“Dear Damon,

I have Lots of valid credit card debt.

Is there a safe, do it yourself way to reduce the percentages on credit cards? Is calling and asking for reduced APRs doable…..do you need a sob story?

Laurie”

The Answer:

Hello Laurie,

That depends on your definition of safe.

You can certainly call your creditors and yes, give them the best story you can come up with and ask for help. The unfortunate reality is that you will not typically find much success doing this if you are current on payments.

The downside and I want to caution you, if you do this and you still have credit available, be prepared for them to possibly cut your credit limit. So you call them for help, and they can likely just cut off your lifeline if you have been depending on the cards to make ends meet while you figured out a plan.

You can contact a consumer credit counseling program and ask them to let you know what your payment would be and what interest rates they have pre negotiated with your creditors.

Or if you wanted to do it on your own, first call and ask, and if you have no success, you will typically have to be behind by a payment or two and then they may offer you a lower rate as part of their internal hardship programs that they don’t offer to those who are currently paying.

There is a risk to doing this as you are breaching the agreement by not making a payment, and if your rate is at 20% currently, they may raise it to the default rate and then decide not to lower it for you.

So is there a risk? Yes. Does it suck that they have policy’s in place and tend to not work with consumers that are trying to get out in front and solve problems before they fall behind? Yes. But in the words of the late, great Jim Rohn, “It’s just the way it is”

So now that we know the “way it is” we have to get a better understanding of your situation and create a plan that works with the way things are, because we can’t change the “way it is.”

Damon is a talented independent debt coach that provides in-depth assistance and consultations for people struggling with debt. If you want a personal debt coach to help you through a difficult situation or want assistance to find secret discounts offered by debt settlement companies I think Damon Day is an excellent person to contact for advice and assistance. He can be reached directly at DamonDay.com

If you have a debt related question you’d like to ask, just use the online form.

Other Related Articles to Read

• 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd
• How Can I Lower My Capital One Credit Card Interest Rate? – Kelly
• How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard
• Converting 8.9% Variable Credit Card to 3.4% Variable Equity is Bad Deal. George
• How to Get All the Cheap Credit You Want
• I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara
• We Want to Get Our Interest Rates Lowered on Two Credit Cards. – Dale
• Can I Call My Credit Card Companies and Ask Them to Lower My Balance? – Yianni
• Bank of America is Charging Me 27% on My Credit Card. – Melinda
• Where Can I Go to Payoff My Credit Card With a Cheap Loan? – Sarah

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie

“Dear Steve,

I have a few credit cards with high interest rates..

What can i do to lower the interest rates?

Richard”

The Answer:

Dear Richard,

If you are not having problems making payments your two logical options are to:

1. Click here for credit counseling information.
2. Visit LendingClub.com and consolidate your current dent into a lower interest rate loan.

Steve

Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.

Big Hug!

@GetOutOfDebtGuy

If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.

Other Related Articles to Read

• Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie
• 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd
• I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara
• We Want to Get Our Interest Rates Lowered on Two Credit Cards. – Dale
• Can I Call My Credit Card Companies and Ask Them to Lower My Balance? – Yianni

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard

“Dear Steve,

I am 58 years old, married with one grown child (married and out of the household). I am employed and my wife is as well. I have a very stable position that compensates me approx. $135,000 year and I also receive a retirement annuity in the amount of $15,000/year. My wife works part time at an annual income of approx. $7,500. I own a home appraised at $350,000 and have a 1st mortgage balance of $201k (monthly payment $1293…I pay my own real estate tax and insurance) and a 2nd home equity of $105k (monthly payment $410).

I currently have approx. $105k in credit card debt. I manage all accounts with none in arrears but have experienced ever escalating interest percentages and minimum payment that make balance reductions difficult. I have tried to negotiate better terms with the card companies with no success. I have recently stopped using all cards completely but I want to be rid of these debts in 5 years which is an unrealistic goal if the interest rates cannot be lowered. I am not considering bankruptcy but have considered seeing if a debt consolidator can achieve better rates and propose a legitimate 5 year plan that is not a deception (Cambridge is one I have looked into). Thoughts?

