Frequently Asked Questions

Q. How is Debt Diet different from AmeriDebt or other debt consolidation companies?

A. We have material differences in the ways we handle debt. Many companies try to negotiate or settle as many debts as possible, thus reducing both the amount of debt and the interest rates. Although the customers see the end result as positive, this approach can be very damaging to the client's credit score. Some companies just try to throw all unsecured debt into the mortgage thereby dramatically reducing the monthly strain from lots of bill payments. This is a short-term solution, but creates a long-term problem. That 6-7 year unsecured debt just became a 20-30 year secured debt typically with higher interest rates to cover the fees, or commissions. Debt Diet will only negotiate or settle a debt that is delinquent. If that is the case, the credit score is already shot, and may only be slightly impacted, rather than a red flag raised in the eyes of creditors or loan officers. Our objective is to create some amount of margin so that margin can begin to cascade in a compounding manner, rapidly reducing our client’s debt. If needed, we will only negotiate a debt to free up a small margin to start the process.

Q: What are the "mortgage-based solutions" you offer your clients ?

A: DDI has 4-5 mortgage-based solutions including the following:

A simple refinance where the rate and term are reduced based on interest rates or other factors. The difference is that this solution will only be used if it is absolutely the best solution based on the analysis and your personal choice.
An Interest Only loan. For a $100K loan the interest might be 8%, or $8,000 per year or $800 per month. With an (IO), you would only pay the interest on the loan for a specified period, typically 10 years with a fixed interest rate. So the client would only pay $800 per month instead of the higher amount including principal payments. This option can also be partially amortized, where the client does pay some of the principal over the loan time. At the end of the 10 years, they still owe the full $100K (Referred to as a balloon). At this time, the idea is that they would have changed their buying habits, are making more money and can now qualify for a better loan with a better interest rate that they can afford. This is in contrast to paying interest plus principal on a 30-year loan that is self-amortizing. For this option, the critical element is the client’s commitment to change their buying habits to qualify for something better at the end of the specified time. DDI is uniquely positioned to help them change their spending habits, money management skills and educate them around the benefits of being a wise consumer. With our support and training tools, we can help them keep their commitments and be ready when the time rolls around. The reality is with most IO clients who do NOT have DDI, they are in no better shape, and many time worse off than when they started their loan.
An Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) plus a Declining Monthly Mortgage Payment Plan (DMMP). This option works for a short time during which the interest rate is subject to market conditions, but generally is less than a fixed rate. The same idea applies as the previous option, where the consumer must stay financially healthy to qualify for a good fixed rate at the end of the term. DDI’s support materials help prepare them for that time. Our DMMP program helps them literally have a reduction in mortgage payment amount as the loan progresses. You will receive more training around the mechanics of this program later.
In Mortgage 101, you are taught the irrefutable laws of loans include three fixed variables, which contribute to the overall length of the loan. They are 1) The loan amount 2) the interest rate, 3) the amount of the monthly payment. If you want to affect the length of the loan, you can pay off some of the amount, or reduce the interest rate through re-fi, or other program, or increase the monthly payments, or consider a bi-weekly payment plan, extra mortgage payment etc… None of those options, although somewhat effective in shaving off a few years, actually treat the cause, which will account for nearly double the payment of the home in interest. The real culprit is Daily Calculated Interest, and our program aggressively attacks it on a daily basis. Hey, if interest is calculated daily, we need to fight it daily. Our DCI system understands that it matters exactly where money sits each day and makes sure it is in the most effective place to combat the effects of Daily Calculated Interest.

Request No-Cost Debt Analysis

Q: Do we have a bi-weekly mortgage option to offer people?

A: Yes, through our Debt Negotiation alliance partner, although they are adjusting their program, so we don’t advertise that we can offer it until it’s ready. Most company’s who offer a " bi-weekly" payment option do the customer a disservice by collecting the extra money each month and then doing a lump sum payment every so often. This doesn’t really help the client. AmeriDebt actually has a true "bi-weekly" payment option, where they actually apply the money towards the principal every other week. Great debt solutions will come through the analysis, and the ultimate choice will be yours.

