Related Consumer Finance Programs - The following sub-directories of companies offer a wide variety of financial programs to assist you with the management of your finances. Consolidate debt with a consolidation loan or use a debt counseling service or mortgage refinance for help with the consolidation of your charge card debt and other monthly payments.

• Personal Debt Consolidation Loan - Need a smaller loan? Personal loans are most often unsecured. That means you do not have to secure them with personal assets in order to do a debt consolidation. This type of financing is typically based upon your credit history and your ability to make your payments.
• Bad Credit Debt Consolidation - Learn about the debt consolidation process and review detailed listings for lenders and services offering to help consolidate your debts.
• Debt Management Counseling - Having trouble keeping up with your monthly credit payments? Compare debt management companies in this online list that can try amd help you get a grip on your personal financial situation.

What’s New on the Net

Here’s a look at new Web sites that can help you manage and protect your money:

Avoid fake check scams: The Alliance for Consumer Fraud Awareness, a coalition of consumer and business organizations and the U.S. Postal Inspection Service, has created an interactive Web site at http://www.fakechecks.org with tips for avoiding check scams. The site features online videos and tests for consumers. For years, the FDIC has been doing its part to warn consumers about fake check scams by publishing informative articles in back issues of FDIC Consumer News at http://www.fdic.gov/consumernews.

Defend against identity theft: The federal government’s Identity Theft Task Force, of which the FDIC is a member, has launched a new Web site at www.idtheft.gov to help consumers spot and stop ID theft.

Use an interactive calculator: http://Mymoney.gov, the federal government’s one-stop source for financial education resources, now has interactive calculators you can use to help save for retirement, prepare for college expenses, buy a home, compare monthly payments for fixed and adjustable-rate mortgages, and determine the current value of U.S. Savings Bonds. Find these calculators at http://www.mymoney.gov/calculators.shtml. Also remember that the FDIC has an interactive, online calculator that helps consumers determine the insurance coverage on their deposit accounts at an FDIC-insured institution. To access our Electronic Deposit Insurance Estimator, go to http://www.fdic.gov/deposit/deposits/index.html.

FDIC Consumer News is published by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation

FDIC Consumer News is produced quarterly by the FDIC Office of Public Affairs in cooperation with other Divisions and Offices. It is intended to present information in a nontechnical way and is not intended to be a legal interpretation of FDIC or other government regulations and policies. Mention of a product, service or company does not constitute an endorsement.

Find current and past issues of FDIC Consumer News at http://www.fdic.gov/consumernews. Refer to this same index to locate the issues that are specially formatted for being reprinted in any quantity.

To receive an e-mail notice about each new issue of FDIC Consumer News posted on the FDIC Web site, with links to stories, follow instructions posted at www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html.

Last updated on 11/08/2007

Make the correct decisions when shopping for banking, debt consolidation and related financial services. Educate yourself!

The Debt Consolidation Loan Directory has a growing library of free informative / educational financial resources for consumers shopping for many types of services related to the management of your money, such as consolidating credit card debts, fraud alerts and car insurance. There is no better way to make decisions regarding the management of your personal finances than to read and understand how they work. Please feel free to visit our consumer resource library for more information.

• Cell Phone Banking - New cell phones are constantly evolving and becoming more sophisticated. This includes adding the capability of handling online banking through your phone. This FDIC article discusses some of the possibilities and precautions you should take when using your phone for banking purposes.
• How to Protect Yourself with FDIC Insurance - Read up on what qualifications are necessary and how to determine if your deposits are covered by FDIC insurance.
• Direct Deposit Safer than Checks? - The US Treasury Department reports that a majority of surveyed consumers mistakenly believe that paper checks are safer than direct deposit.
• Consider the Fees! - Learn what to look for and examine the details of each banking account offer for possible fees, such as: inactivity, minimum balance and ATM withdrawal fees.

debtconsolidationloan.com is a free online service. All infromation regarding debt consolidation loan programs and related financial service offerings by outside companies is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. debtconsolidationloan.com is not responsible for the content and services, that may be provided to you, by following the links from this web site to outside providers. Use this service at your own discretion. Last site update: 2012-01-02.