I tried one of those debt consolidation programs thinking it'd simplify things, but honestly, it didn't really lower my payments much and my credit score took a hit. Did anyone else have a similar experience or was it just me messing up somehow?
Yeah, I had a similar experience a few years back. Thought consolidating would simplify things and maybe even save me some cash, but honestly, it felt like rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic. My payments barely budged, and my credit score dipped noticeably for a while. I remember thinking, "Wait, wasn't this supposed to help?"
To be fair though, after about six months or so, things did stabilize and my credit slowly bounced back. But looking back now, I'm skeptical if it was really worth the hassle. Seems like these programs promise a lot upfront but don't always deliver as advertised. Maybe it works better if you're juggling tons of different debts—I only had a few accounts at the time.
Anyway, you're definitely not alone in feeling underwhelmed by the whole thing...