Q: Is the $39 administrator fee for some of our solutions rolled into the new monthly payment plan?

A: Yes, and remember the initial premise is to get you out of debt incredibly faster without changing the overall amount you pay each month(unless you choose to).

Q: What can we expect regarding our personal financial analysis?

A: This analysis will be divided into 6 primary categories as follows: 1) An introduction letter from the company thanking you for your service and stating the general objectives of your enrollment; 2) A snapshot of your current financial status including how much debt you’ve accumulated, the combined interest rate, your combined interest if you continue to pay the minimum amounts and how long you’ll be in debt if you continue along your current schedule. 3) Your current credit report and score breakdown with a significant section about how your creditor views you based on your demographic and psycho graphic environment. This section will not only have your credit score, but will also have several insights around credit in general that will be helpful for your progression. 4) Solutions summary pages with 2-8 solution sets including services, payoff date, interest saved and changes in monthly expenses. 5) Each solution product you qualify for will be highlighted and included in a detailed products and services section, so it you choose option "B," which includes the DCI product and a tax strategy solution, then both services will be detailed in this section. 6) The report will close with a Procrastination Page that reveals the opportunity cost and financial cost of not doing anything with all the debt you’ve accumulated.

Request No-Cost Debt Analysis

Q: Do we actually receive a copy of our True Tri-Score Merged Credit Report?

A: Yes, it is part of the credit section of you financial analysis report.

Q: Does DDI Belong to any professional or trade associations?

A: DDI has recently become eligible, based on how long we’ve been in business, for the Utah Better Business Bureau. DDI is just the marketing and education entity; however each of our affiliate partners belong to their own BBB chapters, as well as several reputable associations and other industry organizations.

Q: Does the completed Personal Financial Analysis (PFA) come directly to us?

A: No. The analysis will go to your corresponding DDI Associate prior to sitting down with you to review your results, either in person or online. An appointment will be made with you to review the findings. The analysis will NEVER go directly to you, as you will need assistance with interpreting the results. Of course the ultimate decision on what you do with those results will always be yours.

Q: On the Debt Negotiation stand-alone sign up form it says to cut up the credit cards and we may receive a negative ding on credit. Did you say we wouldn’t negatively impact someone’s credit?

A: Remember we only put someone into Debt Negotiation if they absolutely need it, which basically means it they are delinquent in payments, or otherwise upside down in what they owe versus what they earn. If we collectively choose with a client to enter into Debt Negotiation or Debt Settlement, then they would have to forego the relationship with the creditor by cutting up their cards. You can’t settle a debt, and still keep that line of credit open. As far as negatively impacting their credit…it’s already been impacted if they are delinquent, so this is where it has to get a little worse before it can get better. But, with our system, it will only be bad enough to form a protective, healing scab.

Q: After we complete an Intake Form, will we be directly sent the analysis?

A: No. The analysis will first go to your DDI consultant who will review with you the analysis and possible solutions. The client NEVER received the analysis directly, so we can make sure and be there to answer any and all questions. We don’t want you to decide on a solution without all the necessary information to make a decision in your own best interest.

Request No-Cost Debt Analysis

Q: Are you really able to delete Bankruptcy?

A: We can’t delete bankruptcy, but with the credit arbitration program, we can delete it from a persons credit report. If they’ve filed bankruptcy, we can offer them our bankruptcy recovery kit to assist them in emerging from bankruptcy in 6-9 months instead of 2-3 years.

Q: Why don't you call it Credit Repair?

A: Legally we(or any other business) can’t charge people to "repair" their credit. Technically we are charging the setup fee to put you in our Educational Support System, and then charging you a small monthly fee for the ongoing educational materials we continue to send. Remember the Offensive strategy is the Law firm telling you what to say, do or write to creditors and bureaus to continue to improve your credit. Even though we are helping you to improve your credit through our affiliate Law Firm, we aren't "fixing" or "repairing" your credit. What we provide is actually a "credit restoration process," "credit arbitration," or "credit correction." The latter one, credit correction is the most accurate, since we identify and help you delete incorrect items on your credit report. Also remember that it is a membership plan, and you will only want to stay in the plan as long as you are getting positive improvement in your credit score every month or until you get to the credit score you'd like to have.

