The Three Little-Known Pitfalls of Using Debt Reduction Loans (and How to Steer Clear of Them)

By Sean Payne

If you're in debt up to your eyeballs, you're probably on the telemarketers' list. They call, offering to give you a debt reduction loan. At first, this kind of loan sounds like a dream come true. After all, why wouldn't you want to lump all your smaller debts into one easy-to-pay loan with a low interest rate?

As the saying goes, there's no such thing as a free ride. This absolutely applies to getting a debt consolidation loan. These loans can be full of pitfalls that can easily get you in more trouble than you might think possible. Off the top of my head, here are the top three pitfalls that you will probably find when getting a debt reduction loan:

Trap #1: You're treating the symptom, not curing the problem.

The worst aspect of debt reduction loans is that they don't fix the problems that caused you to be in debt. Instead, they treat the "symptom" of having debt. When you get one of these loans, you just end up with a large loan that you have to make payments on...but you will also acquire new debts when you eventually start to, once again, spend more money than you have.

Any statistician can tell you that the likelihood is high that someone who gets a consolidation loan will wind up with the same amount of debt, or more, in two years or less. And remember, they're still making payments on their new debt consolidation loan.

Trap #2: Turning an unsecured debt into a secured debt.

If you have credit card debt, you should know that it is what is called "unsecured debt". This means that the loan is not backed up by a tangible object, such as your home. Most consolidation loans are what is known as "secured debt", or debt that is backed up by something valuable, most often the house that you live in.

The big problem with secured debt is that if you fail to pay off your loan, the creditor has the right to foreclose on your home. Compare this to the original debt, where the only option the creditor had was to "see you in court". They couldn't foreclose on the place where you live.

So what you've done by getting a secured loan (AKA home equity loan) is to put your home at risk of being taken from you. Doesn't sound so smart after all, does it?

Trap #3: Higher interest rates, not lower.

Even if you opt for an unsecured loan instead of a "high risk" secured loan, you're still going to get smacked with higher interest rates on your loan. The reason for this is that your high load of debt, along with the fact that you're having difficulties keeping up with your debt payments, makes you a credit risk. Anyone who may be willing to grant you a loan will only do it at a higher interest rate in order to make up for their additional risk.

They may change the loan in different ways, including a longer loan term, in order to offer you lower monthly payments than you're making right now. However, this means that you will still pay more in the long run for your debts. As somebody who is already in debt, you probably can't afford to do this.

So, what's the number one way to avoid these insidious traps?

You can steer clear of all of these traps by deciding to manage your own debt. Unless you're already filing bankruptcy, you still have the capability of getting out of debt without resorting to the help of some new lender or a so-called credit counselor. You'll have to make some drastic changes to your lifestyle, but after you change your lifestyle, you'll be well on your way to changing the behaviors that got you into debt in the first place. - 23199

About the Author:

Sean Payne has been studying personal finance and how to get out of debt for over 10 years. To get more information about how to get out of debt without a consolidation loan, check out Sean's excellent free course on how to pay off your debt quickly.