Start your goodbye to debt in 2024 with Achieve Resolution

By Gina Freeman

Reviewed by Kimberly Rotter

Dec 27, 2023

Read time: 2 min

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It’s a new year, a new you, and the perfect time of year to make a self-improvement pledge. Go to the gym more often. Take a class. Pick up a hobby. Quit smoking. All good choices. But our favorite one is dropping costly debt. You can make a plan now to get your credit card balances under control in 2024. Achieve Resolution might turn out to be the best New Year’s resolution you’ve ever made.

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What does it mean to resolve debt?

Resolving debt means making it go away for less than the full amount you owe. Often, getting a debt reduced makes it easier to get rid of that debt once and for all. Creditors may be willing to discount your debt when they understand that you can’t afford to repay the entire thing. It’s an offer they sometimes make to people experiencing financial hardship. Creditors become concerned about their ability to collect anything at all, and that could open up the opportunity to negotiate. Usually, negotiations involve offering a lump sum in exchange for writing off the remaining balance.

The tricky part is that most people don’t have a lump sum lying around. They have to find a way to save it and then negotiate settlements with as many creditors as they can. There may be a lot of moving parts, and that’s where a service like Achieve Resolution could help.

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How does Achieve Resolution work?

When you work with Achieve, you’ve got a team of experts in your corner to help deal with your credit card companies. Here’s how Achieve Resolution works:

  • Get a free evaluation from a certified debt consultant. The goal is to create a two- to four-year plan to get rid of your debt. You can do this online or over the phone—whatever’s more comfortable for you.

  • You and your Achieve debt expert create a customized plan and determine a monthly program deposit that you can afford. Your plan payment may be significantly lower than your total monthly minimum credit card payments.

  • You make that deposit each month into a dedicated account that you control. As the balance increases, these funds will be used to pay settlements negotiated by your team. 

  • An expert debt negotiator opens negotiations with creditors on your behalf. More than half of Achieve members get their first debt resolved within three months. Achieve already has relationships with many creditors and may be able to streamline the negotiation process.

  • After your negotiator reaches an agreement with your creditor, the details are presented to you for approval. Once you approve, Achieve releases money from your dedicated account to pay the creditor. Last, Achieve’s fee is deducted from the same account. A reputable debt resolution company will never charge you upfront fees—they only earn fees once they’ve resolved a debt. 

  • You’ll repeat this process for each enrolled debt.

Over time, you resolve your enrolled debts, so you can move on with your life. 

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Is debt resolution too good to be true?

Partial debt resolution is for real. (Unless you qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, debts are rarely forgiven entirely.) But there are a few pros and cons of debt resolution to know.

One, not every debt can be negotiated. Generally speaking, student loans and court-ordered child or spousal support are not eligible. Also, secured debt like car loans and mortgages can’t be resolved, although you could ask your lender if they have any hardship assistance to offer.

Two, many people choose to stop making their minimum debt payments in order to free up money to fund their dedicated account. Any time you stop making payments on your debt, your credit standing could suffer. 

Here at Achieve, we’re not lawyers but we have partners who are, and they specialize in negotiating debt. If you join our program and an enrolled creditor files a lawsuit against you, we may engage one of our lawyer friends to try to negotiate a settlement and keep you out of court. This is a free benefit that we offer to our members who make all their program deposits on time and in full.

Credit card debt is so 2023

Interest rates in 2023 hit painful levels and made it harder for most of us to stay on top of our balances—let alone pay them down. But there's good news: inflation has started to back off, the holiday spending season will soon be over, and now’s the time to plan an attack on your debt. Make 2024 the year that you get a grip on your credit card balances and work toward financial security. With an experienced and dedicated team at your side. Achieve Resolution could give you some breathing room and help you find a way out. 

Gina Freeman - Author

Gina Freeman has been covering personal finance topics for over 20 years. She loves helping consumers understand tough topics and make confident decisions. Her professional history includes mortgage lending, credit scoring, taxes, and bankruptcy. Gina has a BS in financial management from the University of Nevada.

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Kimberly is Achieve’s senior editor. She is a financial counselor accredited by the Association for Financial Counseling & Planning Education®, and a mortgage expert for The Motley Fool. She owns and manages a 350-writer content agency.

