What To Do About Debt Consolidation Toronto Or Bankruptcy Toronto

| Friday, April 22, 2011
By Adriana Noton


In these days of soaring household debt, the signs of an out of control financial situation have never been clearer. Those danger signs might be saying that it is time to obtain credit counseling. Counseling can provide options such as consumer proposals, debt consolidation Toronto or even declaring Bankruptcy Toronto.

Using a credit card to make common purchases such as food or household supplies or clothing may be a sign of trouble. So too might be making only the minimum payment on a large outstanding credit card debt. And if collection agencies are calling at all hours with harassing messages, it can definitely be a sign that help is needed.

Credit counseling, debt consolidation or bankruptcy should probably be considered if one or more of these danger signs is apparent. Happily, there are many services, individuals and agencies around who can help untangle the financial mess.

Unsecured debts, such as personal loans or credit card balances, can be consolidated into a single amount by a private lender or any bank. If applied for before too many payments are missed and credit ratings compromised, they can result in a debtor having a single manageable payment to make each month rather than too many bills that they simply cannot pay.

A credit counselor will be able to decide whether it is too late for debt consolidation and time for another approach such as consumer proposals or declaring bankruptcy.

If the consumer proposal option is chosen, a credit counselor will approach the creditors and try to negotiate better rates of repayment on behalf of the consumer. They will file the necessary documents and as a result more favorable interest rates or lowered minimum payments may result. Most creditors are willing to accept consumer proposals because it is preferable to risking the complete write off of the debt that will result if the debtor goes bankrupt.

Bankruptcy is a serious legal undertaking and last step when there is no way the creditor can make even minimum payments on their repayment load. The creditor must use the services of a Trustee who will supervise the bankruptcy terms and file the necessary documents with the government. Debtors may be required to attend credit counseling sessions but their wages will not be garnished and harassing collection tactics will cease. Debtors are also allowed to keep most of their possessions though all credit must be put on the table and assets divided between creditors. After about nine months, if there are no problems, the bankruptcy is discharged.

It can take a lot longer however, to rebuild a good credit rating after a bankruptcy. So whatever option is decided upon, it should be chosen after careful consideration and with the guidance of a qualified credit counselor or financial advisor. These kinds of experts can be found online, in the Yellow Pages or just by asking around. Problem debt is a common dilemma and many people have had to resort to debt consolidation Toronto and Bankruptcy Toronto, consumer proposals or bankruptcy at some point in their lives. It is almost never too late to address the problem. But better sooner rather than later.




About the Author:



0 comments:

Post a Comment