In times like these, when the economy is bleak and there seems to be no end to the recession, more and more people find themselves in a position where they are being hassled by their creditors. In most cases it is not due to poor money management or unnecessary purchases, it is due to job loss, expensive hospital trips or just less money is coming in than has to go out. Your creditors do not want you to declare bankruptcy. If you declare bankruptcy they will not receive anything that is owed to them. Although you may owe them a lot of money, this does give you a unique power over them when it comes to paying what is due.
You can negotiate with your creditors. They figure getting something is better than nothing, and they are right in that respect. Usually if an individual negotiates with his creditors he can get his total amount owed down to around 80-85% of what was originally due. This is a lot of money saved! However, a licensed professional who knows the ins and outs of bankruptcy law and has experience with debt settlement cases can get you even more back. A debt attorney with the experience needed can usually get the amount owed down to about 50% of what is due!! That is a huge difference.
Mostly, debt resolution is negotiation. In any negotiation the person with more knowledge and expertise will do better than his counterpart. In this case, the debt attorney not only has more knowledge and expertise, but a lawyer is a born negotiator! He makes a living by persuading and negotiating every day! Not to mention that bankruptcy lawyers are more familiar with the law as it applies to debt settlement, you do not want to find yourself in a position where you can get sued by your creditors down the road for something that you were not aware of.
In tough economic times is also a good idea to use a licensed professional. Many debt resolution companies out there that claim to work magic with your creditors are just a scam. Debt assistance companies do not need to be licensed, so any old guy can start a debt settlement firm regardless of his knowledge or expertise. Play it safe, use a licensed debt attorney in order to get what you owe cut in half, it will be worth every penny spent on the lawyer!