Have you received a mailer from Citizens Debt Relief with a quote that is much lower than your current monthly obligations? Is Citizens Debt Relief legitimate? What are the reviews?
Here's what we will cover in this article:
Now that you have a succinct idea of things we’ll discuss in this article, let’s jump into its nitty-gritty.
According to BBB, Citizens Debt Relief LLC provides debt relief services to help debtors negotiate for more favorable terms on money owed to creditors. The company attempts to negotiate for the most favorable agreement possible. I was the previous CEO of a debt relief company, and I believe debt relief can be a good option for some, but not for others.
So, debt relief may be a great option for you, but it’s helpful to understand each of your options.
As such, if you are struggling with debt and wondering what to do next, we built a free, unbiased debt relief comparison calculator (not even an email address is required) that provides a wide range of debt options that may be able to fit your budget. The data is personalized to your income and expenses, so you can get accurate costs, pros and cons, and options. Debt settlement may be a great option for you, but it’s helpful to understand each of your options.
The debt settlement fees are one of the most important things to consider when pursuing debt settlement. The issue is that many companies charge exorbitant fees. While you may save money when comparing your monthly draft to your current monthly obligations, you could potentially save money by getting the same service with a different debt relief company that charges lower fees.
Also, many debt relief companies don't discuss the costs of alternatives such as debt management and bankruptcy.
As such, we developed the free debt settlement cost and options calculators to help you estimate the cost of debt settlement and compare those costs to other debt relief options. We also don't require even an email address to complete the calculator.
Yes, Citizens Debt Relief is a legit debt settlement provider.
Citizens Debt Relief was founded by a New York team in 2017, to systematically help debtors lessen their financial burden.
The company is approved by the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators as a debt mediator. Citizens Debt Relief LLC is also a part of the Consumer Debt Relief Initiative and American Fair Credit Council.
Once you approach the company for help, it connects you with a consultant for free, where the expert will assess your financial predicament, and determine if they can help with your debt.
If the owed sum is outside its scope, the company may reject your proposal. But if your debt is within its range of offer, they’ll hold meetings with you to agree on a suitable attack plan.
Citizen’s Debt Relief LLC adopts a systematical means to resolve debts. These include:
The company noted that clients should expect its debt settlement and negotiation process to be up to 4 years. It claims that its customers get an average debt reduction of about 50%.
Although the company is not transparent about what it charges on its website, other platforms suggest that Citizen Debt Relief often charges between 15% to 25%; either of the total amount you owe or the amount you choose to commit to the program.
To know the specific amount you’ll pay, you need to first meet with a representative from the company, they’ll assess your debt and the responsiveness of your creditors, then communicate your fee. Generally, the difficulty of the debt settlement process will determine your bill.
There are multiple reviews on Citizen Debt Relief online. However, we’ll only discuss reviews made on prominent platforms:
Source: Trustpilot
Citizen’s Debt Relief has a total of 32 reviews on Trustpilot, with over 80% of those being 5-star. Its average rating is 4.3/5. One of its top reviewers explains that the company has been vital in helping him reduce his debt. He claims that a particular consultant helped to break down the settlement process–something that’s lacking in most alternatives.
However, another acclaimed customer explains that he had a very terrible experience patronizing the company. He maintains that he didn’t get a quick email response, and he didn’t get a response on his phone calls.
Source: Google
Citizens Debt Relief has a total of 74 reviews on Google. It has an average rating of 4.7/5. In a review done 5 months ago, the customer hailed the company for coming to its rescue. He explained that the company has saved it about $2,500 in monthly payments, and has helped in settling two of its accounts.
As with other platforms, there are some negative reviews about its services. One such review is that no follow-up was done on the information it provided. He lamented that no one contacted its debtors, and this led to several garnishments. He also claimed that the company took over half of the savings made into the third-party account as fees. And when they promised a refund, he explained that it was taking longer than usual.
source: BBB
Citizen’s Debt Relief is not BBB accredited. However, it has a total rating of 4.69/5 from 13 customer reviews on the platform. Most BBB 5-star reviewers note that the company’s staff were quite helpful in making them understand the process involved with seeking debt settlement.
Few negative reviews it got were also on the basis that its service may be slow in agreeing with creditors.
Source: Consumer Affairs
Credit Debt Relief has just two reviews on Consumer Affairs, with both giving it a 5-star rating. Both reviewers say the company is playing a vital role in helping them to lower debtors' liabilities sum. They also said nice things about the friendliness of its representatives, and their willingness to make prospective customers understand the process.
source: Facebook
Citizens Debt Relief has a total of 13 reviews on Facebook and an average rating of 4.5 from 10 votes.
As expected, it has both negative and positive reviews from past and current customers. Most negative reviews bother on the fact that they hardly respond to phone calls. And in case of refund, they take longer than they promise.
However, most of its reviews are positive, as consumers hail the professionalism of their representatives. They also gave accolades to the company’s effectiveness in helping to negotiate for a more favorable interest rate.
The average score is 4.63. Because these ratings were provided by past clients on reputable platforms, it's safe to conclude that Citizens Debt Relief is indeed a legitimate company.
Also, reviews show that they’re effective in helping to reduce debt sum and negotiate for a lower payment, which can make you debt-free quickly. They seem to also have a pool of knowledgeable financial experts that can assist you to understand the process.
However, a constantly recurring complaint is that their official line is not responsive on rare occasions. You may also have to wait for a long time to get refunds.
Before settling for this option, it's best to first understand its merits and demerits. Below is a table depicting that.
Now that you know its pros and cons, I'm certain that you can understand what you stand to gain and lose by hiring the service of Citizen’s Debt Relief.
Feel like checking-out other alternatives to this debt settlement option? Here are some to consider:
Let’s discuss what each entails, and their pros and cons:
This is the process whereby a debtor approaches a bankruptcy court of legal jurisdiction for forgiveness on some or all of its owed debt, due to financial distress. Here, all or some of what the debtor owes may be written off. Sounds like something you’d want? Then read our article on bankruptcy to learn more.
Here are some of the pros and cons of this method:
Beyond this, another option to consider is debt consolidation. Let’s discuss that in a jiffy:
It is a process whereby a debtor takes a new loan, to clear off all liabilities, thereby, consolidating its loan from multiple payments to a single payment plan. Sounds confusing? Assuming you own $5,000, $7,000, $10,000 and $500 to different debtors, with different payment plans. In debt consolidation, you’ll take a loan of the total amount you owe, in this case, $22,500, and pay all your creditors. Then you’ll begin to pay back the $22,500 you owe. Click here to read this article for more information on this payment debt relief option.
The question of whether to sign up for Citizen's Debt Relief is ultimately your decision, and you understand your finances best. You can take the debt settlement and alternatives costs and pros and cons calculator below or you can call us or text us at 833-272-3631 if you have any questions whatsoever.
