Question: What happens if you get out of a debt management program?
I’m a 22 year old full time college student with a part time job.
About three months ago I joined a debt management program because I thought it would be easier for me to manage my credit card bills that way.
However now after joining, I’m realizing that I’m unable to keep up with the payments I’m making to them. It’s like after my other bills and this payment are taken out every month, I hardly have any money left and I think I’ve put myself in a bind.
If I leave the program now will this mess up my credit, will it make it harder for me to join a debt management program in the future, will my creditors be resistant to work things out with me in the future because of this?
I simply just can’t afford to be in the program now.
{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }
If you get off of a DMP they stop paying the creditors. Unless you make specific arrangements with each creditor and pay them you will now become past due on your accounts again. Because of this the interest and late payments will start to be added again, and they will make collection calls to you.
You can always get back on a DMP, unless the creditors have sued you in court. Also if the creditor sold your account to a collection agency, these agencies may or may not participate in the program.
Since you say you “hardly” have any money left after your bills and this payment, it might be good to just tough it out. One thing you may want to do is take a very hard look at your budget. Determine what is essential and what is optional to see if you can free up some money. If you do a lot in entertainment(such as going to movies or eating out) you may have to stop those for a while.
One last option is to consider bankruptcy. It will effect your credit for a while, but if you practice good credit managment after the bankruptcy it can help.
Speaking as a nationally known credit score and lending expert (book, radio shows, newspaper columns, etc.)…
I get lots of crap-credit clients every week. Most over-spent when they were your age. Then they started reaching for unusual solutions instead of just working hard to pay what they borrowed. Debt management services, bankruptcy, just stopping paying monethly. Really all bad solutions.
If you leave the program, chances are the credit cards will rise to the default interest rate. This is 24.99% to 34.99% depending on the state you live in.
Fulfill your obligations, whatever you do. If you don’t, you’ll be one of those people asking me how to help rebuild your credit because “I was young and stupid”. I hear that all the time.
You spent the money. Now you figure out how to pay it back. It is an excellent lesson in responsibility and you’ll thank me for this years down the road, even if it is painful to read it now.