Q: Is the tax form separate from the regular intake form?

A: Only one intake form is needed to assess the financial situation from a Credit, Debt and Tax standpoint, however, should you require several solutions, a different agreement and additional paperwork may be required for each product, since we have several fulfillment providers who each require different steps to enroll.

Q: If we have problems, where do we turn?

A: Each solution has it’s own fulfillment provider and should be dealt with directly. DDI corporate cannot intercede, other than to try and push paperwork along, with our affiliates. Any issue should be taken up with the appropriate provider and dealt with accordingly. Before committing to any particular solution you should make sure you have direct contact information with your provider.

Q: Aside from the general 5-page intake form, I have two additional authorizations. One is a payment authorization form. Why would someone authorize payment if they don’t know if our products could even help them?

A: The purpose of each form is outlined herein: 1) The Profile Authorization Form gives the written authorization to pull the necessary personal financial information needed to complete the analysis. 2) The Payment Authorization Form should be completed so you can receive your credit report and a Detailed Credit Analysis section of the Profile. This section reveals the credit score and where you fall in relation to general credit worthiness. The detailed section includes a very specific section entitled, "How my credit score looks to a Creditor," wherein you can see through the eyes of a Creditor. Although technically, the $20 credit report fee is not mandatory, we strongly encourage you NOT to even try to run an analysis without one. If any of the debt solutions recommended are attached to a mortgage, you must qualify by showing credit worthiness via a credit report. I normally won't ever give you an option not to pay for a credit report, as it’s in your best interest to try to qualify for every solution available to you. Of course if you have pulled your credit within the last 30 days and have your Tri-Merged score, it is not necessary to pull it again. The $20 is a bargain for this score, because I have not seen it available from any service on the internet for less than $39. Individual reports without the credit scores are available for free at www.annualcreditreport.com.

Q: With all the talk of ID Theft, are you compliant with all the current privacy laws…like the HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) for the medical profession?

A: In the financial services industry, a great deal of trust and accountability is undertaken. As financial consultants, we are held to the highest standards. Each of us, by signing the DDI agreement also agreed to abide by all the current and future privacy laws. DDI also has adapted its own privacy policy (derived from this information) for us to actually provide in hard form to any interested prospect or client. Know that because the nature of our service involved assisting clients with relieving debt and improving credit or tax situations, we must have access to their sensitive financial information. If we determine that a client needs to have us handle payments for some of their obligations, bank account information will need to be provided. For this solution, we employ a Third-Party Administrator who is licensed, bonded and insured—with a 17-year industry track record.

We have also implemented a corporate wide Identity Theft Insurance policy to further cover our client work. To further cover your individual actions, each associate will NOT keep any copy, electronic or hard copy of any client Intake Form. All forms are faxed or mailed directly to the Branch Manager, then returned to the client for their records. If additional information is needed, your associate will contact you directly to retrieve what is needed. This way you are completely isolated from any mishap.

If for any reason you don't want to even give a copy of the intake form to your associate, you may opt to mail it in a sealed envelope directly to the Branch Manager. Understand, that this opens the door for human error and if you choose this route, you must make certain that you review every data line on the intake form with your associate so you know exactly what to include. If you are missing information, the analysis process will take much longer. For credit arbitration cases, the website may be used in the future so you can input your own information.

Q. Other General Notes:

After the intake form is submitted, a 12-20-page profile and analysis will be created. The results will determine your next steps in selecting the right program. For any of the specific programs available to you, separate agreements and enrollment forms must be used. For the flagship Debt Management product, a group of 2-8 solution sets will be generated from which you can choose the debt-free date and cumulative interest saved. For Credit arbitration, you are signed up via a separate form, or via a web page. For the Tax solution, one of the analysis pages is dedicated to tax analysis and a tax attorney will contact the client, gather additional information, run some numbers and then schedule a FREE consultation to discuss options, and fees involved. Ultimately, what you do about any debt, credit, or tax problems you may have is entirely your choice.

Request No-Cost Debt Analysis

If you have other questions that are not answered on these page, please click here. You will definitely get a response, and if it makes sense it will also be placed on this list.