Budget and Credit Counseling

Your organization is very professional and truly fits the needs of your clients that are in financially challenging situations. You assisted in putting us on a fast, relatively "painless" financial recovery. Thank you!
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Thank you for your compassion and help throughout a time that was very challenging for me.
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Excellent Service. Especially impressed with customer services' respectful and kind treatment. These are tough times and self-esteem is at an all time low, but your team's professionalism, eagerness to help and reassurance to help resolve problems has rebuilt self-respect and hope. Thank you.
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Great service from great people who care! Keep up the wonderful work!

Debt Management Plans

Client
Patty Gomez

I realized that I was paying my credit card fees late and the late charges were putting me deeper and deeper in debt. I signed up with ByDesign.

I realized that I was paying my credit card fees late and the late charges were putting me deeper and deeper in debt. I signed up with ByDesign. At that time I had six credit cards with a total of over $20,000 debt and I couldn't imagine how I would ever pay it off. My ByDesign counselor was so sympathetic and encouraging, I immediately felt confident that I could succeed and take back control of my financial life. We agreed on a monthly payment that did not leave me much extra money each month, but I had no choice. I told myself, within three to four years, I would be debt free.

When I received my enrollment packet, which included the book, Personal Finance Management, I read the material, cover to cover. Even though I had been an alcohol and drug counselor for 10 years, and knew the "thinking errors" that people use when they relapse with drugs and alcohol, I did not realize that those same thought processes are what had gotten me into debt.

With the help of my ByDesign counselor, I admitted the extent of my indebtedness by writing it down. She encouraged me to write letters to my creditors, explaining my enrollment with ByDesign and asking them to assist in setting up a repayment plan. While it was painful and uncomfortable to do this, it was the first step in an action plan that has changed my life, and has increased my sense of self-esteem.

When interest rates dropped in 2005, I started receiving invitations from lenders to refinance my house, using an adjustable rate mortgage. I was only briefly tempted to take a loan and pay off the credit cards.

Today, when so many home owners are losing their homes because those adjustable rate mortgages have now reset to rates so high, they can't afford it, I can proudly say that I have a fixed rate that is within my means. And, my total credit card debt is now down from $20,000 to $4,000. By this time next year, I will have paid the entire debt off. Thanks to ByDesign, I have now really taken back control of my life.

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Client
Lynne Newton

ByDesign has helped me get back on track by working closely with my creditors to help me get lower interest rates and lower monthly payments
on my credit cards. It has been much easier for me to send one payment amount the same time each month to ByDesign to distribute to all my creditors rather than me trying to remember when each payment is due and sending out multiple payments on my own.

If I have problems with the creditors on my DMP, ByDesign steps in and tries to resolve any issues for me.

ByDesign has helped me to understand that I must cut back on dining out, shopping, etc. and put the money I save into a savings account and that having savings is more important than having a latte everyday.

It is also nice to know that someone else is in my corner and that help is available.

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Clients
Jeffrey, Jekara and Karla Govan

After college, I got married, had two children and even though my husband and I both had good jobs, our debt became insurmountable. We neither had the know-how nor the skills to fix it. I hadn't realized the long-term negative effects of increasing APRs, finance charges, late fees and late payments on my credit report and my life. That's not something you learn in college.

We knew we needed help. So we signed up with the first credit counseling company that we thought sounded promising--an Internet company based on the East Coast--need I say it was a big mistake? After 2 1/2 years of sending payments, not being able to speak with a live counselor and our debt not getting resolved, we stopped wasting our time and energy with them. Fortunately, soon after, we found ByDesign Financial Solutions.

ByDesign has provided the peace of mind, financial awareness and education that has put our life on the right track. Thanks to the DMP program, we finished paying off our credit cards in March! Most importantly, through the Personal Finance Management workshops, we have learned to make responsible financial choices that will benefit us and our children now and in the future: short-range and long-range budgeting, financial record keeping, understanding creditors, credit reports and scores.

By far, the most important lesson that we learned from the workshops has been that people have power over their financial well being. If you have a sizable debt, you can find the means to pay it off. If you have a bad credit score, you can communicate with the creditors and work on your record until its good again. We learned that the ability to control our finances requires personal discipline, a good plan and commitment. All of which are learned behaviors--so its never too late!

Most importantly, we will have the unique opportunity to pass on what we have learned to our children so that they too will become financially responsible adults.

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Client
Teresa Stathatos

After much discussion, tears, and heartache, I made the call to CCCS [ByDesign]. The decision to commit to the program was the best decision I could have made. I will always remember how the counselors I met with helped me to not feel ashamed of what I had done. Rather, their focus was on moving forward.

