Hi, I’m 24 years old and I graduated college in 2008. I have student loans totaling approximately ,000. On top of that, I made some bad judgments when it comes to credit and I have the following bills that are in the hands of debt collectors:
- 0 BofA credit card debt from 2005.
- 0 T-Mobile debt from early 2009 (I am disputing this amount – I received an early termination fee after I cancelled my phone contract 2 weeks early because I had absolutely no service in the county I was visiting for 2 months).

I am trying to build my credit score (it is 520 currently) and begin getting out of debt. I earn ,000 in one of the most expensive cities in the country. I have no savings and I currently own no credit cards at all. I’m not really sure how I should start building a healthy credit future.

Should I pay my BofA credit card debt in full? I was told that begining to make payments opens the debt again and it will be on my credit report for an additional 7 years as opposed to being wiped clean by 2012.

What are my best options for beginning to pay off my students loans (they are all government loans)? I am currently paying around /month, should I pay more and forget about my other debts?

What are my best options for beginning to save? Should I just open a traditional savings account or should I look into other options?

How I can I get negative things taken off my credit report? Can I get negative things taken off by the creditor once I settle the debt in full?

Thank you in advance for any help/advice.

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i have 60k in credit card debt. i am unemployed, and have to move back in with my parents. i have 9 different credit cards, all with significant balances. at this point in my life i realize i am screwed credit wise, filing bankruptcy was an option for me, but i would rather settle my debt and only have my credit screwed for a few years instead of 10 – 15 years as would be the case if i filed bankruptcy. i haven’t been paying on my credit cards for the past 4 months or so because i couldn’t afford paying them, and i knew that i was going to settle, so instead of signing up for a debt settlement company and letting them wait for my delinquencies, i’ve decided to let them fall behind on my own. i couldn’t afford the monthly payment for the settlement at the time because i’ve lived on my own, but now, i’m moving in with my parents and will not have to pay rent, and can focus all my unemployment funds to getting out of debt. i do not want to negotiate with 9 different credit card companies on settling. i’d rather pay the 15% or so for a debt settlement company to do all that type of work, where i then can have all 9 credit cards settled with the same company, and only have ONE monthly payment where it could be paid off in 3 or 4 years. can anyone tell me a good, reliable, cheap debt settlement company, in which i can consolidate all 9 of my credit cards into one monthly payment in which i can afford? i know i’ll have to pay a little more for using a settlement company, but to me it would be worth it instead of dealing with 9 different entities, making 9 seperate payments. i just want to use a settlement company that i can trust, which will be able to bring my total debt down from 60k to around 30k (most advertise can lower your debt to 50%), where i can make one monthly payment. i realize there are fee’s and i also would have to pay back some money on my income tax, i’m looking for a company that would be the least expensive, and also one that is reliable and will not screw me over. please, if anyone can lead me in the right direction with a decent settlement company it would be greatly appreciated, thank you so much in advance for your help, thanks again.

Technorati Tags: 4 months, credit card companies, credit card debt, credit cards, Debt Settlement, delinquencies, entities, filing bankruptcy, getting out of debt, income tax, money, parents, settlement company, unemployment funds