<prompt> Human: I have about 15k in credit card debt that I would love to pay off, but it feels overwhelming, and Im just barely making the payments. It seems like one month, I pay one down and then the next month I have to charge it back up because of an unexpected expense. Granted, some of this is for crap I didnt need, and age has taught me to be more frugal, but at this point I need to escape without ruining my already low credit score around 640.I was speaking with a company that consolidates all credit card debt into one payment at a much lower interest rate than Im paying now. The representative assured me that Im paying 100 of what I owe, so it wont show up as Settled for less than owed on my credit report. She said that the only change in my credit report would be that the cards are closed and my debts would be reduced over the consolidation of 3.5 years. The catch is that I cannot open any new cards in that period, and I cannot apply for any new loans in a 12 month period.She emphasized that this is a debt management program, and not a settlement program, so there is no negative affect on my score. Is this program advisable? It will save me about 500 a month in credit card payments and actually make me feel like I am conquering my debt.Background: My score is simply low because of debt, I have no late payments, no defaults, no collections, and no judgments.  <response>: This is a bandaid on a stab wound. It wont stop the bleeding.Your problem is apparently that you spend more than you make I pay one down and then the next month I have to charge it back up because of an unexpected expense. You need to switch that: make more than you spend. You will be building surplus money every month, and can put that towards your credit card debt.I recommend posting your detailed monthly budget Income, itemized expenses by category, and debts with balance and interest rate, and some of the kind folks here can help you figure out how to best make it work. 