As an introduction to a new weekly feature on the ClearDebt blog, entitled Monsters, here is our original debt monster commercial that featured on national TV in 2007.
Why choose the debt monster for ClearDebt?
During early customer market research of people in serious financial difficulty, it became apparent that there was a human tendency to assign the feeling of the burden of debt to an almost imaginary creature that followed you everywhere.
It was clear that people regularly used this mental imagery technique as a way of coping.
BOSTON — Debt companies pursuing consumers with a small army of collectors have swamped small claims courts with lawsuits and left a trail of abuses that, in 2009, led consumers to file more than 120,000 complaints with federal regulators.
“The Debt Machine: How the Collection Industry Hounds Consumers and Overwhelms Courts,” released today by the National Consumer Law Center, shows an urgent need for stronger and updated consumer protections.
“The recession has thrown millions of consumers into the jaws of a giant collection machine,” said Robert Hobbs, NCLC deputy director and report co-author. “Existing
These days, it’s tougher than ever to get a loan. In fact, what used to be viewed as a decent credit score is now barely up for consideration by money lenders. If you had a middle of the road credit score a few years ago, say in the 600 range, you could qualify for a decent interest rate. These days, to get a good rate, you’re often required to be in the 700-750 range. Keep in mind that your FICO only goes as high as 850.
If you want to get the loan you need, you’re going to try to get your credit score as high as possible to limit the amount of risk creditors associate with you. In or
Any type of a loan is a long term financial commitment that calls for adequate preparation to avoid future problems. It is an engagement that will have far reaching implications on your regular cash flow for the entire period you will be paying the loan. Poor planning can result to serious consequences like loss of property and a tainted credit report. This can seriously affect your future borrowing ability. On the other hand careful planning makes the whole process of repayment becomes very easy and helps you to enjoy the benefits offered by the product without any problems.
Before going for new auto loans, it is wise to clear all major outstanding debts if possible.
As many people who have filed for bankruptcy know, one of the main causes of filing bankruptcy is unmanageable credit card debt. Often, a bankruptcy filing comes after months of missed payments.
Recent data from the American Bankers Association (ABA) shows that, as a nation, we’re improving our on-time payment rate for our credit cards. In fact, we’ve improved in a variety of areas:
Bank card delinquencies reportedly fell to 3.88 percent of all accounts, down from 4.39 percent in the fourth quarter of 2009. The
