Have you received a “notice” from Debt Advisors of America similar to the one below that states that you need to call 800-520-2179 or 800-735-5162? Did it state that you have 10 days to respond? Did you read about the Debt Advisors of America lawsuit?
If so, this letter is from Debt Advisors of America. Why did you receive this “notice”? What is the company trying to sell you?
The purpose of this article is to provide what Debt Advisors can help you with. In addition, we will breakdown the Debt Advisors of America reviews.
What is Debt Advisors of America?
According to Google, Debt Advisors of America provides either debt consolidation services (also known as debt settlement or debt relief). In addition, the company may also refer individuals to Litigation Practice Group (as seen in the lawsuit above). With this type of debt consolidation, the debt relief company attempts to negotiate and settle the debt. According to its Google My Business profile, the company pitches itself as debt consolidation without a loan. Debt Advisors of America’s BBB states that the company started in 2018. In addition, it states that the company has an alternate name of Debt Resolution Direct LLC.
You may see the huge reduction in your monthly payment from a letter like this, and you may save money. That said, there are many disadvantages to debt settlement that should be considered before signing up with a debt relief company.
Pros:
- You can save money.
- You get on a fixed payment plan.
- It is a form of consolidation. You often stop paying your creditors and have one payment sent to a bank account.
Cons:
- Your accounts fall behind, which means you can be sued for unpaid debt. We built a lawsuit likelihood calculator to estimate whether your creditor will sue, but this is important to note.
- Your credit score may be negatively affected.
- There may be tax consequences if you are deemed tax solvent.
Unfortunately, none of these cons were addressed in the “notice” above.
How Much Does Debt Consolidation Cost?
With a debt consolidation company such as Debt Advisors of America, you may pay a fee based on your enrolled debt amount. So, if you enroll $50,000 of debt into a debt consolidation program, your fee may be% of enrolled debt.
The challenge is that some of these companies are not forthcoming about the fee. For example, the sales representative may state that the fee is “included in the plan”.
But what is the fee and how does that compare to other debt consolidation companies??
As such, we built the following free debt consolidation cost calculator. The calculator breaks down how much you may pay monthly and the duration.
Have you already received a quote from Debt Advisors of America? If so, you can compare that quote to another estimated quote to understand affordability.
What Are Debt Advisors of America Reviews?
Let’s cover the Debt Advisor of America reviews to help you understand whether this is a good option for you.
Google Reviews
On Google, Debt Advisors has a 2.7 rating based on 9 reviews at the time of this writing.
One reviewer did not appreciate that Debt Advisors of America provided a notice flagged with a “failure to respond” section. Another reviewer mentioned that the company did not provide any proper information nor did it provide a proper physical address.
BBB Reviews
According to BBB, Debt Advisors of America maintains a 4.67 rating based on 259 reviews, but it also has 20 complaints in the past 3 years with 11 complaints just closed in the last 12 months.
When looking at the BBB reviews, one positive review mentions that they explained everything and would recommend them and another review mentioned that they have been effective in the process.
That said, the most recent review came from someone named Jennifer. In the review, she mentioned that her credit score went down from the high 600s down to less than 490. She also stated that she was told everything would be handled within 6 months, but that nothing had been done.
Glassdoor Reviews
While Glassdoor focuses on employee reviews of Debt Advisors of America, not customer reviews, I find that Glassdoor can potentially provide an inside look at what employees think of the company.
According to Glassdoor, Debt Advisors of America maintains a 4.4 rating based on 19 reviews at the time of this writing.
One positive review mentions that the company has been great to work at. The reviewer also stated that there have been no cons, and it’s been “all good money”.
Another positive review mentioned that it’s a great company with excellent pay and manager. The second review mentioned that there are no cons and that it’s a good company that they would recommend.
One negative reviewer states that you have to work long hours including weekends to get close to the numbers to hit. They also mentioned that people think that they are being sent to collections when receiving this notice.
Closing Thoughts
Firstly, I do see that Debt Advisors has a BBB page, has some positive reviews and has been around for over 4 years.
On the other hand, I see an example mailer that may evoke fear in the reader. In addition, the notice may provide 2 phone numbers (800-520-2179 or 800-735-5162), but I did not see an address on the letter.
And, I am not convinced that an individual should make a decision about their debt based on fear. You can also use something like SoloSuit to help you respond to debt collectors.
Should You Do Debt Consolidation?
If you are struggling with debt, it may be helpful to understand all your options to be informed.
As such, we built the following free debt relief cost, options and alternatives calculator. The goal of the calculator is to help you compare debt consolidation to debt payoff planning to non profit credit counseling to bankruptcy.
Ascend’s purpose is to help you understand all of your options. By doing so, we believe you can make the most informed decision to get out of debt cheaper, easier and faster.
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