When you have a lot of different debts and you’re trying to juggle them by taking from Peter to pay Paul, taking timely business debt action by consolidating them into one, easy-to-manage repayment makes sense. This kind of business money management means your bookkeeping is simplified, the interest rate on the consolidated debt loan can reduce the overall interest rate you’ve been paying, and your financial hardship can be resolved much faster.
But you need to be aware that one of the downsides is that your credit rating may suffer by consolidating your debts in Australia, even though there are ways to prevent this from happening. There are four major ways you can consolidate your business debts, all with upsides and downsides.
Debt Settlement:
It’s not a matter of a debt management plan vs debt settlement because to settle, you need cash to pay all business loans, other loan repayments and personal debts through a negotiator, whereas you need business loans to consolidate. If you don’t have the cash, either in your savings, from a personal loan or business loan, this isn’t a choice you can make. So, with debt settlement, you consolidate your repayments into one amount paid to a debt settlement firm that distributes the money amongst creditors.
Debt Consolidation Loan:
Here you ask a bank or lender for a loan to pay all your debts in full. You end up with just one big debt but only one repayment to make each month. The debts show “Paid in Full” on your credit rating with a zero balance.
Debt Management Plan:
This debt management for business strategy requires a credit counsellor to negotiate with your creditors so you can make manageable monthly repayments on each debt. This will freeze your credit account for a time, so you cannot open new accounts or buy anything new.
Balance Transfer Cards:
Balance transfer cards is a kind of debt consolidation that sets your interest rates to zero for a short time and allows you to pay off your debts without the worry of exorbitant finance charges.
Your bank may be open to negotiation on your consolidation loan to spread it over a longer term, thereby reducing the interest payments and monthly repayment amounts. The bank may charge a higher rate since it would see your loan at increased risk of default. Even so, this can give you some breathing space and keep the debt collector at bay.