Buried beneath bills? Overwhelmed by debt? If you've been making late payments lately--or missing them entirely--chances are you need some financial relief. Debt consolidation can help you get back on track by compiling all your debts into one monthly payment. Debt consolidation choices include paying bills with a Home Equity loan (or other loan), transferring all your balances to a single low-interest credit card, or signing up with a Debt Consolidation Company. But can it really help? Here are some of the advantages:

Lower interest rates:

Choose the right type of debt consolidation and chances are your overall interest rates will be lower. Home Equity Loans, for example, have significantly lower rates than most credit cards. If you transfer your debt to one single credit card, you can get a super low rate by taking advantage of "teaser" offers, such as zero percent interest for the first six months. Even Debt Consolidation Companies can help lower your rate by negotiating on your behalf with your creditors.

Less paperwork:

If you have 6 or 8 accounts right now, and you consolidate them all into one account, you'll only have one debt payment to make each month! For folks that have a hard time organizing paperwork or keeping track of payment due dates, this can help ease the financial burden. Fewer bills coming to your mailbox means less stress and fewer headaches.

Fewer fees:

Some credit cards charge fees for everything--late payments, regular annual fees, over-the-limit fees. Who wants to pay all those extra charges? By consolidating your debt into one account, you won't be nickel-and-dimed with fees by all those other accounts. Since you only have one debt to worry about, you'll have fewer "additional" charges of which you should be cautious.

Debt consolidation offers anyone the chance to relieve their financial burden in terms of cost, stress and time. In most cases you'll save money, have fewer headaches and gain extra hours in your month since you no longer have to waste time organizing multiple bills.