Export Finance

Welcome back to debt collection 101, your beginner’s guide to debt collection. In articles one and two, I wrote about the different types of debt collectors, how collection agents will find a debtor, and what they will do when they contact the debtor. In article three I described the strict rules and regulations that debt collectors, particularly third party debt collectors must abide by when they make each phone call.

In article four I wrote about what the job of a bill collector is like, and in article five I described the expectations that collection agents are usually required to meet on the job. Now I will speak about the perks of being a debt collector, and what the collections industry can expect to see in the future.

The important thing for any debt collector just beginning to remember is to hang in there: the amount of experience that a collections agent gains is directly proportional to their rate of success, and more success, means more money in commissions. There is much growth potential for debt collectors, as collectors who are successful will usually get bigger accounts that come with opportunities to earn more money.

In addition, collectors who have additional experience, training and skills are more likely to climb up the ladder. The majority of debt collectors work forty hours per week, with some working evenings and weekends, others working part time. Generally, the work schedules of a debt collector are pretty flexible.

In the year of 2008, surveys showed that there were almost 411,000 collection agents. Twenty five percent were hired by businesses, nineteen percent were working for financial and insurance agencies, and eighteen percent were employed in the health care field. Experts predict the amount of debt collection jobs to grow at a rate faster than the average of all other occupations. It is projected to grow by an enormous nineteen percent from 2008 to 2018. These analysts expect that new jobs will be created in industries like health care and financial services, and that jobs will grow for both in house bill collectors and third party collection agencies.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on national collection agencies. This article, The Perks Of Being A Bill Collector is released under a creative commons attribution licence.

These days, money is tight for anyone trying to meet the standards of living, even young people. As the job market tightens with more and more people losing jobs, competition for employment becomes more fierce and a college education may now be a necessity. While you were in school, loans paid your way through college, but since you have graduated the unthinkable has happened, and these debts have come out to haunt you, maybe even before you are able to secure your first job. A whole slew of debt collectors may be contacting you, and now, you are a frenzied mess searching for anyone who can help you with a student loan consolidation.

Most of the students who have just completed their education and are now searching for jobs try to go for federal school loan consolidation first. This loan brings many benefits to the table. First off, the government will be the source of this loan but the loan is issued by lenders that are private. What this means is that the duration of time granted to you to repay the loan can be extended for a long while.

One of the major pros of school loan consolidation is that consolidation has the capacity to take multiple student loans and substitute these with just one account. This leads to the overall reduction in the amount of debt you owe, at times this reduction can reach up to sixty percent. Of course, this will lead to reduction in your monthly payment.

Better still, this improved rate of interest is based on the weighted average of the rates that currently apply on your current loans. In addition, you won’t have to deal with the mental stress associated with recalling the details about multiple loans. Additionally, consolidation does not mandate a cosigner or any credit score check, and this is an opportunity to improve your credit report rating.

The only negative aspect of student loan consolidation is that analysts say that it can be potentially quite difficult to prove that eligibility for the federal school loan consolidation. Generally, you will need the help of a good financial expert to prove that you can be eligible for consolidation. The standards to qualify have the capacity to be very rigid and leave many ineligible for the loan. Despite this fact, it is worth your while to see if you can qualify. It may be a good way to protect your finances in the future.

Mallory Megan works at Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on third party collection agencies Check here for free reprint licence: A Student Loan Consolidation Might Be Your Best Bet For Financial Stability.

If a bill collector is requesting that you pay a debt that you think you do not owe, or more than you owe, you have the ability to dispute the debt in writing. The legal terms for doing this are “debt validation” or “debt verification.” Within the first five days of contacting you, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires that bill collectors notify you of your right to validate the debt. You need to ask for verification within thirty days of when you are first told about the debt. Always send your request by certified mail.

Lately, there have been warnings that issued reporting a rise in numbers of complaints about threatening and fake debt collection phone calls. If it doesn’t feel right in your gut, be wary. Remain skeptical of any collections call that asks you for personal information, or threatens you. Again, be aware of your rights that I just described above. Don’t provide any personal information. If a collection agent threatens you, hang up the phone and report the call immediately to your state attorney general’s office.

As with any business or financial matter, keep good records; copies of all correspondence related to collections. Corresponding by mail is wise, because it allows you to keep things in order, and you won’t lose your cool over the phone. Don’t ever pay off a debt until you receive written notice of the amount that is due, and as always, keep records of everything you pay.

Bill collectors may be pushy on the phone, but you are absolutely under no legal obligation to respond immediately. If a collection agent catches you when you are off of your guard, request that they call you back in an hour so you can plan out your conversation. If they call you at your job or at a relative’s house, inform them that you are requesting them formally that they do not call you at that location.You also have the right to formally request that they cease and desist from contacting you at all, but this is a risky move, considering that this does, under no circumstance, eliminate any debt obligation that you might owe. If they choose to, the collection agent can still escalate collections by sending the debt to a law firm, which will be an unpleasant and rather unexpected surprise.

Finally, do not be afraid to get help. If you are receiving calls from a debt collector, make sure that you take a proactive stance and understand your options which can include debt consolidation, credit counseling or debt settlement. The most important thing to remember is that you are a human being that deserves respect and to be treated with dignity, no matter how much money you may owe to a credit card company. If you stay informed and command this type of behavior, you will find that you will be well protected and more content.

Rapid Recovery Solution is a credit collection agencies. Click here to get your own unique version of this article with free reprint rights.