Debt negotiation can be a hard process, but it can be done.  If you do it properly, you can save anywhere from 40-50% on your total bills.  I’m going to give you some tips on how you can successfully negotiate with the credit card companies to cut your bills off in nearly half.

It always helps to have a lump sum

When you negotiate with the credit card companies, you’re going to find that they are willing to settle if you pay in full.  This means that if you have a credit card bill of $10,000, you better have $5,000 or $6,000 laying around that you can pay them with.  Remember that lieing won’t get you anywhere.  If you can get this kind of money together, you’ll have a great chance at knocking your bill down.  It’s always best to have anywhere from 40-60% of your total bill.

Call up the companies and be honest

The credit card companies know you’re a human being, and if you’re going to call up, and act tough demanding things, you won’t get far.  What you’ll want to do is call up the company, and tell them your situation.  Tell them that there’s no way you can pay off your bills anymore, and is there any way we can settle on X amount?  The answers will vary, but generally the higher up you go in the ladder when it comes to customer service, the better it is for you.

Get everything in writing

If you manage to get your bills cut in half, that’s great!  But before you go out there and pay your bill, you’ll want to get everything in writing.  This will prevent them from coming back to you in the future stating that you still owe them money.

Don’t give up

You may find that you’ll call and get no response.  It’s your duty to continue to call until you get your bill reduced.  As I stated earlier, you’ll want to get someone higher up in the company so that they can work with you.  Most of the times when you call up a company, you’re going to deal with the level one customer service reps.

These are all good tips that you can use when you’re looking to negotiate with the credit card companies.  Try some of these tactics and see how they work for you.