Bills.com Launches 'Operation Debt Storm' to Help Military Families in Debt Hardship
Program helps U.S. service members annihilate debt
San Mateo, Calif. (PRWEB) April 21, 2008 -- Taking the offensive against skyrocketing consumer debt, Bills.com is launching "Operation Debt Storm" to assist military families in severe debt hardship, and, according to co-CEO Brad Stroh, help them "completely annihilate debt" in their lives.
With total consumer debt now totaling more than $2.5 trillion (excluding mortgages), U.S. household debt rising another 5.6 percent in the fourth quarter of last year, and the median revolving credit card balance nearing $7,000, Americans are in more debt than ever. For military families, especially those with a spouse on active duty, the problems can escalate.
Financial difficulties among military families are well documented, and can carry serious consequences, says Stroh. Among junior enlisted members of the military, for instance, 19 percent have failed to make minimum credit card payments and 11 percent have bounced checks. Members of the military use payday loans three times as often as civilians. Those with severe financial problems can lose security clearances, face sanctions, limit advancement possibilities, or even be discharged.
For servicemembers who are in severe debt, Bills.com's Operation Debt Storm (https://www.bills.com/debt-storm/) will offer a means to resolve that debt and get personal finances in order. The program, available to active-duty personnel from all branches of the military, and their families, includes:
- 10 percent discount on all debt resolution services.
- Free online calculators, tips, and other personal finance tools.
- Debt Boot Camp: intensive series on debt terms, trends, and relief options
- Interactive blog with questions, answers, tips, and advice on dealing with debt (http://www.bills.com/blog).
- Free personal finance consultation, including review of current situation and resolution strategies.
- Free 16-page guide, "Debt Freedom: Budgeting & Financial Tools for Today's Consumer," providing step-by-step advice on understanding cash flow and debt, defining a budget/spending plan, and setting goals to attain financial freedom.
Operation Debt Storm's resolution services for unsecured debt are provided through the Freedom Debt Relief division of Freedom Financial Network, LLC, Bills.com's partner company and for which it serves as the online portal. For those struggling with IRS tax debt, the company's Freedom Tax Relief division provides tax-specific debt resolution services.
Depending on the amount of debt to be resolved, the 10 percent discount offered through Operation Debt Storm can save a serviceman or servicewoman thousands of dollars, says Stroh. "Operation Debt Storm is Bills.com's way to help annihilate the debt and credit concerns that plague military families throughout America," says Stroh. "It's one way we can assist our armed forces and thank them for their service."
Interested members of the military can contact Bills.com by visiting the company's Web site at www.bills.com or calling 800-544-7211 (mention "Operation Debt Storm").
Based in San Mateo, Calif., Bills.com is a free one-stop site where consumers can educate themselves about complex personal finance issues and comparison shop for products and services including credit cards, debt relief assistance, insurance, mortgages and other loans. Bills.com serves as the online portal to Freedom Financial Network, LLC, providing comprehensive consumer debt resolution services to more than 40,000 customers since 2002 while managing more than $1 billion in consumer debt. The company, whose co-founders and CEOs, Andrew Housser and Brad Stroh, have been named Northern California finalists in Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur of the Year Awards, blogs about consumer finance issues at http://www.bills.com/blog.
1 http://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/G19/Current/
2 http://www.fxstreet.com/news/forex-news/article.aspx?StoryId=67bdc994-8db6-4c05-9c04-aedc5ca4db8d
3 www.cardtrack.com
4 Defense Manpower Data Center Survey of Active Duty Service Members (2005)
5 http://www.defenselink.mil/news/newsarticle.aspx?id=668
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