Related Financial Services - The following Debt Consolidation Loan Directory listings of companies are offered to assist you with gaining control of your personal finances and the management of your money. Also, feel free to review the rest of the sub-directories on DebtConsolidationLoan.com to shop for other finance products, such as credit cards and mortgage refinancing.

• Credit Card Debt Consolidation - Learn about the debt consolidation process and review detailed listings for lenders and services offering to help consolidate your debts.
• Debt Management Help - Too many credit cards and other bills to make monthly payments on? Start here by reviewing and comparing different debt management options for getting help with your credit card bills and other monthly obligations.
• Personal Loan Rates - Looking for a smaller loan for the consolidation of debt? Start your search at the directory of personal loans, where you can compare and apply online with different lenders and related companies.

Auto Loans

Take Control of the Financing Before You Take Control of the Wheel

35. Understand the costs and risks of choosing a long repayment period. "A longer loan term will be tempting because it means a lower monthly payment, but that also means a higher total cost overall because you will be paying interest longer," warned Creamean.

For example, a $25,000 loan at a seven percent interest rate for three years will cost $772 a month. Stretching the term to five years will drop the monthly payment to $495 but will increase the total cost of the loan by about $2,000.

Creamean offered another reason to be cautious with a repayment term of five years or more: The aging vehicle's resale value may fall below what you owe on the loan if the terms are spread out too long. "In the later years of the loan, you'll still be making payments on what is an older vehicle that may have a lot of repair and maintenance costs," she said. "And if you decide to sell your car, you may have to come up with extra cash out of your own pocket just to pay off the old loan."

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.

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Last updated on 8/10/2007

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.

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