4 out of 4 stars
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Debt Cleanse by Jorge P. Newbery focuses on a revolutionary method of alleviating debt: don’t pay. There aren’t any strategies with budgeting or consolidated loan payments in the book, simply the concept of not paying the debt one owes a creditor. But with great ideas come great sacrifice. In this case, be aware that your credit can be damaged in the process of fighting the 'evil' creditors.
The author writes from personal experience with the American court system and attempts to assist the average, debt-ridden citizen. His chapters cover mortgages, student loans, vehicle loans, business loans, secured personal loans, credit card debt & unsecured personal loans, medical bills, payday loans, and collection accounts. There are also ‘action tools’ given at the book’s end which is exactly that – tools for the reader to use such as letter templates, deficiencies, and deposition questions just to name a few. Before getting into the content, definitions are provided to facilitate a better understanding of the content.
From the get-go, the procedures aren't for me as I live in Canada, which has different financial laws. But that doesn’t mean I wasn’t fascinated by the reality check the author offers through his sharp points and complementary (and very accurate) statistics about country-wide debt. It has been a phenomenal experience to learn how collection agencies work and the amount of laws and human rights they can break for the sake of collecting debt. After finishing the book, I can admit to having a better understanding of the psychology behind debt accumulation and marketing strategies. I honestly thought I knew more than I do. Newbery's perspective definitely made me disrespect capitalism and commercialism that much more.
As I read through, the idea that resonates is the importance of data entry and process deficiencies as the latter are what can significantly reduce debt. Newbery uses anecdotal evidence to justify the means explored in the book but there were many instances that I wanted to read about a group of people who succeeded in the same way. Despite this minor set-back, analogies are used throughout to make the content more interesting as there is a lot of information covered. Embedded throughout the book is the mention of a supportive online community that assists with monetary restrictions with fighting creditors in court as well as a knowledge base that an individual can use for their legal battle.
Depending on the chapter content, the author delves into the laws of numerous states to remind the reader that America is a very diverse country. Some states have stricter laws surrounding debts than others and since America is home to so many individuals in debt, there are too many cases being fought for the processes to be done perfectly on the creditor's side. This means errors will occur during repossession, communication and data entry. The idea is to be persistent and vigilant with the creditors and in some cases, simply ignore their attempts to reach you. Because of my mindset in reading this book – to review – I found the narrative became repetitive. This is something to expect because with each chapter, Newbery writes different but similar set of instructions on managing the complex situation with the creditor. Although repetitive, these instructions are very, very useful, especially to someone who is ridiculously stressed.
In regards to instructional and grammatically correct narrative, functional website, and the support the website promises, I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. I feel the most important factor of a good non-fictional book is whether or not it encourages the reader to do additional, extensive research. Debt Cleanse does exactly that because of the number of deficiencies it accentuates, which makes me wonder how successful each reader was in fighting their debt. It also increases my interest in Canadian laws and how many parallels could possible exist. Another thing to be aware of is the amount of copy writing that is present for the website. Even if you don’t have debt or a large amount of it, I recommend reading through this book to receive a clear and concise picture of the flawed court system & the struggle millions of Americans face with debt in this day and age.
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Debt Cleanse
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Detailed review. Congrats on BOTD
