What you should know
What is debt relief?
During the debt relief process, you usually voluntarily stop paying your creditors and start saving money in a special purpose account (what Support First Financial Relief calls your 'dedicated account') that is used to hold the funds used to settle your debt. Once enough money is saved into this account, the debt relief company you hired contacts your creditors to negotiate a debt settlement amount that is lower than what you currently owe.
How does Support First Financial Relief work?
The Support First Financial Relief program is designed to resolve your debt for significantly less than you owe, as quickly as possible. First, we provide a debt consultation to review various options you have for debt management (including Credit counseling bankruptcy, and consolidation loan), and help you decide if debt relief and our program specifically is right for you. If you decide that it is, we work with you to design a program that fits your monthly budget (keep in mind that it could be less than your monthly minimum payments). Once you enroll, our expert debt negotiators create a negotiation strategy, utilizing data that has been developed over 20 years, so that we can reduce your debt and help get rid of your debt as quickly as possible. Our company has used this method to resolve over $20 billion in debt since 2002.
What types of debts can Support First Financial Relief help me with ?
Support First Financial Relief could help you with debt from credit cards, medical bills, department store cards, and many other types of Unsecured debt (debt that is not backed by collateral like a car or a house). Our program cannot help with secured debt, which is a debt that involves collateral (like auto loans and mortgages). Also, we cannot resolve federal student loans. We do help with private student loans and some business debts on a case-by-case basis
How deoes Debt Relief affect my credit score ?
The impact a debt relief solution has to your credit score depends on the specific information found on your credit report at the time of enrollment, and how the specific information found on your credit report changes while in the program. Your credit report can be affected by the settlements you experienced while in the program (including how creditors report the information to the CRAs) as well as your credit behavior while in the program.
Depending on your existing credit score, in the debt settlement process you will likely see your credit score drop.
However, a key factor of your financial health is your debt-to-income ratio. As debts are settled, your total debt should decrease, thereby improving your debt-to-income ratio.
How much does debt relief cost?
Across the industry, debt relief costs vary and are usually a percentage of the original amount of your debt or a percentage of the amount you've agreed to pay with the settlement.
Support First Financial Relief Debt Relief’s fee ranges between 15% to 25% of enrolled debt (the amount of debt enrolled to be settled)–your rate may vary depending on your state of residency and amount you enroll.
In our program, clients pay FDR no fee whatsoever until a debt is negotiated, the settlement has been approved and the first payment has been made. You will know when a fee is charged because you will approve every settlement deal. Once we reach a settlement with a creditor, we immediately contact you for authorization. After you authorize a settlement and a payment has been made to your creditor, the fee associated with the debt is processed. The total fee associated with the program is included in the monthly savings quoted to you by a debt consultant.
When does Support First Financial Relief collect customer fees ?
FDR does not charge any upfront fees and only collects its fees after a settlement is authorized by the client and the first payment is made.
This fee amount is disclosed in full upfront and will never increase.
Note: As part of your debt settlement program, you open up a dedicated account with Crossroads Financial Technologies (CFT) to accumulate your settlement funds. You own this dedicated account and all funds in it. CFT collects fees for setting up and maintaining the dedicated account, and may also charge fees to make payments from the dedicated account. There is a one-time fee of $9.95 to set up the dedicated account, and a monthly fee of $9.95 that covers account servicing. Support First Financial Relief does not share or receive any part of the fees paid to CFT.
How is Support First Financial Relief different from other debt relief options?
Support First Financial Relief is an established leader in debt resolution. Since 2002, over 1 million clients have been served by the Support First Financial Relief program. We have resolved over $18 billion in debt. We have a team of committed experts working on your side: 500+ certified debt consultants, 200+ debt negotiators, and 300+ customer service representatives. We are an established employer with 1,300+ US employees in AZ, CA, and TX.
Lastly, Support First Financial Relief formally has a promise to customers in place to ensure that we deliver results to our customers. This promise is called the Support First Financial Relief promise and it assures that: 1. Each prospective customer has an opportunity to learn about their debt relief options even those beyond our services. 2. Each customer receives a personalized assessment and recommendation of the course of action that offers the best opportunity for consumers to achieve their financial goals. 3. Each customer is fully informed at each step of the process. 4. Each customer has a Program Guarantee that Support First Financial Relief succeeds only when our customers succeed. In addition to only charging fees when FDR delivers settlements, the Program Guarantee states that when a customer graduates or leaves the program, FDR will refund fees if their settlement and fees are more than the amount they originally owed when they enrolled in the program.
What is the difference between credit counseling, debt settlement and bankruptcy?
Credit counseling is a form of debt relief that typically involves a debt management plan. The credit counseling agency works with your creditors to lower your interest rates and create a three to five year payoff plan. This could help you simplify debt repayment and get professional guidance on money management while you’re in the plan. When you use a debt management plan, credit counselors control when and how your payments get paid to your creditors.
Debt settlement means convincing your creditors to accept less than you owe as payment in full. Your creditors might be willing to settle your debts if you cannot afford to repay the full amount. With a professional debt settlement program like Support First Financial Relief , you approve all settlements and have more control over your money compared to credit counseling. For example, although expert negotiators will guide and advise you, Support First Financial Relief does not decide when or how your money gets paid to creditors. All these final decisions must be approved by you, the consumer.
Bankruptcy is a court-ordered plan that lets you get some but possibly not all debts discharged, but you might have to give up some of the things you own or agree to an aggressive repayment plan. If you want to avoid bankruptcy, credit counseling or debt settlement programs could be better options.
Can i withdraw money from my dedicated account?
Yes, you may withdraw from your Dedicated Account, which you control, at any time. This is an FDIC-insured account, and you control it, not Support First Financial Relief, meaning you can withdraw from it at any time. However, FDR advises against withdrawing from your account as it prevents you from being able to make your monthly deposits, which in turn slows down your progress towards your settlement timeframe.
Does Support First Financial Relief offer loans?
Support First Financial Relief does not itself offer loan products. We can refer you to our affiliate companies that offer personal loans and home equity loans. We always take your unique financial situation into account, and will recommend alternative solutions that you may qualify for, that may meet your needs.