--- title: "Cambridge Credit Counseling Services for Florida Residents" description: "Cambridge Credit Counseling offers free credit counseling, debt management, and housing counseling to Florida residents through its nonprofit programs." url: https://www.cambridge-credit.org/debt-help-in-florida publisher: "Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp" updated: 2026-09-30 --- # Cambridge Credit Counseling Services for Florida Residents Florida residents can get free credit counseling, debt management plans, student loan counseling, housing counseling including first-time homebuyer courses, reverse mortgage counseling, and bankruptcy counseling from Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp, a nonprofit agency founded in 1996. Cambridge does not offer debt settlement, a different service typically provided by for-profit companies. ## Credit Counseling for Florida Residents Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp offers free credit counseling sessions to Florida residents. Cambridge is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit agency, accredited to the FCAA Code of Practice, approved by HUD. Counselors are certified through the National Foundation for Credit Counseling. A session can help a Florida resident understand their budget and options before deciding on next steps. ## Debt Management Plans in Florida A debt management plan combines unsecured debts into one monthly payment that Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp sends to each creditor. It is not a loan and does not involve borrowing new money. Creditors on a debt management plan generally stop collection calls once payments begin, and a plan brings past-due accounts back to current status, which doing nothing does not. Staying current on the plan helps Florida residents avoid further late payments and charge-offs, and paying the debt down while keeping accounts current can rebuild a payment history over time. A debt management plan works with creditors to obtain the benefits they are willing to extend, rather than negotiating against them. Cambridge sends a proposal to each enrolled account requesting benefits such as a reduced interest rate, a reduced monthly payment, waived late and over-limit fees, and re-aging of a past-due account back to current status after three months of payments. Almost all of these benefits follow preset guidelines creditors have already established for debt management agencies, so it is not a back-and-forth negotiation. Under the plan, balances are paid in full, with the concessions creditors have put in place. Cambridge Credit Counseling sets a plan's monthly fee, and any setup fee, by what the household can afford, within the maximum Florida allows; a counselor explains them before you enroll. On the balances and interest rates Cambridge clients actually brought to their plans, the same debts would have taken 272 months to pay off and cost $44,676 in interest at their original terms. On a debt management plan, those same clients are projected to pay $4,936 in interest and our fees. ## Housing Counseling for Florida Homeowners and Buyers Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp is a HUD-approved housing counseling agency. Florida residents can use this service for first-time homebuyer courses. A Florida homebuyer who cannot afford a 20 percent down payment can contact a HUD-approved housing counseling agency to find out whether they qualify for programs that help toward homeownership. ## Understanding Mortgage Costs in Florida A mortgage is a long-term secured loan where the home serves as collateral. A monthly mortgage payment usually includes principal, interest, taxes, and insurance, known as PITI, and often private mortgage insurance as well. Florida homebuyers who put down less than 20 percent are typically required to carry private mortgage insurance, which protects the lender if the borrower defaults. This insurance can range from 0.15 percent to 2.5 percent of the loan amount and can usually be dropped once the loan reaches an 80 percent loan-to-value ratio. Florida homeowners should notify their lender when they reach that point so premiums can be discontinued. ## Reverse Mortgage Counseling in Florida Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp provides reverse mortgage, or HECM, counseling to Florida residents who want to better understand this type of loan before making a decision. ## Bankruptcy Counseling and Debtor Education in Florida Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp is approved by the Department of Justice to provide pre-filing bankruptcy counseling and post-filing debtor education to Florida residents. Bankruptcy counseling and debtor education each cost $50.00 per household per session and are available free or at a reduced rate based on ability to pay. The fee is per household, not per person, so a married couple filing together pays once. Households with income below 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for their household size are presumed eligible for a fee waiver. Households above that line may still qualify for a reduced fee if they can show a temporary financial hardship, such as a recent job loss or drop in income, unexpected medical costs, disability, separation or divorce, the death of a household wage earner, or another documented financial circumstance that significantly impacts the household's ability to pay. Waivers and reductions are assessed on the household's current income, expenses and overall financial condition, and Cambridge Credit Counseling will not refuse services to anyone due to inability to pay. Approval by the U.S. Department of Justice Executive Office of United States Trustees does not endorse or assure the quality of our services. ## Student Loan Counseling in Florida Florida residents can also get student loan counseling through Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp to help them understand their repayment options. Cambridge does not charge anything to inquire about this service. ## What Cambridge Does Not Offer in Florida Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp does not provide debt settlement in Florida. Debt settlement means negotiating to pay less than the full balance owed, and it is typically offered by for-profit