Mismanagement Of Personal Finances And Its Impact on Naval career

[HMC-FMF-PJ]

Aim higher than that and try to get some compromise and cooperation. Shoot for the stars and try to negotiate the best deal possible.

Review your bills and recent account statements so you are familiar with the specifics before you call.

Do not just wing it and fly blind. Build a basic outline/script of what you are going to say before you call. Figure out some terms and conditions that would benefit you and develop a list of recommended changes.

Then call the company. Determine if you need to speak to a specific office or if the general customer representative will suffice. Tell them you are having trouble but that you want to be responsible and do the right thing. Ask what they can do to help you pay your bill. Let them show their cards first and try to negotiate an even better deal.

Lower the finance/interest rate being charged
Adjust minimum payment required
Cancel a fee or forgive a finance charge
Rework payment schedule (adjust due date, payment cycle, respite, delay, etc)
Discount or additional rate reduction for automatic payment or payrole allotment
Whatever you can get that benefits your circumstances and lowers your costs

[dvldocjoe]

If you neogotiate smaller payments with these companies, please make sure to get your new payment amounts submitted to you IN WRITING clarifying all terms. As Clancy says "If it wasn't written down, it never happened."

Make sure you read all of the fine print associated with these terms and they are what you agreed to before you sign the dotted line.

[HMC-FMF-PJ]

Another option is to have a parent or other person call the company to negotiate a settlement. Something along the lines of:

I know my son has an outstanding debt with you that he has not paid off and I want to take care of it. I am willing to make a lump sum payment to clear his bill but I am only willing to spend $$$$$$ (start at 60% to 40% of what you owe).


Your parent (advocate) can negotiate from a position of strength with somewhat of a take it or leave it attitude. They can bend a little if they like, but they can also hang up when they want. Many company's may have a "something is better than nothing" attitude and jump at the option to clear their books with a 60%, 50%, or even 40% partial payment. If the company is unwilling to move, then hang up. As the bill goes unpaid, time goes by, and your FICO continues to drop - the company may likely change its mind when approached again later.

This works much better if the advocate can afford to make a lump sum payment of the agreed amount but it is sometimes possible for the third party to negotiate a payment plan Or the advocate might negotiate a balance transfer (from your overdue account to the advocate's account) that clears your account. A lump sum payment will clear the debt and close the book. It is by far the better negotiating option however, not everyone has that sort of money laying around. Any sort of payment plan might also add your advocate's name to the debt and make them liable for its repayment like they were co-signing a loan. (Don't screw over your advocate by dumping your debt on them)

You can negotiate a private plan with your advocate to fund/repay whatever the advocate provides the debtor to clear your account.

In the meantime I hope you have changed your ways and stopped spending more than you make so you simply do not dig another financial hole that will need to be fixed in the future. Make sure your budget includes a savings plan and an emergency fund. (Plan for unplanned exspenses)

Debt is seldom about how much money you make. Debt is most often about how much money you spend.