Richard”

The Answer:

Dear Richard,

If you can afford your minimum payments on your cards and want to get out of debt in five years then the Cambridge Credit Counseling approach is perfectly reasonable. I happen to like the folks at Cambridge and they are the people I send readers to for credit counseling help.

Did they give you a payment estimate that was affordable and doable for you on their program?

Just remember that there is no gain without a bit of pain. The cards you include in the debt management program will be closed and that might impact your credit, in that they are no longer active and being reported as open credit.

Please post your responses and follow-up messages to me on this in the comments section below.

Big Hug!

@GetOutOfDebtGuy

If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.

Other Related Articles to Read

• Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie
• How Can I Lower My Capital One Credit Card Interest Rate? – Kelly
• How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard
• Converting 8.9% Variable Credit Card to 3.4% Variable Equity is Bad Deal. George
• How to Get All the Cheap Credit You Want
• I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara
• We Want to Get Our Interest Rates Lowered on Two Credit Cards. – Dale
• Can I Call My Credit Card Companies and Ask Them to Lower My Balance? – Yianni
• Bank of America is Charging Me 27% on My Credit Card. – Melinda
• Where Can I Go to Payoff My Credit Card With a Cheap Loan? – Sarah

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd

Barbara

“Dear Steve,

What can I say. With the ecomony the way it is it seems that prices for everything continues to rise but my paycheck doesn’t. I am grateful to have a job but the interest rates on my cards are making it extremely difficult to balance my family needs such as, groceries, car and just day to day life. I am not late on any of my cards nor have I defaulted on any loans. But each month it gets harder and harder to meet the minimum payments

I have contacted the credit card companies requesting a review to lower my interest rates but they tell me there is nothing they can do. What can I do next, to get them to lower the interest rates?

Thank you.

Barbara”

The Answer:

Dear Barbara,

What we have here is a situation that can easily tip out of balance. Creditors generally do not offer any sort of assistance until you demonstrate you are behind on your payments.

If you are not behind and struggling to make just the minimum payments, it is unlikely that an intervention like a credit counseling program is going to provide much relief. While it may reduce the interest rates on the cards, it will not lower the monthly payments very much. I know, it sounds ironic but that’s the way it is.

If you have not taken a look at your income and outgo, this would be a good time to do that. You can find the process to develop a spending plan for you beginning on page 81 of my free e-book “Eliminate Your Debt Like a Pro.”

If you can review your financial obligations and find a way to reduce your costs, this may give you some breathing room. And in combination with enrollment in a credit counseling or debt management program, that might be all that you need to do to pull back from the cliff.

There is nothing you can say or do to force your creditors to reduce your rates if they don’t want to. Think about it like this, your financial situation is on fire, the creditors are pouring gas on the fire by not lowering your rates. Logic would tell everyone that pouring gas on the fire is a bad thing. But the creditor won’t stop pouring the gas on your fire unless someone up the corporate food chain creates a corporate policy to stop doing it. And if the creditor is making a profit from pouring on the gas, they won’t pour less, they’ll pour more. The key goal here, from the creditor point of view, is not to put out the first, it is to maximize the immediate profit.

Big Hug!

@GetOutOfDebtGuy

Other Related Articles to Read

• We Are Confused And Not Sure What to Do to Get Out of Debt. – Penelope
• I Supported Someone for Three Years That Completely Drained Me. – Jessica
• Current On Our Bills But Want to Get Credit Relief Settlement Help. – Michael
• Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie
• How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard
• Debt Free! And You Can Be Too
• 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd
• We Can Make the Minimum Payments But Can’t Get Ahead. – Andy
• How Do I Get the Credit Card Company to Lower My Payment to What I Want? – Sally
• My Wife and I Are Both Maxed Out on Credit Cards. Where Can We Go? – Alvaro

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara

“Dear Steve,

We owe about $8300 on two credit cards and I want to get the interest rates lowered so I can get them paid off sooner. I do have other debts but do not want them on this.

