Debt Makes the World Go 'Round—Don't Let it Stop Yours

TORONTO, Oct. 2, 2012 /CNW/ - The ironical thing about debt is that it is both a builder and destroyer of economies, both macro and micro.  With too little debt, we tempt inflation.  With too much, recession.  But it's a fact of life for all of us.

It's in the news every day - Canadians are in debt and living beyond their means.  For every dollar earned, more than $1.50 is spent. Sometimes life gets in the way of good money management—divorce, illness, layoffs and market downturns.

When it happens there are options available for consumers to help them repay their debt, including debt settlement companies, credit counseling organizations and trustees in bankruptcy. Most of these agencies are interested in getting fees first—sometimes more than 20 per cent of the total debt amount—before negotiating with a creditor and assisting consumers with their debt issues.

Beware: there's a lot of fine print, hidden fees, ambiguity, and self-interest within the industry. "We know trustees favour bankruptcy, credit counseling companies favour debt management programs, and settlement companies favour negotiating with creditors to accept reduced payments, because that is how they make their money," says Richard Dunwoody, Executive Director of Licensed Credit Professional of Canada (LCP Canada). "As a non-profit, we don't work that way.  Our approach is to explain all the options with complete transparency so consumers can make their own informed choice in line with their best long term interests."

LCP Canada, which officially launched on October 2, has a team of senior financial executives, accountants, and lawyers with years of experience in many of Canada's largest financial institutions.  The company's objective is to achieve four basic things for its clients: get the debt paid on a timely basis at the lowest possible cost; stop incessant collection agency phone calls; minimize the negative impact on the client's credit rating; and minimize any possibility of legal action. "We also provide free financial seminars on a variety of topics to client organizations," says Dunwoody.

SOURCE: Koel Communications

Media contact:

Jaan Koel
Koel Communications
416-406-6774
[email protected]