When a debtor constantly fails to pay his debt installments, creditors usually prefer to settle the debt or forgive some amount of the debt that one may owe instead of losing all the money owed if the debtor files for bankruptcy. Debt settlement is the process of negotiation carried among the borrower and the lender to lessen the amount of loan. Debt settlement is usually considered a solution to unpaid debt payments of over a couple of months or an alternative to bankruptcy.
Usually, the debt settlement procedure comprises of discussions between the organizations that specialize in debt settlement on part of the borrower and the lender to lessen the total loan to a smaller quantity. Mostly, the lender and borrower decide on a certain percentage of the overall unpaid loan to be forfeited by the lender. But, debt settlement cannot be carried out for all kinds of loans. Uncollateralized loans that are not pledged by real assets like vehicle or a house may not be forfeited.
Mostly, debt settlement is carried out by institutions that specialize in debt settlement or legal advisors who help lenders in negotiating debt settlement – click here for details. However, in return for their services, these debt settlement companies usually charge big service fees in the form of a percentage of the total debt owed, or a percentage of the debt amount forgiven along with initial sign-up fee and monthly service charges.
Although debt settlement appears to be the best lawful answer available to past due installments, it is not free from drawbacks. Once a loan is forfeited, the borrower may not be able to obtain unsecured loan like credit card loan or medical treatment installments for a long time. Moreover, even if the debt settlement negotiations are successful, credit reports usually show some evidence of debt settlement hence lowering credit rating of the debtor. On the other hand, if the lender promises beforehand to give a ‘paid in full’ letter, debt settlement may not influence the debt score. Since debt settlement companies usually take money on a monthly basis and put the money in a trust account until a lump sum payment could be made to the creditor, the settlement process may take a few years. During this process the interest and fines may keep on accumulating and the installments may get bigger and bigger. The lenders may also seek professional help to claim the owed money or may prosecute the borrower so as to regain the advanced loan.
Due to the high service fee of debt settlement companies and the extended settlement period, the withdrawal charge of debt settlement companies is fairly high. After a few years of making payments to the settlement companies, clients may still be in the same position as before since most of the amount saved goes to the settlement companies as service fee.