What group is the best to help on this without hurting us more and are not rip off artists so to speak?

Dale”

The Answer:

Dear Dale,

The first step would be to explore credit counseling. The credit counseling link will take you to more information and a group that has impressed me. If you don’t like them for any reason then let me know. Don’t make any move or sign up for anything unless you are confident it can help achieve the goal you are looking for.

Credit counseling is not a perfect solution. Cards included in the debt management program will be closed and that does have some impact. But there is no solution that can intervene without some consequences.

You could always consider a fixed rate debt consolidation loan if your credit is good. You’d have to apply for the debt consolidation loan first to see what the interest rate would be. However, if you go with the debt management approach the credit counseling group can tell you in advance, with some certainty, what the rates would be in the program for your creditors.

Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question. I’m very interested in how this works out for you.

Big Hug!

@GetOutOfDebtGuy

If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.

Other Related Articles to Read

• Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie
• How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard
• 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd
• I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara
• Can I Call My Credit Card Companies and Ask Them to Lower My Balance? – Yianni

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: We Want to Get Our Interest Rates Lowered on Two Credit Cards. – Dale

“Dear Steve,

Can I call a credit card company and ask them to lower the amount and I can pay that in full. So if I owe 2800 for one card can I tell them I can afford to pay 2200 right now to pay it all off. Maybe they have a hidden 10% option? I am thinking that you have to go to be at a stage of collections to make a deal??

Yianni”

I asked my friend Mike Killian to answer your question for you. I wanted to make sure you got an answer as quickly as possible as I’m a bit backed up at the moment. I’ll be watching the comments on this question and be around to help if you need me.

Big Hug!

@GetOutOfDebtGuy

Dear Yianni,

You can always call a company and ask for a lower interest rate. You can also always call for a lower balance. This is known as Debt Negotiation. There are companies out there who do debt negotiation as a business.

But you should know a couple things about debt negotiation before you try it. For example a professional debt negotiator does not do anything that you cannot do yourself. They just often do it a little better because they have had more experience.

But you should also know that some companies will not negotiate and rarely will they negotiate unless they think that is the best deal they can make. Consider if you loaned money out. Would you take less unless you thought that was the best deal you could make? One of the few ways do make it look like it is the best deal for the company, is not pay them for a few months. But understand if you do this, your credit and credit score will take a nosedive.

Okay so now you have not paid a company for a few months and they are ready to negotiate. Consider this – any debt forgiven above the amount of $600 will be considered taxable income by the IRS as added income. Additionally, recent evidence is tending toward a good possibility that the debt could come back and haunt you as unpaid. This latter fact does not happen often but can happen.

So therefore to answer your questions, yes it can be done but is it a wise thing to do? This is what you must answer.

Please update us on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question and answer. We are all very interested in how this works out for you.

Sincerely,

Mike

If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. We are happy to help you totally for free.

Source

Other Related Articles to Read

• Do I Need a Really Good Sob Story to Get My Creditors to Lower My Interest Rates? – Laurie
• How Can I Lower My Credit Card Interest Rates? – Richard
• 58 Years Old, Good Job, Want Out of Debt in Five Years. What Should I Do? – Ricahrd
• The Oliver Law Group, Another Law Firm Pitching 18% Fee for Debt Settlement. But This Time With a Loan.
• I’m Making My Minimum Payments But It’s Getting Tough. – Barbara
• We Want to Get Our Interest Rates Lowered on Two Credit Cards. – Dale
• Sorry We Went With Debt Management – Amber

Read the full article at GetOutOfDebt.org, click here: Can I Call My Credit Card Companies and Ask Them to Lower My Balance? – Yianni