debt reduction program as compare to credit counseling program. In debt reduction program, the creditors may report the remaining amount between the amount you owned with the settlement amount as the “deficiency balance” to the credit bureaus as a negative item and it will be noted at your credit report and impact your credit scores. Generally, credit-reporting agencies will re-age the accounts of consumers enrolled in credit counseling services after three payments have been made.

5. Bargaining Power

In credit counseling program, your credit counselor will come out a debt repayment proposal to your creditors and it relies on your creditors to accept or reject the proposal. Whereas, with a debt reduction program, all creditors are will be notified about your hardship situation to repay your debt and you are desired to resolve it through a negotiated debt reduction agreement. Hence, creditors have no much choice in debt reduction program except try to negotiate to get back as much payment as possible from their debtors.

In Summary

Both credit counseling program and debt reduction program are a better debt solution option than bankruptcy. The two programs serve the same purpose to help you to get out from debts, but there are some differences between these two debt solutions and each program has its own pros and cons.

Cornie Herring is the author from http://www.studykiosk.com/CreditBasics. “StudyKiosk-Credit Basics” is an informational website on credit basics, debt solutions and bankruptcy.

Cornie Herring
http://www.articlesbase.com/debt-consolidation-articles/what-are-the-differences-between-debt-reduction-and-credit-counseling-85645.html

Debt consolidation credit counseling might be just what the doctor ordered for you or not. If you are drowning and debt and don’t what to do a credit counselor may be able to help.

Debt Consolidation Credit Counseling is Not Hard to Do

Your first contact at a debt consolidation credit counseling agency is often a credit counselor. A good credit counselor will want to meet with you locally in person first. The counselor will provide you with customized education and what your option are before you need to make any choices. The primary service that most credit counseling agencies provide today are Debt Management Plans (DMP). With creditor approval a debtor submits a lump sum to their credit counselor as a key feature of a DMP.

Finding a Debt Consolidation Credit Counseling Agency

It is hard to find good debt consolidation credit counseling for several reasons today. Helpful places to start looking are the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCA) and the Association of Independent Consumer Credit Counseling Agencies (AICCCA). You can find recommendations to follow up on by doing your own due diligence. Once you have a short list of credit counselors in your area use Google to search for positive and negative reports on each agency. Make sure they have a clean record with the local Better Business Bureau as well.

Beware Aggressive Debt Consolidation Credit Counseling

There are more scam debt consolidation credit counseling agencies today than ever before. Protect yourself by doing your homework before meeting with any counselors. Check out the debt consolidation credit counseling agency online and with the Better Business Bureau. Look out for upfront payment demands

Credit Reports and Debt Consolidation Credit Counseling

You are entitled to a free copy of your credit report from the three major bureaus annually. Get a copy and review it before you take on any debt consolidation credit counseling. After completing counseling or a DMP check your credit report again for any notes or improvements. Some positive benefits to your credit report could be the removal of delinquent payments or “re-aging” of your accounts by creditors. Lenders may take credit counseling as a plus or a minus depending on their bias to words lending.

Do I Need Debt Consolidation Credit Counseling Before I File For Bankruptcy

There have been some important changes to understand with the adoption of the Bankruptcy act of 2005. You must complete federally approved credit counseling at least six months in advance of filing for bankruptcy. So even if bankruptcy is your preferred choice of action a good understanding of credit counseling is still needed.

Debt consolidation credit counseling can help you to take care of business. Do your research and find a great credit counselor. Don’t procrastinate get on with it immediately.

Henna Youngman
http://www.articlesbase.com/debt-consolidation-articles/the-secret-of-debt-consolidation-credit-counseling-124929.html

This video is from our series of educational resource videos designed to help you handle your finances and learn how to be a more well informed consumer. Christian Credit Counselors is a non-profit credit & debt management company that is dedicated to helping you get out of debt. Contact us on the web www.ibudget.org or call 1-800-557-1985 for a consultation.

Duration : 3 min 55 sec

Continue »

Technorati Tags: credit

Continue »

My boyfriend has roughly 18k in credit card debt. His credit score is 760 and we own a house together. We’ve contacted person to person lending organizations and contacted his credit card companies to ask them to lower the rates, which they wouldn’t because they said his balance was too high. He never misses a payment and pays extra when he can, but just can’t get a handle on it. Is there credit counseling or debt consolidations for people who owe over 30% of their income to debt but have great credit?

I would first investigate going to a non-profit debt counselor. You seem to be aware of your situation and don’t need to spend a fortune on worthless credit counselors who are more interested in selling you their services then actually helping you.

In your case, I would investigate a "Home Equity Line Of Credit" and use that to pay off your credit cards.

But here is a MAJOR piece of advice. If you do this, you MUST stop using credit, or at least become extremely aware of your spending.

Over the past 10 years consolidation and home equity loans were extremely popular. People got them and paid off cards, only to turn around and run up those "now empty" cards all over again. They are now twice the amount in debt, can’t catch up.

The result? Foreclosure. Bankruptcy. You see it all the time now, because people don’t know any better.

Your 760 credit score should get you a very good rate on a loan. But unless you plan to make a serious budget don’t consider it.