With the economy the way it is, more and more people are finding themselves unable to make even the minimum payments on their lines of credit, forcing them deeper into debt and even endangering their cars and homes. If your debt has become unmanageable, taking action now can help you to avoid bankruptcy and foreclosure.

Through credit card counseling and nonprofit debt consolidation companies, you may be able to free yourself from your crushing debt and rest comfortably knowing that you are on your way to clearing your debts. By using a loan consolidation program, you will immediately see several benefits.

Creditors will be handled by professional credit counselors to establish a repayment plan that will lower payments, stop fees and charges from accruing, eliminate harassing phone calls and letters, reduce the debt by up to 70 percent, and lower interest rates significantly. The services bring overwhelming debts back to manageable levels.

A single negotiated monthly payment will be established and paid to the credit card counseling service. The funds are disbursed by the service as regular payments to respective creditors as negotiated. The debt consolidation company and creditors will then send monthly statements detailing the actions taken. These monthly statements will make the debt reduction more visible to you, the consumer.

With credit card interest rates averaging somewhere around 22 percent, making only a minimum payment each month can leave you paying that debt for 30 years or more. By taking full advantage of credit card counseling or a nonprofit debt consolidation program, those ridiculous interest rates can often be reduced and the fees that are associated with them eliminated entirely. Your creditors will be paid in a timely manner and your credit rating will improve in turn.

Before you commit to a counseling service provider, research the debt consolidation company to learn about available services. Read the fine print regarding program benefits and hidden risks. Pick the company that has a dependable reputation and a history to back up the services promised.

Ask for a fee schedule up front. That way you will know exactly how much you are paying for this loan consolidation service before you pay anything. That will help you to decide if the credit card counseling company you're talking to is the right one for your situation.

An agreement with a reputable credit card counseling service or nonprofit debt consolidation company will reap the benefits of reducing and eliminating debt one step at a time. It is an illusion to believe this will happen overnight! The harsh reality is that the debt was not created overnight and will not disappear that quickly. Regular monthly payments to your credit card counselor and establishing a consistent payment history will improve your credit rating and will soon reflect your efforts.