Credit Card Debt Forgiveness

Are you in credit card debt?  If so, you are not alone.  Credit card debt is on the rise, and it is growing.  Take a look at this CNBC story to see the rise.  Credit card debt forgiveness is also increasing.  But how?  Why?  Credit card debt that cannot be repaid is a problem.  If you can't pay it you have limited options.  One of them, however, is to ask for the debt to be forgiven.  Even if only part of it.

Credit card debt forgiveness is available directly through creditors.  Asking a credit card company to forgive your debt is a simple ask.  Getting the debt actually forgiven, though, is a different issue.  This recent US News article elaborates the varied aspects of asking your credit card debt to be eliminated or reduced.

If credit card debt forgiveness is offered, there is a catch.  The IRS.  Whatever credit card debt is eliminated is deemed income by the IRS.  You will receive a 1099 for whatever amount of credit card debt you can be reduce or eliminate.

Beware, too, of all debt consolidators.  They are often scams.  Credit card debt forgiveness  in this manner, as such,

Too Much Credit Card Debt?

Do you have too much credit card debt?  If so, you are not alone.  Credit card debt recently surpassed one trillion dollars for US consumers.  That's a lot!  An ABC news story depicts the deepening American debt load.  What, then, to do?

The simple solution is to pay credit card debt off.  Budget solutions suggest paying down higher interest rate creditors first.  That's well and good.  If you can afford it.  But if you have too much  debt you may not be able to afford it.  That's why you may be in debt in the first place.

Borrowing more money to pay off too much credit card debt is another way out.  But it really isn't a way out.  It is a just digging deeper into debt.  Whether you borrow against your home or take out new loans to pay off older ones, you may be only worsening the problem.

More income is another silver bullet for too much credit card debt.  But that, too, is a limited option.  Most Americans are on a fixed income.  Static income in not just for seniors.  Anyone earning a salary knows that.  Most people earn what the earn. 

Common bankruptcy myths are many.  But they shouldn't deter filing for bankruptcy for those in need.  Why?  Because they are not true.  Bankruptcy is a powerful financial tool for those unable to afford their debts.  Your debts can be eliminated or, at the least, reorganized.  Some of the most common misconceptions of bankruptcy are laid out in this post.

Common Bankruptcy Myth:

You Must Surrender Your AssetsNot true.  One of the most common bankruptcy myths is that you cannot protect your property.  Not so.  Bankruptcy law allows you to protect your assets.  Usually all of them.  Exemption laws provide protection of your property when you file bankruptcy and, as a result, you don't have to lose everything.  As I have counseled countless clients in Sacramento, you don't have to give up your possessions when you file bankruptcy.  Bankruptcy laws let you keep your home, cars, cash and retirement.  And the list goes on.  Every case is different, as are individual finances.  But the point is you don't have to surrender your property to gain debt relief through bankruptcy.

Common Bankruptcy Myth: Bankruptcy is Bad for Your Credit

It is.  But if your debt is worse your credit can improve by