Related Services - The following companies and services offer a wide variety of financial programs to assist you with handling your debts. Consolidate your bills with a debt consolidation loan or use a debt management or credit counseling service for help with your credit card bills and other payments.

• Debt Management Program - Do you feel that your credit card bills are stacking up with nowhere for you to turn? Your problem is not unique. Signing up with debt management firm may be the right solution to your debt problems. Review different firms offering these services to determine if this is the correct option for you.
• Debt Consolidation Help - Learn more on how consolidating your credit card debts can work for you and potential pitfalls that you need to avoid. Also, review a list services that offer to help people lower their bills into fewer payments or even one payment.
• Debt Settlement Negotiation - 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.

Stay informed about finances. "Being an educated consumer of financial services is analogous to staying on top of the latest in technology; even if you think you know the basics, things are changing all the time," said Luke W. Reynolds, Chief of the FDIC's Community Affairs Outreach Section. "With so many new options for saving and borrowing money, and so many potential pitfalls to avoid, not keeping up with the changes can adversely affect your pocketbook."

Start with low-cost or no-cost educational services from reliable sources, including the FDIC. Our Web site at http://www.fdic.gov/quicklinks/consumers.html features consumer brochures, a self-paced online financial education program called "Money Smart," and back issues of FDIC Consumer News. You can also call the FDIC toll-free at 1-877-ASK-FDIC (1-877-275-3342) to get answers to questions about your rights and responsibilities as a bank customer.

Other resources include: the federal government's central Web site for financial education resources at http://www.mymoney.gov; Web sites from FDIC-insured financial institutions, industry associations, consumer groups, and the news media; and local classes or seminars on personal finance offered by schools, state and local government agencies, and nonprofit organizations.

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 02/12/2008

Make better 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 and educational financial resources for consumers shopping for many types of financial services related to the management of your finances, such as the consolidation of credit card debt, fraud alerts and life 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 information library to learn more.

• Do You Know the Warning Signs of Too Much Debt? - Take control of your spending as soon as you recognize any of the warning signs cited by this article provided by CitiFinancial.
• What Do Banks Do? - A bank is a private, for-profit business that offers a variety of financial services to the public.
• Learning about Bank CDs (Certificates of Deposit) - Learn about the different types of bank CDs and how to choose the type that is right for you.
• Pros and Cons of Internet Banking - Review some of the positive and negative aspects of Internet online banking.

DebtConsolidationLoan.com is a service of Infinamic, Inc. All debt consolidation loans and financial services 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.