Introduction

Have you gotten yourself into credit card debt? If so, you’re not alone. More than half of Americans have credit card debt and owe an average of $5,700, according to Experian.

The good news is that there are ways to negotiate with your creditor to get out of this mountain of debt.

You may be able to decrease the interest rate on your cards or work out a settlement agreement with the company that issued them to pay them off more quickly. Here are some tips for negotiating successfully with your creditor:

You should negotiate your credit card debt if it’s become unmanageable

If your credit card debt has grown out of control, it’s time to negotiate. Here are some things that may indicate this:

You have trouble making payments on time or paying the minimum amount due.

The interest rate charged is too high.

The balance is too high compared to what you can pay off each month.

How much credit card debt is too much?

It varies with every individual case. The average credit card debt is around 5500$. So in order to answer the question, “How much credit card debt is too much” we have to look at an individual’s financial situation, his job, and his/her expenses. Even if the debt is 10000$, it may be too much for someone while it may be easy to pay off for someone.

Bargaining a lower interest rate with your credit card issuer is possible

You’re not alone. Many people are stuck with high-rate credit card debt that they can’t pay off, and they’re looking for a way out.

Not all hope is lost! Even though credit card debt companies aren’t required to lower interest rates, they sometimes will if you ask nicely. Some even have programs designed specifically for people struggling with their finances.

If you’ve been having trouble making payments on your credit cards because of an unexpected life event like losing your job or being diagnosed with cancer, the company would likely be willing to negotiate a lower rate just so that you’ll stop defaulting on your account and ruining their bottom line.

One catch: You’ll want to negotiate this before things get too bad and fall through the cracks entirely! If there’s still time for them to recover from losing money due to late payments or other issues related directly to paying down debt, then there might be hope.

You may be able to negotiate a settlement with your creditor

Creditors don’t want to take you to court, so they may be willing to accept less than what you owe in exchange for peace of mind.

Ask for a settlement offer from your creditors, and see if they’ll accept a lump sum or payment plan instead.

It’s also possible that they’ll agree to forgiveness which means they will cancel the remaining balance on your card after paying off part of it, but this decision is up to them alone and can’t be negotiated by you.

Keeping good records can help you negotiate successfully

If you can show a record of all your payments and missed payments, it will be easier for the debt collector to see that you have been making an effort to pay off your debt.

Please keep a record of every payment from your credit card debt company, including any interest or fees they charge you.

If you have made any payments on time, keep track of those as well. It’s also helpful if you can show them how much money has been taken out of each paycheck since starting that job (or since getting married or having kids).

If there is anything else they want to know about how much money has been coming into our household budget over the last few years (and hopefully there won’t be), make sure they get it!

Ask to speak to someone in the credit card company’s

You may be able to get help by speaking with a representative who has more power than an average customer service agent and is willing to help you make a deal on your debt.

Be polite but firm. Your goal should be to try and negotiate your way into an affordable monthly payment plan that works for you. As long as possible for both parties, this typically means lowering the interest rate or increasing the time until it’s paid off entirely.

If they baulk at those suggestions, let them know that if they don’t lower your payments, you’ll need some time before making any further payments after that initial one so that you can find some stability again financially (and possibly even file for bankruptcy).

It’ll work best if it seems reasonable: “I’d like these new lower payments so that I can afford them without having my house foreclosed on.” Or another example is, “I’m working toward getting out of this debt as soon as possible.”

Sell some things online and use the money to pay off part of what you owe

If you want to pay off your credit card debt, there are plenty of ways to do it. Selling things online is one of the easiest and most lucrative.

If you have any spare time, it’s worth looking around and seeing what items you could sell for cash.

Buy some storage bins or a garage sale sign, hit up some local Facebook groups, and put out an offer for whatever you can find in the back of your closet that no one is currently using.

It might take some time before someone bites (especially if they have no idea what they are buying), but with enough patience and persistence, it could be well worth the effort! Here are just a few examples:

• Books – If yours aren’t books from college (nobody wants them), try selling them on Amazon or eBay as used versions; people love getting books for cheap!
• Clothing – If clothes in good condition (no stains) are lying around gathering dust somewhere in your house, then get rid of them now! You’ll feel lighter when cleaning out those drawers–and richer too once those sales roll through.
• Electronics – If there’s anything electronic that’s been collecting dust since high school graduation day (or maybe even longer!), then now it will be a great time to take advantage of all those forgotten gadgets by selling them online, so others can enjoy their use instead.”

Make sure you don’t spend more than you take in

The best way to avoid a debt cycle is to ensure you don’t spend more than you earn. It’s a simple concept but cannot be easy to implement.

If your income isn’t enough to cover your expenses, you need to consider increasing your income or cutting back on spending.

If you’ve already gotten into debt and are trying to get out of it, then the first thing that needs to happen is that you pay off all of your credit card bills in full each month and don’t borrow any more money from other sources until those debts are paid off.

This will ensure that every dollar of income goes toward paying down the debt instead of just being added to it.

Additionally, once those credit cards are paid off (or as close as possible), stop using them altogether until they’re completely paid off again. This means no cash advances and no new balances whatsoever.

Of course, there will always be unplanned expenses along with unexpected good fortune (such as winning lottery tickets). Still, these should not cause any problems if they weren’t planned for in advance since they weren’t budgeted for in any way, shape or form beforehand either way.

This way, you should not incur financial loss either now or later on down this road when things like medical emergencies come up unexpectedly simply because we haven’t been prepared ahead of time, financially speaking.

Credit card debt forgiveness

It’s very unlikely that your credit card debt will be forgiven. The bank may forgive a part of it but forgiveness of full credit card debt is highly unlikely.

Conclusion

If you’re struggling with credit card debt, don’t be ashamed or afraid to talk to your creditor about it. A simple phone call can open the door to a better deal and help you get back on track with your finances.

Credit card debt is only one way to get into financial trouble. The same piece of advice can be applied if you’re struggling with medical bills, student loans or any other unplanned expense.

Talk to your creditors about lower rates or payment plans that work for you and find out what options are available.