Credit Card Scam Targets Atlanta Consumers Already Dealing With Debt
How far would you go to lower your credit card rate? For the sake of your wallet, hopefully not as far as some credit card holders.
It seems that a growing number of consumers are forking over hundreds of dollars to telemarketers in an attempt to lower their interest rates, say Atlanta bankruptcy attorneys. The companies, which usually go by names like "credit member services" or "credit card services," promise to work with credit card issuers to drop rates to too-good-to-be-true levels, often less than 5 percent. So what's the problem? It's a scam meant to target desperate consumers already struggling with credit card bills and mortgage payments.
Whether or not these companies actually try to talk with creditors is debatable. But even if they do, there's no guarantee that they'll come away with a lower interest rate. And as for the $600-plus fees they charge? Experts say you stand a better chance of reducing your rate by calling up your credit card issuer yourself - which is absolutely free.
It's no surprise that folks are eager to lower their rates. A high interest rate makes paying anything over the minimum difficult. But by making the lowest payments possible, we barely make a dent in our balance - meaning we have to keep paying interest potentially forever. It's a catch-22.
But there's a way to break the cycle - and it doesn't involve paying some random telemarketer. Bankruptcy is a time-tested, government-sanctioned way to lower unmanageable debts so you can reduce monthly bills and take back control of your finances. Wondering if bankruptcy can help you break away from credit card debt? Find out for free when you try a complimentary one-on-one debt analysis with a professional Atlanta bankruptcy attorney.