Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

Many immigrants do not realize until it is too late that they have become addicted to the use of credit cards to the point that after just a few years, they seek credit card counselling and in a worst case scenario, bankruptcy relief protection. They have unwittingly entered credit card hell with collection agencies hounding them and recording all sorts of negative entries into their credit history.

How do you know if you are way in over your head with too much debt? There are early warning signs. If you find yourself like an acrobat trying to juggle too many bills, paying one company this month and another next month, borrowing from one to pay the other one and when lenders send you overdue notices, you are wading into the waters of financial trouble.

Making only the minimum payments never really paying down the principal owed is one sure sign. When you have nightmares and begin dreading going to the mailbox and opening your monthly credit card statements, it is time for a reality check.

Face this problem squarely. Ignoring it will not make it go away. Try discussing this with your lenders to work out a debt repayment schedule. They would rather not seize your property or send the hounds of a collection agency to you. This is their last resort if you try to bury your head in the sand and ignore this problem.

Even if you have defaulted on your credit, you still have certain rights as mandated by the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. There are a number of provisions about this act that affords you certain types of protection that you should know. Of some relevance is for you to know that debt collectors cannot use abusive, deceptive or unfair techniques to collect the money that you owe. Unlike in some other countries, there are parameters that a collection agency cannot and should not cross. It will cost them if they do. There are resources in the internet and books in the library to help you through this sticky situation.