Although you can certainly work directly with your creditors to settle your debts yourself, that doesn’t necessarily mean it is a good idea to do so.

Before deciding to negotiate with your creditors on your own, there are several questions you should ask yourself first. Ask yourself, “Am I an expert in the laws on debt? Do I know my rights with respect to creditors and debt collection? Do I know what to say to a creditor and what not to reveal? Do I understand the tax implications of what I’m doing? Am I comfortable handling calls from creditors?” Unless you can honestly answer those questions with a “yes,” you should consider hiring a professional debt settlement firm to handle your debt settlement.

You should also consider whether you really think you can reach as good a settlement as an expert who has been negotiating debt settlements for several years. If you can’t do as well as a qualified debt settlement attorney, you’re probably not going to save yourself any money at all, and you’ll be inviting a lot more aggravation into your life.

Another reason you might not want to handle the debt settlement yourself is that, until your debts are settled, you’re still open to getting sued by your creditors. In the event that you do get sued, it would be nice to already have an attorney on your side.