What does a debt counselor do?
A. A debt counselor, credit counselor, or work-out counselor gives advice and may develop a plan to consolidate debts (so one or a few payments can be made instead of many) and might be able to help plan a budget to reduce additional debt. This may work for some people who have the income to pay the fewer payments and who have the discipline to follow a budget. The fewer payments may stretch out the time to pay off the creditors and this can result in more interest charges. Debt counseling does not work for all. Bankruptcy lawyers see people who have already been to a debt counselor who now want to file a bankruptcy. The debts just did not go away.
