Freedom Debt Relief Review – What Other Sites Don’t Tell You

Freedom Debt Relief is a well-established company that’s been providing their services to consumers since early 2002. They are located in San Mateo, California. This review will help you get a better understanding of what this company does and whether they can help you. You’ll know exactly how their program works and whether they are legit.

At the time of this writing, they have a positive “A+” rating with the Better Business Bureau (BBB). According to their own website, they’ve helped resolve over five billion dollars’ worth of debt and are one of the largest companies in the debt settlement field.

But they aren’t our top-ranked firm. That honor belongs to NDR.

Freedom is the type of company people use when they don’t qualify for any other type of debt program because of their credit score and financial circumstances.

So if you’ve been turned down for a loan when trying to reduce your interest rates and monthly payments, and you don’t want to file for bankruptcy, then Freedom Debt Relief is the type of company that can help.

But before you dive in head first, you should understand how they operate and what they offer. Knowing that will help you prepare for the specialized services they offer.

And that’s what this review is all about.

How Does Freedom Debt Relief Work?

Here’s how their program works…

• When you apply with them online or call their toll-free phone number, one of their trained representatives will evaluate your situation free of charge. During this evaluation process, Freedom Debt Relief determine whether you qualify for their program. And they determine which program is best for you.
• Some of the determining factors are that you need to be at least $7,500 in debt and struggling to make payments. If they think you are a good fit for their program (it’s usually a debt settlement program), they will let you know and explain the details and how much you could potentially save.
• If you accept the program and its terms, they then advise you to stop making payments to your creditors and start depositing money into a FDIC insured bank account. You will retain control of this account. Naturally, they also want you to stop using credit to buy things.
• As soon as enough money has accumulated in your FDIC insured account, that’s when Freedom Debt Relief starts negotiating with your creditors. The negotiating process can be done in as little as one week or it can take months.
• Once an account has been settled with your creditors, the money from your FDIC account will be used to pay it off.

As you can see, their program is not like a traditional debt consolidation loan. Freedom’s program is known as debt settlement. And they can only help you with unsecured debt like personal loans, credit card debt and most other credit that doesn’t have collateral backing it up. These types of services can take between 24 to 48 months to resolve your debts.

Keep in mind that Freedom does not operate in GA, ME, NH, NJ, RI, WV, IL, SC, VT, CT, OR, WA. If you live in one of those states, then you’ll need to look for another company.

What fees do they charge?

Because of new laws and regulations, no debt resolution company is allowed to charge you money before the services are performed. According to Freedom’s website, they stick to that regulation. Although, there have been some complaints of them charging some kind of monthly service fee.

You should ask the company rep before signing up with them what all the fees will be and then get it down in writing.

Typically, they charge between 16% and 25% of the total amount of debt that you have enrolled with them. This is on par with the industry average and is what you should expect to pay.

How does Freedom Debt Relief affect your credit?

Their program does have a negative impact on your credit because you will be required to stop making payments to your creditors. But once you have satisfied your debts, you can then start the process of rebuilding your credit score. In addition, creditors may continue to try and collect the money you owe them during the negotiation process.

This is an important aspect to remember here. Settlement programs don’t prevent creditors from trying to collect the full amount they are owed. And they can even seek legal action against you while you’re in the settlement process. So be prepared for that.

Some online reviews from Freedom’s clients report that their creditors tried to take legal action against them even though they were enrolled in their program. Don’t count on all your legal problems going away.

What’s the final verdict on Freedom?

Since they are a long-established company with high grades from most of their customers, you should consider them if you don’t mind the way debt settlement works.

But they should be your choice when nothing else is available to you. If you don’t see any other way to do it without needing the services of another company, then Freedom can potentially get you out of your financial quandary. This type of service isn’t for everyone though.

And you should know exactly how it all works. It’s the kind of service you consider instead of filing for bankruptcy. It’s certainly not the first program you should go for when your finances are in trouble. Even if most of their reviews are positive.

There’s plenty of pitfalls with this solution. Taking care of your finances by paying back creditors yourself is always the best way to go. But when that option and all others are off the table, then having a company settle your debt for you is a good final alternative.