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Personal loans are available through our affiliate Achieve Personal Loans (NMLS ID #227977), originated by Cross River Bank, a New Jersey State Chartered Commercial Bank or Pathward®, N.A., Equal Housing Lenders and may not be available in all states. All loan and rate terms are subject to eligibility restrictions, application review, credit score, loan amount, loan term, lender approval, credit usage and history. Loans are not available to residents of all states. Minimum loan amounts vary due to state specific legal restrictions. Loan amounts generally range from $5,000 to $50,000, vary by state and are offered based on meeting underwriting conditions and loan purpose. APRs range from 8.99 to 35.99% and include applicable origination fees that vary from 1.99% to 6.99%. The origination fee is deducted from the loan proceeds. Repayment periods range from 24 to 60 months. Example loan: four-year $20,000 loan with an origination fee of 6.99%, a rate of 15.49% and corresponding APR of 19.54%, would have an estimated monthly payment of $561.60 and a total cost of $26,956.80. To qualify for a 8.99% APR loan, a borrower will need excellent credit, a loan amount less than $12,000.00, and a term of 24 months. Adding a co-borrower with sufficient income; using at least eighty-five percent (85%) of the loan proceeds to pay off qualifying existing debt directly; or showing proof of sufficient retirement savings, could help you also qualify for lower rates. Funding time periods are estimates and can vary for each loan request. Same day decisions assume a completed application with all required supporting documentation submitted early enough on a day that our offices are open. Achieve Personal Loans hours are Monday-Friday 6am-8pm MST, and Saturday-Sunday 7am-4pm MST. Statistics reflect the results of the members we have served as of Jun 2024.

Home Equity loans are available through our affiliate Achieve Loans (NMLS ID #1810501), Equal Housing Lender. All loan and rate terms are subject to eligibility restrictions, application review, credit score, loan amount, loan term, lender approval, and credit usage and history. Home loans are a line of credit. Loans are not available to residents of all states and available loan terms/fees may vary by state where offered. Line amounts are between 15,000 and $150,000 and are assigned based on debt to income and loan to value. Example: average HELOC is $57,150 with an APR of 12.75% and estimated monthly payment of $951 for a 15-year loan. Minimum 640 credit score applies to debt consolidation requests, minimum 670 applies to cash out requests. Other conditions apply. Fixed rate APRs range from 9.75% - 15.00% and are assigned based on credit worthiness, combined loan to value, lien position and automatic payment enrollment (autopay enrollment is not a condition of loan approval). 10 and 15 year terms available. Both terms have a 5 year draw period. Payments are fully amortized during each period and determined on the outstanding principal balance each month. Closing fees range from $750 to $6,685, depending on line amount and state law requirements and generally include origination (2.5% of line amount minus fees) and underwriting ($725) fees if allowed by law. Property must be owner-occupied and combined loan to value may not exceed 80%, including the new loan request. Property insurance is required as a condition of the loan and flood insurance may be required if the subject property is located in a flood zone. You must pledge your home as collateral and could lose your home if you fail to repay. Contact Achieve Loans for further details.

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Resolution is available through our affiliate Achieve Resolution (NMLS ID # 1248929). All estimates for Achieve Resolution’s services are based on prior results, which will vary depending on your specific enrolled creditors and your individual program terms. Not all Achieve Resolution clients are able to complete their program for various reasons, including their ability to save sufficient funds. Achieve Resolution does not guarantee that your debts will be resolved for a specific amount or percentage or within a specific period of time. Achieve Resolution does not assume your debts, make monthly payments to creditors or provide tax, bankruptcy, accounting or legal advice or credit repair services. Achieve Resolution’s services are not available in all states, including New Jersey, and their fees may vary from state to state. Please contact a tax professional to discuss potential tax consequences of less than full balance debt resolution. Read and understand all program materials prior to enrollment. The use of Achieve Resolution services will likely adversely affect your creditworthiness, may result in you being subject to collections or being sued by creditors or collectors and may increase the outstanding balances of your enrolled accounts due to the accrual of fees and interest. However, negotiated settlements Achieve Resolution obtained on your behalf resolve the entire account, including all accrued fees and interest. C.P.D. Reg. No. T.S.12-03825.

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