My suggestion to you is to go with a Debt Management Program DMP (I'm in one) what they do is call your creditors negotiate lower interest, you get no late fees, no fees at all while in the program ~ they come up with one low monthly payment that is divided and distributed to your creditors.

Some people think a debt management plan ruins credit ~ this is NOT true ~ I have been in one for four years and while in the program my existing cards are closed and I can't use them and I can't get new credit while in the program also there is a notation that is on my report from each creditor stating that I'm in a financial counseling program ~ the good new here is that after the program the notation falls off ~also another misunderstanding with DMP is that it lowers your credit score ~ this is also not true being in a DMP does not effect your score

If you consider going with a DMP try CareOne credit ~ they are non-profit and do not charge any fees!!!! They ask for a voluntary donation but you don't have to ~ I personally donate $5 per month just because

If you refinance them with a consolidation loan, you're going to be starting back at payment #1 and could wind up paying more in the long run, even if the interest rate and monthly payment are both lower.

eg. If you're a year into a 3 year car loan, and you refinance it with a 4 or 5 year debt consolidation loan, you'll end up making vehicle payments for 5 or 6 years in total. Same goes for the personal loans.

And the interest rate may not be much different or could even be higher on the consolidation loan, depending on the figures on your original loans.

As for the credit card debt, it might be a good choice to consolidate it through your bank, but it will again depend on the terms of the loan and whether or not you need to provide security.

If you take out a consolidation loan secured with your home equity, your home could potentially be at risk if you ever defaulted on that loan for any reason. If you're absolutely certain you can continue to make the payments with no problem, even if you were to lose your job or have some other kind of unexpected emergency, consolidating the credit cards will most likely help you pay them off faster and save money on interest.

But if you would be strapped to make the payments if something unexpected came up, the question to ask is whether it's worth the savings to put your home at risk.

If you do decide to go with a consolidator you have to understand that it is badly reflected on your credit rating. Whether or not you are making payments on time, it is still a negative ranking when you ask for credit later on and is normally on your credit record for about 7 to 10 years. So when you buy a house or car or any other large item that requires credit, you will likely not get it or will likely need a guarantor to get it.

If your seriously in trouble, you can call your credit card company for free, they most likely will be willing to work with you to set up a payment plan, reduce interest, or in some cases, they may offer to forgive part of your debt after you pay off part of it. They would much rather write off half your debt than all your debt.

Now you don't state if you own your own home or rent so it is difficult to suggest how to proceed with the credit card debt. At a minimum, try calling the credit card companies and ask them to reduce your interest rate. If you've been consistent with your payments, some will work to reduce it to a fairly low rate. You just need to ask them.

My wife and I also worked our way out of debt (although not quite as high a balance) through a credit counseling service (Consumer Credit Counseling Service – a free service that helped work out a repayment plan for us, since we weren't making enough to get out of debt and struggling to make payments). You may want to check out options like this. They aren't just for people unable to pay their debt.

A. Have a garage sale and sell anything that you no longer need or want.

B.Get a temporary part time job, if you have one, get another. The wife too. When my kids were small, I worked at night to bring in extra money so that I would still be there for them during the day.

Here is a plan that can help you. If you work the plan, the plan will work for you:
1. Make a budget. Make the budget a week before you get paid. A budget is not a punishment! It is a tool which will free you from ever having to worry about money again. Put everything in your budget. Especially those annual, biannual, or quarterly bills like car registration, insurance, etc. Give every dollar you are going to bring home the name of where it is going. Add an "emergency fund" category to your budget for 25 dollars and save up until you have 1000-1250 dollars. Your emergency fund will help keep you from getting into new debt because of an emergency. If you can, set up a direct transfer to a savings account for your emergency fund. That way it moves automatically and you don't even have to worry about it. You must cut your spending and live on less than you make.

2.First get current on all of you debts and make no more late payments. Stop using your credit cards immediately. Do not take on any more debt. Credit cards are like quicksand only the death is much slower. Make a list of all of your debts in order of highest interest rate to lowest interest. Use cash only for your spending from now on.

3.Pay the minimum due on all of your debts and then put your extra money towards paying off the highest interest one first. After you get that one paid off, you put the money you were paying on debt #1 (the minimum payment and the extra payment) towards debt #2. That will pay debt #2 off faster. When that is paid off, you put all three payments towards card #3 and that one will be paid off pretty quickly. As an example:

To start :
Debt #1 (highest interest): minimum payment+ extra payment
Debt #2 (middle interest): minimum payment
Debt #3(lowest interest): minimum payment

Debt #1: paid off
Debt #2: minimum payment from Debt #1+ Minimum payment from Debt #2 +extra payment
Debt #3: minimum payment

Debt #1: paid off
Debt #2: paid off
Debt #3:Minimum payment from card #1+ minimum payment from Debt #2+ minimum payment from Debt #3+ extra payment.

That way, you will get them all paid off, on time, and pay the least interest. It will also help towards rebuilding your credit since you will no longer have any late payments. This works no matter how many different debts you may have.

4. After you get all of your debts paid off, add to your emergency fund until you have 6-12 months of income saved up. Put that emergency fund money into a liquid money market fund or into a Bank of America no-risk CD so that if you need the money you can take it out without penalty.

5a. When you have your emergency fund in place, add a category for "fun" to your budget. Save for a holiday, a vacation, a big screen, or dinners out, whatever goal you want. Remember to enjoy your life.

5b. When you have your emergency fund in place, start saving for your retirement. Join the 401(k) plan at work and contribute the maximum. Your employer probably matches at least part of your contribution so why give up free money? Open a Roth IRA and contribute the maximum on a monthly basis. If you start saving for your retirement now, you will probably retire a millionaire.

5c. When you have your emergency fund in place, start saving for your next car. Only buy cars, or other things that depreciate, with cash. Save up for a nicer car. That way you get the interest instead of paying the interest.

You can do it and it isn't as hard as you think. Just follow the plan.

So I wound up filing a Chapter 7 BK and it wiped out 100% of the CC debt legally in about 3-4 month's time (from the date of filing until discharge date).

The other $10k was a car loan, which I continued to pay on 'as agreed', did NOT reaffirm the loan, and they did not come and take my car. I paid it off back in April and now it has a clean title.

No ~~~BK is not for everyone, but it sounds like you have a lot of debt and a little one to take care and his future to think of. And while going through a BK will trash your credit/score, it's no more so than muddling through years of dealing with collection agencies, some CCCS that will likely "fail" you.. and creditors that will STILL report you even those you are in a payment plan. Or you can wipe out the debt legally through a chapter 7, start fresh and be able to SLEEP at night.

You can get a free consult with most any BK lawyer and he or she will go over all of your debts, your income and help you decide the best course of action.

I have BEEN THERE and done it and this is not an "ad" for anything,but a testimonial. While it wasn't something I really wanted to do .. BK was the best solution for me during a really tough time in my life. I am not sorry I did it.

Hope this helps. Ignore the jerks that can't even give sensible or helpful answers and just bash you. It's clear they've never walked in your shoes.