Jaime’s credit cards were already maxed out when the COVID-19 pandemic put his pilot job on hold. He was moving money from one account to another to keep up with his payments, and the stress kept him up at night. “I was taking money from one and putting it into the other one; it was a complete nightmare,” he said. “I couldn’t sleep.”
National Debt Relief helped him turn that around. By early 2023, Jaime had graduated from the program. He and his wife, Karina, were traveling and planning for homes in two countries.
Getting there started with a dream that cost more than he expected.
The Price of Pilot Training
Jaime wanted to fly, and he knew the training wouldn’t be cheap. “Doing a professional pilot program is very expensive, but I really wanted to do it,” he said.
Pilot training wasn’t the only reason his balances grew. Jaime was open about how he and Karina handled money. “One of the things that got me into that was we are very disorganized. We like to spend, getting credit cards,” he said. Karina started opening credit cards too.
Over time, the couple’s debts piled up: credit cards, student loans, taxes, and other loans. Then the pandemic hit, and the pilot job Jaime had been working toward was put on hold.
Life in a Basement
To cut costs, Jaime and Karina moved into a basement apartment. “We had to move to a basement in New York because it was cheaper,” Jaime said. The rent was lower, but Karina didn’t like living there. “It’s dark and it’s not nice to live,” he said.
The stress reached their marriage. “Of course, you have economic problems, so your marital life starts to get into a hardship,” Jaime said. He worried about where things were headed. “There was a point that someday we won’t be able to continue to do the payments.”
The couple needed a way out, but Jaime wasn’t ready to trust anyone who offered one.
Why Jaime Was Skeptical at First
A friend who had once worked for National Debt Relief saw how much Jaime and Karina were struggling and recommended the program. But Jaime had been burned before. “I lost $1,200 with someone that promised I was going to get free of debt,” he said. “So that was why I was very skeptical.”
Karina was the first to reach out. When she got a collections notice on one of her credit cards, she was scared. “She called on National Debt Relief, and they helped her,” Jaime said.
Seeing the help Karina got, and reading through a contract he found legitimate, changed his mind. “When I started to realize that it was true, I started to convince myself that I should enter the program,” he said.
How Jaime’s Debt Settlement Program Worked
Jaime’s debt settlement program started with a free call with a Certified Debt Specialist, who went through his accounts with him and explained his options. There was no pressure. “You really feel comfortable. You see that they’re helping you,” he said. “And when that happened, I started to realize this is the right program for me.”
Jaime chose which debts to enroll. Each month, he made one deposit into a dedicated savings account in his name, an amount designed to fit his budget. That account paid for his settlements and program fees, and no fees were charged until a debt was settled.
As money built up, National Debt Relief negotiated with his creditors to settle each debt for less than he owed. His Debt Coach kept him involved along the way. Jaime saw every offer and how much he would save, and nothing moved forward without his approval. “When they resolved the accounts, they showed me how much money I was saving,” he said.
His first settlement showed him what the program could do. “I remember that my first account was $5,000. They ended up with $1200 or $1300, I saved like $3000,” he said.
When Jaime missed a month or two of deposits, help was a phone call away. “In less than a five-minute call the person helped me resolve the issue,” he said.
Once each settlement was paid, the creditor marked the debt as settled, and Jaime got written confirmation. One by one, his enrolled debts came off his list.
From Night to Day
By early 2023, Jaime had settled all his enrolled debts and graduated from the program. “The expectation in the beginning for me was like being in the dark. And when I graduated, like wow. From night to day,” he said.
Jaime used to apply for bank credit cards and always got turned down. After he graduated, a bank approved him for a card with a limit of more than $6,000. “I’m pretty sure that it was National Debt Relief who helped me get to that point,” he said.
Life opened up for the couple too. They took trips to San Francisco and to Cartagena, Colombia. They also moved closer to a goal they’d had for a long time. “We always dreamt to get a house here or in our country,” Jaime said. “Now we can afford to have one in Colombia and one here.”
“When you don’t have that burden on you, it makes everything simpler,” he said.
Jaime’s Advice for Others
After losing $1,200 to a company that promised to get him out of debt, Jaime didn’t hand out his trust easily. National Debt Relief earned it. “Not just another person, they get involved with you personally,” he said. “They were more like friends trying to help us to resolve our debt problems.”
His advice to anyone in the spot he was once in is simple: “Do not hesitate to contact NDR because they can really help you.”
