Figuring out the difference between a debt management service and a debt consolidation loan can be a little tricky. While both are designed to lower your payments and get you out of debt, each goes about this task in a different way. It is important to understand the differences between the two services so you can make an educated choice about which one would work best for you.

Debt Management Services

Debt management services offer many types of assistance and resources to help you lower your debt. Usually these services are non profit and they work with you to prepare a budget that will help you get out of debt and stay out of debt. They tend to be more fixated on educating the consumer on money management more than anything else. They often offer one to one counseling, finance classes, budgeting workshops, and bankruptcy counseling. Their goal is to get you back on financial track. Some debt management services also work with your creditors to lower your monthly payments, lower your interest rates, or even reduce or remove late fees and finance charges. Debt management companies don’t lend you the money to pay off your high interest credit cards, turning many payments into one.

Debt Consolidation Loan

A debt consolidation loan is a loan that is used to pay off higher interest loans like credit cards. It usually reduces your monthly payment and your interest rate, making it easier to pay off your debt faster. When you have more money to live on each month that can help to keep you out of further credit card debt. Often a consolidation loan requires that you own a house, so that the loan can be taken against equity in the home. There are risks involved with putting your house up for collateral on a debt consolidation loan. Should something unexpected happen to your income and you find that you can’t make your loan payment, you could lose your house. While this is an unlikely scenario, it is a possibility and should always be considered.

Eliminating debt is hard for people in a stressful financial situation and they need help. Debt consolidation or credit counseling business has helped millions of people get out of debt. It’s easy for you to get in debt, but it’s hard for you to get out. From this aspect, the debt consolidation business is a good way to help people. And it’s a good way to make money too. You could consider opening your own debt consolidation business.

As a debt consolidation business owner, your primary responsibility is to manage your customer’s debts. You should speak with their creditors and negotiate better rates. Before you become a debt consolidation owner, you should decide whether you’ll offer credit counseling along with debt consolidation services. If you like, provide credit counseling along with debt consolidation.

It’s a good way for you to learn the ins and outs of financial management in order to give your customers good advice. You should educate yourself on credit and money management. You could develop your skills by taking personal finance classes, buying books and attending workshops. It’s a good way for you to gain experience by properly managing your own money and credit.

It’s best to open a new debt consolidation business in an area with few competitors. If these agencies saturate a neighborhood, it’ll be hard to find business. You should study the local competition. It’s a good way to win the fierce competition among the industry. On the other hand, you should interview experienced debt consolidation business owners. Create a business plan and apply for a loan. Non-franchised debt consolidation businesses have low start-up costs. However, you’ll likely need a business loan to help pay for a location, advertisements and equipment. Before applying for a loan, hire a professional to write a business plan geared towards a debt consolidation business. Unfortunately, new businesses have a low success rate. Before opening your location, talk with other debt consolidation and credit counseling business owners. They may be willing to share start-up advice. To extract your advantages, you should consider the advantages of buying a franchise. It’s very attractive to purchase a debt consolidation franchise because the main company handles advertising. On the other hand, they provide supplies and training material. However, this route is costly. You’d better open your own location if you can’t afford the franchise fee.

One popular way people deal with medical debt is through consolidation. If you are struggling, medical debt consolidation is one way to attack it but it does have its downsides. Consolidation comes through either a financial institution loan or through the use of a debt management company. Like any other debt consolidation method, there are pluses and minuses – costs and benefits which you need to understand.

Consolidation Through A Loan

One type of medical consolidation is achieved through the use of a bank loan. The loan can be secured or have collateral behind it – in which that collateral could be your house or other assets you have. A secured loan is a much better loan than an unsecured loan. An unsecured loan is a loan in which the bank has no collateral in case you fail to repay. Therefore, a secured loan (refinance, home equity, loan against your 401k etc) usually carriers a much better interest rate. In both cases, your credit score is a huge factor. The lower your credit score, the more likely you are to obtain a higher interest rate. Taking out a loan is only advisable if the interest rate you can obtain on the loan is lower than your medical debt interest rate, it prevents your credit score from being degraded, and or of it prevents you from filing for bankruptcy.

A debt consolidation loan is not beneficial if it is at a higher interest rate than your current medical debt interest rate. However, it can be beneficial in lowering your monthly payments so they are more manageable. However, realize a loan usually results in your paying more principal in the long run because your payments are lower. This type of consolidation can be difficult to obtain although usually a secured loan is much easier to obtain then a non-secured loan.

Consolidation Through Debt Relief Company

Another way to consolidate your medical debt debt is by signing up with a Credit Counseling or Debt Relief Company. These companies can negotiate with your creditors (hospital, doctor’s office, or collection agency) to potentially settle for a lower amount and set you up with reasonable payment plans or payment plan you can afford. If you are the type of person that feels better with assistance then sign up for a “Medical Debt Consultation” at the top to see if you qualify. However, you can also contact your creditors yourself and negotiate yourself (interest rates and payment plan). Make sure when you pursue assistance, that you ensure your credit score will not be negatively affected. You want to reduce your interest rate (if any) and balance but with reporting to the credit bureau as “paid in full” or “paid as agreed” instead of “settled.” In other words, talk to your credit counseling or debt management company that you want options that don’t require your credit being degraded any further.

In summary, debt consolidation, when it matches your needs, can be a viable option for medical debt. Always compare your interest rate with a bank loan, and if you are unable to obtain a loan work with a credit counselor or debt management company. Always consider the consequences and benefits no matter what you do. Moreover, ask questions in whatever consolidation method you select.