It’s not that hard to arrange. You simply call the credit card company and ask to speak to the department that deals with debt settlements. If they are unclear, you say that you wish to make an plan as to how to pay off the remaining balance, by way of a settlement.

However, before you do this, you will want to know how much you can afford to offer each month. Draw up a spending plan. To do this, take a piece of paper or a computer spreadsheet package like Excel or Open Office and list your income and expenses, by item. Total these and see how much, if any, you have left at the end of each payment period.

You may also need to embrace frugality, which means to be smart about what you purchase and at what cost. There are some good ways to cut back on your spending.

Some people clip discount coupons from the local newspaper and glossy magazines, but you want to be careful that you are not just getting a discount on the expensive branded product and that the own-brand at the supermarket is still cheaper. Some things you can just reduce expenses on by buying in bulk.

A credit card debt settlement is one good approach to take to get a handle on your finances and take back control. Making that call is a little off-putting, but you can make great strides in putting yourself back onto a good path when you do. Don’t wait.

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Here are some of the main options for consolidating your credit card debt:

Transfer balances to a low interest credit card. These interest rates can run as low as 2.9% to 7.50% if you have very good credit.  Even in our economy today, you are still probably getting some pretty good balance transfer offers.  I expect that the number and type of offers will improve over the next few months.  Beware of those balance transfer fees.  Some are as high as 4% with no cap on the amount.

Use balance transfer checks. Credit card issuers still mail out balance transfer checks with their monthly statements.  Many offer a low interest rate for the life of the loan.  You still have to pay a balance transfer fee, so be careful.

Open a HELOC (Home equity line of credit). If you own your home, and still have equity left after the mortgage bubble burst, you can get a HELOC.  It is not usually wise to make a habit of taking equity from an appreciating asset to pay for consumptive spending, but, in this economy, you have to do what you have to do.

Negotiate with your credit card company. Credit card companies are still reeling from the defaults over the past several months.  You can try to use the current economic climate as leverage to negotiate lower interest rates by threatening to close the account and pay off the balance.

Remember, these credit card strategies are only available to consumers with good credit scores.

Consumers with bad debts or poor credit scores will have to explore other means to achieve their debt consolidation goals.  Even if you have bad credit, it makes no sense to procrastinate and do nothing.   As your credit debt begins to spiral out of control your efforts to consolidate your credit cards becomes more difficult.

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