My counselor... was so wonderful and patient in addressing all of my questions, concerns and fears. I learned to accept my situation and deal with repaying my debts. Judy (my counselor) was wonderful in helping me develop a monthly budget. I learned the importance of putting money aside for expenses, like car insurance, that occur once or twice a year. It was with my counselors unwavering encouragement that I began to view my debt as a problem that could, with time, be solved.

One of the other helpful posts along the journey came in the form of the ByDesign waiting room. It is in the waiting room I came to realize that I was not alone; which when you are facing a daunting problem, is of great comfort. The large glass water jugs filled with cut up credit cards spoke volumes. I, too, was comforted by the faces of ordinary people sitting with me because I knew they had their own story of struggle.

Last month marked my final payment to my debt management program. In total, I repaid over $69,000! It is difficult to put into words the joy and liberation I feel.

ByDesign Financial Solutions has offered me encouragement through its communications. I found the monthly statement detailing outstanding debts and payments helpful in motivating me to keep going. The newsletter featuring other clients stories is inspiring because it speaks to the strong will and determination necessary for successful completion of a debt management program. I think sharing your story is cathartic. Its a way to move forward. This is why I have chosen to write a brief essay of my journey. I hope that others will be inspired to keep moving forward on their own paths to light and hopefulness. These are the true gifts of living a debt free life.

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I'm very pleased with my participation in the DMP. As soon as I enrolled, creditor calls stopped and my balances have really dropped. Through DMP, I now have peace of mind once again, no more harassment from debt collectors.

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If it had not been for the CCCS program, I would still be struggling to get my credit cards paid off. Now I almost have them paid off and have learned the biggest lesson of all, that you don't need credit cards to survive. If I see something I want and don't have the cash, I don't need it very bad. Thank you for your help.

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Excellent program! Three years ago I never thought I would be debt free and now I'm approximately 80% ready to take back control of my finances. Thanks to this program I have not only improved my credit, but also gained self-confidence and given another chance to better manage my money.

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Just a simple thank you for providing the service and support for people like me who needed it. A few years ago, I thought the debt (through my credit cards) I incurred during college will never be paid. But thanks to the DMP program, I'm on my final payment. Thanks, thanks and many thanks!

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I am half way through my debt management program. I can see a light at the end of the tunnel. My counselor made me feel human in the midst of a seemingly hopeless situation. He was very kind and compassionate towards me. I hope that he still works for you. He is the best.

Employee Financial Literacy

More than 70 employees attended the workshop you presented, and I know many of them gained valuable information that will help them reduce stress and improve their quality of life. I am delighted Consumer Credit Counseling Services (ByDesign) provides education and support to aid individuals during times of financial difficulties.
--Shannon Beatty, CA Wellness Specialist, Washington Mutual

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[Your presenter] was very knowledgeable, confident, spoke in a clear and audible manner, always knew what page to refer to, and did not fumble through her transparencies or notes. Her presentation was very informative and humorous too.... I personally cannot wait to attend another workshop.
--Monica Orta, Community Service Officer, The City of Azusa Police Department

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Thank you for your enlightening presentations...The warmth and clarity you brought to these subject areas as well as your sensitivity to the needs of the participants were greatly appreciated. The participants who attended felt that these were worthwhile and very informative sessions.
--Ellen Nagler Voyce, Jewish Vocational Service

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Thank you for your excellent presentation at the AFL-CIO Community Services Workshop for the Screen Actors Guild/AFTRA members. The information you shared will assist thousands of families through a very painful time, a time of unemployment. The members in attendance and I felt that [your presenter was] very professional, skilled and informative.
--Armando Olivas, Director AFL-CIO Community Services Liaison Program

Financial Firsts Program

Client
Curtis Binns

At the conclusion of the program, Curtis (the 1,000th foster youth to take our Financial Firsts program) says he started budgeting by putting a pair of boots he's eyeing on layaway and making monthly payments rather than tying up all his cash. A convert, he now says, "...if you don't budget your income, you won't have a future. You have to think ahead, not just think of now." He believes the information he learned about credit and his credit score is the most essential and sees unexpected expenses and getting health insurance as the biggest dangers to maintaining his financial stability.

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I liked the class. I learned a lot about credit reports.
-- Lena

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I really appreciate you teaching me to be on my ownfor the first time.
-- Catrina

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[Financial Firsts] will help you get one step ahead.
-- Thomas

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I liked that it was kind of a competitive program and that the instructor, Rob Quinlan, was really patient and understanding.
-- Ricardo

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I feel that everything I learned in this program was extremely important to me and my growth as an adult.
-- Veronique