companies rather than nonprofit agencies like Cambridge. A debt settlement evaluation is usually free and creates no obligation, just like a credit counseling session with Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp. There is no legal right to settle a debt in the United States, and a creditor is not obliged to accept a settlement offer. While a consumer sets money aside for a future settlement, interest and late fees continue to be assessed on the debt, so the balance keeps growing. If a settlement is reached, the forgiven amount is generally taxable as income unless the consumer is insolvent, and the consumer receives a Form 1099-C. The real difference is not the price of that first conversation, it is what happens after. On a debt settlement program, a consumer pays money into a special account periodically until enough has accumulated to offer a compromise on an enrolled account. While that money accumulates, no payments are made on the accounts, so they fall past due and age toward charge-off, and late fees, possible over-limit fees, and penalty interest rates increase the balances further. This period of non-payment has a deep negative impact on a consumer's credit score and on their future cost of borrowing. Debt settlement programs generally do not work with a consumer's creditors in an agreeable way; they generally disconnect the relationship, often through a cease-and-desist letter, which stops collection activity except where a creditor sues over non-payment. Settlement fees are generally charged at the point of a successful settlement and can range from 15 percent to 30 percent of the savings or the settled amount, and successful settlements themselves can range from 30 percent to 60 percent of the debt owed. By the time a settlement is reached, many balances have grown so much that the settlement company's fees plus the settled amount can come close to the original debt owed at enrollment. A debt management plan through Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp works with creditors instead of against them, and it pays the balance in full, with the concessions creditors have put in place. ## How Florida Residents Can Get Started Florida residents can call Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp at 800-235-1407 to begin a free counseling session and learn which services fit their situation. ## Questions and answers ### Is credit counseling free for Florida residents? Yes. Credit counseling sessions with Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp are free of charge for Florida residents. ### Does Cambridge Credit Counseling offer debt settlement in Florida? No. Cambridge does not offer debt settlement. Debt settlement negotiates to pay less than the full balance owed and is a different service, typically offered by for-profit companies. ### What is a debt management plan available to Florida residents? A debt management plan combines unsecured debts into one monthly payment sent to each creditor. It is not a loan. The plan works with creditors, rather than against them, to obtain benefits like a lower interest rate, waived fees, or re-aging a past-due account to current, and it pays the balance in full with those concessions in place. ### How much does bankruptcy counseling cost for Florida residents? Bankruptcy counseling and debtor education each cost $50.00 per household per session and are available free or at a reduced rate based on ability to pay. The fee is per household, not per person, so a married couple filing together pays once. Households with income below 150 percent of the federal poverty guidelines for their household size are presumed eligible for a fee waiver. Households above that line may still qualify for a reduced fee if they can show a temporary financial hardship, such as a recent job loss or drop in income, unexpected medical costs, disability, separation or divorce, the death of a household wage earner, or another documented financial circumstance that significantly impacts the household's ability to pay. Waivers and reductions are assessed on the household's current income, expenses and overall financial condition, and Cambridge Credit Counseling will not refuse services to anyone due to inability to pay. ## Sources - Mortgage Downpayments| Cambridge Credit: https://cambridge-credit.org/mortgage-down-payments.html (checked 2026-08-04) - cambridge-credit.org credit counseling page: https://cambridge-credit.org/credit-counseling.html (checked 2026-08-03) - Mortgage Downpayments| Cambridge Credit: https://cambridge-credit.org/mortgage-down-payments.html (checked 2026-08-04) - Cambridge Credit Counseling: https://cambridge-credit.org/index.html (checked 2026-08-04) - cambridge-credit.org bankruptcy page: https://cambridge-credit.org/bankruptcy-counseling.html (checked 2026-08-03) - cambridge-credit.org about page: https://cambridge-credit.org/about.html (checked 2026-08-03) - NFCC Member Agencies register: https://www.nfcc.org/nfcc-member-agencies/ (checked 2026-08-28) - cambridge-credit.org about page: https://cambridge-credit.org/about.html (checked 2026-08-03) - cambridge-credit.org contact page: https://cambridge-credit.org/contact.html (checked 2026-08-03) - Cambridge Credit Counseling: https://cambridge-credit.org/index.html (checked 2026-08-04) - cambridge-credit.org housing counseling page: https://cambridge-credit.org/housing-counseling.html (checked 2026-08-03) - Cambridge Credit Counseling, Marketing Advertisements Source Data, prepared by Brian Vosburgh, Director of DMP Operations, 1 September 2026. 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Are these legitimate?: https://www.consumerfinance.gov/ask-cfpb/ive-seen-a-lot-of-advertisements-for-companies-that-consolidate-credit-card-debt-are-these-legitimate-en-1859/ (checked 2026-09-18) - industry definition, NFCC: https://www.nfcc.org/resources/debt-management-plans/ (checked 2026-08-28) --- Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit credit counseling agency. Credit counseling is free. Talk to a counselor: 800-857-2808 | https://www.cambridge-credit.org/get-help Cambridge Credit Counseling Corp is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Required disclosures and state licenses, the privacy notice and the terms are linked in the footer of every page.