If you have several credit cards with outstanding balances in the thousands of dollars at a high interest rate, outstanding medical and dental bills, a student loan, store credit or other unsecured debts, debt consolidation can be a way for you to make only one payment a month rather than payments to each creditor. That one payment may be less than the total payments to all your creditors. You can pay off your credit card debt.

The benefits of debt consolidation include:

Lower payment The consolidation loan payment can be much lower, as much as 50% lower, than all the other payments combined. This gives you some breathing room in your budget.

Only one monthly payment rather than one for each creditor. This saves you time because you write only one check. It also saves you money because you don't have to send a check to each creditor. There are no credit card annual fees, transfer fees, membership fees and of course no more late fees. It's easier for you to keep track of your loan balance as well.

A lower interest rate is most likely on the new loan when compared to the somewhat exorbitant interest rates most credit cards carry. Credit card interest rates can reach 25% a year while most consolidation loans range from 6% to 8%.

Peace of mind. No more creditors calling at your home and place of work. No more struggling trying to figure out which bill to pay this month and which has to wait until next month. You can relax and get back on track knowing that you only have to make that one lower payment instead of all those payments.

Damage to your credit standing is reduced. Debt consolidation means your creditors are paid in full. You can begin to rebuild a solid credit report. Of course it makes sense that you close most of these accounts, perhaps keeping one credit card for emergencies only.

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