Do you have a written spending plan or budget?
CCCS Budget Counseling is FREE and CONFIDENTIAL. If you decide to enter into the CCCS Debt Management Program there is a monthly maintenance fee for your DMP. For total creditor payments of $100.00 or below there is a 15% monthly fee, thereafter graded to a maximum monthly fee of $50.00. There is also a one time $50.00 set up fee payable in one separate payment. This set up fee entitles you to free participation in all CCCS educational programs.
Once your creditors accept our written proposed plan and your agreed upon monthly CCCS payment, creditor calls to you will stop as long as you follow your CCCS Debt Management Plan.
Calling CCCS for a free counseling session will not, in any way, affect your credit score or credit report. CCCS does NOT report your participation in our Debt Management Program to credit bureaus. However, each of your creditors may report that your debt is now included in a Debt Management Program. Creditors may report your debt as current once they have accepted our proposal, while some creditors wait until they have received three consecutive payments through CCCS to bring you current. Other creditors may consider your debt delinquent even though you are working with CCCS to repay your debt. Most creditors view your participation in a Debt Management Program as a positive step towards improving your financial situation.
No one can erase negative credit history. If your credit report and score is damaged because you have been delinquent in paying your debts, you can improve your credit by paying your debts on time and reducing your debt load.
Most of our funding comes from voluntary contributions from creditors who participate in Debt Management Programs (DMP's). Since creditors have a vested financial interest in getting paid, most creditors are willing to make a contribution to help fund our services. These contributions are usually calculated as a percentage of payments you make through a DMP - up to fifteen percent of each payment received. However, your accounts with your creditors will always be credited one hundred percent of the amount you pay through us and we will work with all of your creditors regardless of whether they contribute to our agency.