* Financial planners help people save and invest for the future, but they can also help you with a debt problem. A financial planner may be a good option for you if you’re carrying a high level of debt but also have significant assets, such as a retirement account, investments, or a large amount of equity in your home. When looking for a financial planner, look for someone who charges a fee for the consulting services (a “fee-only” financial planner) and doesn’t charge commissions for any investments or transactions he or she recommends. And make sure you understand what that fee will be before you begin to work with a financial planner. To find a financial planner, look in your local Yellow Pages telephone directory under “Financial Planning.”

* Credit counselors help people who are having trouble with credit card debt. The services of non-profit credit counselors are generally free to low-income customers and very reasonably priced for others—in the range of $25 per month. But be sure to ask about fees and find out whether the service is non-profit before you begin working with a counselor. For-profit credit counseling services can be much more expensive. Credit counselors help their customers develop personal debt reduction plans. They can also step in as middlemen between you and your creditors to negotiate a repayment plan that you can afford. Credit counselors often take over the entire responsibility of working with your creditors. When this happens, you will be asked to make a monthly payment to the credit counseling service, and it in turn will make the payments to your creditors. You will be asked to sign a statement committing yourself to taking on no new debt. Depending on how serious your problem is, the credit counselor may also ask you to turn in and destroy all of your credit cards. To find a credit counseling service, look in your local Yellow Pages telephone directory under “Credit Counseling Services.” Look only for non-profit services. For-profit services can be very expensive and are of uneven quality.

* Your employer or union may offer financial counseling at no charge to you as part of an employee assistance program (EAP) or work-life program. Check with your human resources department or a union representative to see if this service is available to you.