Review of Debt Cleanse

[Glory Balo]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Debt Cleanse" by Jorge P. Newbery.]

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4 out of 5 stars

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"Debt Cleanse” by Jorge P. Newbery offers a rather enticing way to clear these debts—for a fraction of the cost. On the one hand, the book presents resources and tools; on the other hand, the proposed methods have several concerns and could potentially lead to legal issues.

Newbery, who once found himself $26 million in the red, sums this up in a few steps: selectively ceasing payment and selectively transferring assets. This ranges from the termination of accounts in the banking system, stopping bill payments, and even passing ownership of assets to loved ones. The book provides examples of how these decisions can be communicated to the creditors while avoiding doing this frequently.

First, let me point out the strengths of this book. The book is well-structured, giving details of the action that is followed or the template of the letters to the creditors. It focuses on legal entities such as LLCs and tends to equip the audience with a proactive attitude. Also, its editing was flawless and left no room for errors. Nevertheless, these benefits are more than offset by the risks that are a hallmark of the approach.

With regards to the cons, the main idea again is to bring about the cessation of payments and, possibly, the deception of the creditors. The former is, in fact, a mischievous strategy that could fall foul of laws against debt collection practices. This leads to a low credit score, being sued, and even the possibility of an employer garnishing your wages. While strongly advocating for the elimination of debt, the book is very weak on prevention strategies. It also does not touch on matters such as how budgets will be faced, how credits will be properly managed, or other measures taken that would ensure that the individuals will not fall back into debt. Also, the book frequently links the reader to the author’s website for more support, which comes at a fee, and the expenses offer an additional debt load. Based on these flaws, I'd rate this book four out of five stars.

This book can be recommended as an introduction to how debt collectors operate, but the advice contained therein should not be acted out without the help of a financial expert. Note that this is about communicating well, being sincere in our approach to eradicating debt, and not escaping our responsibilities.

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Debt Cleanse
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