Credit counseling is generally the best known of the debt relief options, having been around since the early 1990’s. The service was originally provided to consumers by non–profit organizations like The National Foundation for Credit Counseling and its affiliates, Consumer Credit Counseling Services. While not advertised as such, the organizations were designed and backed by the credit card companies to act as a mediator between consumers and credit card companies. The counseling organizations would then negotiate lower interest rates and monthly payment plans for consumers that had fallen behind on their payments to keep them on track with payments instead of walking away from their debts. The services were widely advertised and offered in cities across the country.

A rapidly rising level of consumer debt in the late 90’s brought the arrival of hundreds of opportunistic new companies in to the area of credit counseling to provide similar services on a “for-profit” basis. Many of the new companies positioned themselves as credit counselors and alluded to being non-profit organizations while operating very much like any bottom line oriented corporation. To broaden their offerings with higher profit margin services, many of the firms began offering services that weren’t considered to be credit counseling at all. Additional services included referral agreements with bankruptcy attorneys, mortgage brokers, and real estate agents which may or may not have been disclosed to the consumers using their services.

Credit counseling has evolved considerably since its inception over the last ten years due to the companies that now populate the category. Still, it offers fewer benefits to the consumer than the newer, more aggressive option of debt settlement which has reduced its popularity considerably. In fact, current statistics show that 75% of consumers that enroll in credit counseling drop out before completing the program. To see how credit counseling and debt settlement compare in relation to your personal debt situation, call Debt Settle, Inc. at (866) 985 7388. Starting on the path toward financial freedom is as simple as making that phone call.