Trying to consolidate debts can be a real pain. Working alone with credit companies is sometimes not nearly as effective as you want it to be and the outcome usually leaves me feeling disheartened.
After I had my baby, I was and still am out of work. My boy is one now and I've been out of work for over a year. Several of my credit cards were remaining unpaid, due to lack of funds, and I was panicking.
I was referred to Amerix debt counselling by FCNB credit card services. One phone call later, I felt as if a huge weight had been lifted off my chest. Now I have 5 old charges that were taking forever to pay off, listed with Amerix.
This is the deal:
First you call Amerix and answer a series of questions regarding your finances (food budget, gas budget) per month. Then you itemize your creditors and tell Amerix how much you pay your creditors per month.
What ultimately happens is that you send one monthly payment to Amerix, who then in turn pays each of your creditors every month. You continue to receive statements from your creditors, so you can actually see the payments being applied.
After three months of consecutive payments to Amerix, most of your creditors will waive any late fees or overlimit fees, and your interest rate should go down to the current rate (which right now I think is 17.9% or something like that). Regardless, it still beats 29.9% or 24.9%. I have only been enrolled in the program for three months, so I still haven't seen the fee reductions or omissions yet, but I should this statement.
This is all for FREE! Amerix is a non profit organization that started as a college project in Seattle, but is now a company that can assist you with credit problems from over 50,000 creditors. You can access your account online at any time to see your current billing summary. You can add creditors at any time either on line or via telephone.
This company will not accept personal checks for payment , so you have to make payments with a money order or through western Union. I think they also take certified checks or bank checks.
There is a voluntary contribution that Amerix asks about quickly on your first phone conversation. If you say yes, they add $5.00 per month, per creditor to your monthly payment. I just told them that I couldn't afford it, and now I use the extra money to pay down the debts listed with them. You also get to pick your payment due date-the start, middle or end of the month.
I haven't received any harrassing phone calls from creditors, my payments are always processed on time, all my accounts are being paid and my payments are lower with each individual creditor. It's also super convenient to make one payment every month instead of six or seven.
(note: ALL credit cards are invalid after inclusion in the Amerix program-so you can't use them anymore)
It has definitely eased a burden, and I think I am happier for it.
Blessed Be--Katherine

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