BORROWING - PROBLEMS
"This section contains additional data that supplements basic information contained in
Your Money Matters
and should be used in conjunction with the material contained in Your Money Matters."
Getting Out of Debt Problems
If you have financial problems that you can't resolve on your own, the next step is to consult a credit counselor. Various institutions offer such counseling, including the following:
Many banks and credit unions.
They often offer formal or informal debt counseling for their customers or members.
Family service agencies.
Hundreds of these throughout the country can provide financial counseling or will make referrals to an appropriate professional.
Nonprofit consumer credit counseling organizations backed by local banks and merchants.
These provide services to anyone, particularly to overextended families and individuals. If you are slightly overextended, the agency will usually help you develop a repayment plan for a nominal monthly fee. The agency may take monthly payments from you and distribute them to your creditors. The agency also talks to the creditors and often gets them to agree to a delayed or reduced payment. Because local merchants back these groups, they will do everything possible to get you to repay debts.
The Psychological Side of Money Problems
Everyone experiences money problems sometime during their lives, and everyone argues with family members about money matters. But that's of little comfort if your family is going through financial problems now.
Sadly, money is so important to our self-esteem in this country that money problems, even temporary money problems, can be devastating to us. For example, some people who have lost their jobs are afraid to tell anyone; they leave the house each morning as if they were going to work and return home in the evening. These same people probably aren't going to the unemployment office during their daily sojourns, because pride won't allow them to accept what they are entitled to and probably need.
When confronted with money problems, we tend to retreat at a time when we should be seeking help. We often spend too much time worrying about our problems and too little time working to address and resolve them. If there is one positive thing to say about financial problems, it is that they can be resolved. It will require a lot of work, it will probably require a lot of sacrifice, and it may well take a long time, but they can be resolved. One other thing is certain: They won't be resolved as easily as they might be if your don't share your problems with others, including family members.
Good communication is important to your financial health, not just with family members and close friends but with people who can help you with your financial problems. For example, what should you do if you fall behind or think you'll fall behind in your mortgage? The answer? Communicate with the lender. Similarly, anxious creditors should be coped with not by avoiding their calls and letters. You need to communicate with them openly and honestly. Creditors have a vested interest in helping you resolve your credit problems. They are usually well prepared to assist you, because you're not alone in your problems.
But, oh, does pride get in the way! It's not easy to get on the phone soon after you have been laid off to tell your friends and professional colleagues that you are in the market for a new job. How do you think they'll react? Is it really that embarrassing? If a friend or colleague called you to tell you the same thing, how would you react? When adversity strikes, don't let pride get in the way of good sense. Use the many resources available to you.