L.I.F.E.

To help you make wise borrowing and financial service choices, this program will cover:

• Prime credit, sub prime credit, and predatory lending
• Types of sub prime credit products: payday loans, finance companies and other high cost loans, expensive credit cards, and car-title loans
• Types of fringe financial services: check-cashing services and rent-to own retailers

• Filing bankruptcy can be expensive
• You may lose property
• It doesn't solve spending problems
• Not everything can be discharged
• Bankruptcy will stay on your credit report for ten years

If you have found yourself in a situation where you can't keep up with your bills, you'll need to take an inventory of your resources and prioritize your financial obligations. With limited funds available it may not be possible to pay all your bills in full every month, but by prioritizing your expenses and taking a proactive approach to your finances, you may be able to minimize the consequences until you get back on your feet.

• Financial First Aid Workbook
• Money Management Planner

Steer clear of debt negotiation companies that:

• guarantee they can remove your unsecured debt
• promise that unsecured debts can be paid off with pennies on the dollar
• require substantial monthly service fees
• demand payment of a percentage of savings
• tell you to stop making payments to or communicating with your creditors
• require you to make monthly payments to them, rather than with your creditor
• claim that creditors never sue consumers for non-payment of unsecured debt
• promise that using their system will have no negative impact on your credit report
• claim that they can remove accurate negative information from your credit report.