Comparing Related Financial Services - In addition to the credit card company advertisers listed below, Debtconsolidationloan.com offers a wide variety of consumer finance program listings to assist you with controlling your debts and other money management needs. Consolidate credit card bills with debt consolidation loans or use a credit counseling service for help with your getting your monthly budget under control.

• Debt Consolidation Help - Do you simply have too many credit cards and other bills? Review this directory for useful information and compare a list of service providers that may be able to help you.
• Personal Loan Companies - 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.
• Debt Settlement Service - Too much debt? List of companies providing this alternative to bankruptcy that provides for debt negotiation and arbitration services for those that need to eliminate debt.

Make Sure You Are Financially Fit

A checklist for shaping up your personal balance sheet

Five

Find new ways to simplify your financial life. There are many things you can do to make your banking, bill paying and other financial chores easier. Examples include:

• Organizing your personal and financial papers to make sure you and your family can quickly find what you need;
• Getting rid of the papers you're sure you don't need;
• Looking into consolidating accounts or concentrating your business with fewer financial institutions;
• Signing up for direct deposit of your pay and benefit checks and other regular income;
• Having a certain sum automatically transferred each month to a savings or investment account;
• Arranging for an automatic withdrawal from your checking account to cover a recurring expense such as a mortgage loan or utility bill; and
• Exploring banking and bill paying by phone or online, which not only saves time and money (instead of writing and mailing checks) but also can help you monitor your account more efficiently than waiting for monthly statements in the mail.

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 2/1/2007

Make educated decisions when shopping for bank services, consolidation of debt, mortgages and insurance. Read up!

DebtConsolidationLoan.com has a growing list of free informative and educational financial articles for consumers shopping for many types of financial services related to the management of your money, such as bill consolidation, fraud alerts and auto insurance. There is no better way to make decisions regarding your personal finances than to read and understand how they work, fees you will be charged, etc. Please feel free to visit our consumer library to learn more.

• Interest Only Mortgage Loan Financing - Interest only mortgage loans are a unique home loan type, and they are certainly not recommended for everyone. Read this quick article to determine if they are the right fit for you. 
• What if You Can't Pay Your Bills? - Making the payments on your monthly bills on time is always the most important thing you can do to ensure that you retain a good credit rating. But, in case you run into trouble, there are some things you should do immediately. 
• Your Bank as a Financial Supermarket - Today's banks are increasingly becoming financial supermarkets offering investment and insurance products in addition to insured savings accounts. Learn the difference between traditional bank products and newly offered services, as well as what is insured and what is not.
• Home Equity Loan Products: How to Borrow Safely - As values increase in many housing markets, Americans are increasingly tapping their home's equity for an equity loan or an equity line of credit. Learn more and make the right decision for your needs.

The Debt Consolidation Loan Directory is a service of Infinamic, Inc. All information is deemed reliable, but not guaranteed. Infinamic, Inc. is not responsible for the content and services, that may be provided to you, by following the links from this web site. Use this service at your own discretion.