topic Re: Credit card consalidation in Credit Cards

Credit card consalidation

Carloscda40 — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 22:41:35 GMT

All those commericals talking about consalidation and how after a yr they're credit is so good they're out of debt, taking trips etc.

Is that all fluff and doesn't that affect your credit rating?

Or it really doesn't matter since you're already in debt?

Re: Credit card consalidation

unsungivy — Thu, 04 Jul 2024 23:05:08 GMT

@Carloscda40 wrote:
All those commericals talking about consalidation and how after a yr they're credit is so good they're out of debt, taking trips etc.

Is that all fluff and doesn't that affect your credit rating?

Or it really doesn't matter since you're already in debt?

It does affect your rating. Firstly, that's definitely a new hard pull to get a consolidation loan.

But, your CCs would no longer show as maxed out, and that will HELP your rating.

Aside from that, consolidation really is only going to be more beneficial to someone who can't juggle like you'd need to to use 0% balance transfer offers on various cards etc. It's a streamlined approach that help people who get overwhelmed trying to keep track of things (which is likely why they're in that situation where they'd need it in the first place).

I have a friend I tried to help... got her set up with 0% cards, etc... but it was still too confusing to her (and her husband couldn't grasp the idea of not filling a 15k card immediately within 3 months), and when the year or so of 0% was up, she was in a worse hole. But having multiple large consolidation loans is apparently something she understands and can keep on top of 🙄

Re: Credit card consalidation

JoeRockhead — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 12:30:08 GMT

I might be wrong here but, if you're talking about the commercials promising to help by letting you in on a "big secret that the credit card companies don't want you to know about" then that's not debt consolidation... that's what they refer to as "debt relief"

"Debt relief" programs will absolutely wreck your credit. Lots of posts here debunking this sham.

A true debt consolidation loan can be beneficial when used properly along with continued restraint in the use of ones credit cards.

One should not be confused with the other,

Re: Credit card consalidation

Kforce — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 00:04:20 GMT

@JoeRockhead wrote:
I might be wrong here but, if you're talking about the commercials promising to help by letting you in on a "big secret that the credit card companies don't want you to know about" then that's not debt consolidation... that's what they refer to as "debt relief"

"Debt relief" programs will absolutely wreck your credit score. Lots of posts here debunking this sham.

A true debt consolidation loan can be beneficial when used properly along with continued restraint in the use of ones credit cards.

One should not be confused with the other,

^^^ This

Re: Credit card consalidation

FlaDude — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 15:34:23 GMT

Moving your credit card debt to lower interest loans can help both your score and your finances, assuming you have the financial discipline to not run the card balances back up. Unless your debt is relatively small, paying it all off in a year is probably not realistic. I had 75k in card debt. Using a combination of 3 lower interest rate (6-8%) loans and 0% BTs I got mine paid off in a bit over 4 years.

Re: Credit card consalidation

SouthJamaica — Fri, 05 Jul 2024 18:13:36 GMT

@Carloscda40 wrote:
All those commericals talking about consalidation and how after a yr they're credit is so good they're out of debt, taking trips etc.

Is that all fluff and doesn't that affect your credit rating?

Or it really doesn't matter since you're already in debt?

I don't know what commercials you're talking about, but commercials are not there to be helpful to you, they're there to help the advertiser make money off of you.

Re: Credit card consalidation

Carloscda40 — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 00:02:14 GMT

Couldn't think of the name when I made this post but National Debt Relief is what I was inquering about.

Re: Credit card consalidation

FlaDude — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 03:09:56 GMT

@Carloscda40 wrote:
Couldn't think of the name when I made this post but National Debt Relief is what I was inquering about.

So they don't make consolidation loans, they are the kind of company @JoeRockhead mentioned in his post. They tell you to stop making all payments, after you are way behind they negotiate reduced payoff amounts. Since this puts late payments, charge offs, etc. onto your credit report, it trashes you scores. These negatives will stay on your reports for 7 years. Even after that when your scores improve again, the lenders who you did not fully pay may refuse to extend credit or issue cards to you, some of them have long memories.

These debt relief companies also charge high fees and really don't do anything you couldn't do yourself. You can stop making payments for 6 months to a year and then negotiate lower payoffs on your own if you want to.

Re: Credit card consalidation

markbeiser — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 03:34:54 GMT

@Carloscda40 wrote:
Couldn't think of the name when I made this post but National Debt Relief is what I was inquering about.

Why pay someone else to wreck your credit when you can do it yourself for free?🤔

Re: Credit card consalidation

markbeiser — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 03:38:35 GMT

@unsungivy wrote:
I have a friend I tried to help... got her set up with 0% cards, etc... but it was still too confusing to her (and her husband couldn't grasp the idea of not filling a 15k card immediately within 3 months), and when the year or so of 0% was up, she was in a worse hole. But having multiple large consolidation loans is apparently something she understands and can keep on top of 🙄

Some people just should not have credit cards, and need them some Dave Ramsey.

Re: Credit card consalidation

unsungivy — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 12:11:27 GMT

@markbeiser wrote:
@unsungivy wrote:
I have a friend I tried to help... got her set up with 0% cards, etc... but it was still too confusing to her (and her husband couldn't grasp the idea of not filling a 15k card immediately within 3 months), and when the year or so of 0% was up, she was in a worse hole. But having multiple large consolidation loans is apparently something she understands and can keep on top of 🙄
Some people just should not have credit cards, and need them some Dave Ramsey.

There's no helping someone who is dragged down by a spouse that considers bankruptcy a win. (I mean, he "pulled one over" on "The Man", right?) Why should he NOT run up a ton of debt via filling new CCs obtained for balance transfers, and have 47 micro loans at a time? (No exaggeration). He can just do bankruptcy a second time and get another "win"!

She had, and has, a spreadsheet that I consulted on with her weekly. The problem was the things her husband would do behind her back, not tell her about (like 47 micro loans was where his "extra" Ubering money etc was going which he was supposed to use for his student loans, which was the agreement they had when he started using "them" time to Uber), and then blame mental health for why he couldn't not be a financial moron (while thinking himself mentally and morally superior to everyone else.)

Re: Credit card consalidation

SouthJamaica — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 15:19:33 GMT

@Carloscda40 wrote:
Couldn't think of the name when I made this post but National Debt Relief is what I was inquering about.

I think you should stay away from stuff like that. I have no experience with it, but I'm pretty sure they are totally bad for your credit.

Re: Credit card consalidation

Anonymous — Sat, 06 Jul 2024 16:48:39 GMT

"Credit card companies hate this one trick.."