The first thing we need to cover is what consumer credit counseling is.
In general, it is a process offering education to consumers about how to avoid incurring debts that cannot be repaid.
The process itself actually entails more than educations, and usually credit counseling often involves negotiating with creditors to establish settlements on existing debts.
The concept of consumer counseling was established in the 1980's as was proposed created as an alternative to bankruptcy for consumers who could not meet their monthly obligations.
In the early 1990's counseling began to get a bad rap in the U.
S.
At the time credit agencies were springing up all over the place, and some of them actually worked more for creditors rather than consumers.
This led to an antitrust lawsuit against the National Foundation for Credit Counseling, or NFCC, and the need for better legislation led to some of the associations that manage debt negotiations today.
It also led the FTC (Federal Trade Commission) to file lawsuits against several counseling agencies.
This bad reputation is what makes some people cringe at the thought of counseling today.
However the reputation is mostly undeserved.
In the world of counseling today, the various associations that regulate debt negotiations have led to better debt settlement agencies.
That is why we have reviewed 3 different agencies and will provide you with the pros and cons.
Consumer Counseling Programs: Consumer credit counseling programs provide a viable, and better, alternative to bankruptcy.
But, and yes there is a but, the FTC still recommends that you research the company who you use for credit counseling services.