At the end of 2023, hope was high that the worst of this inflationary cycle was over. The inflation report released in December showed inflation cooling in the month prior, and many hoped it would continue to fall into 2024 — and that interest rate cuts would soon follow. 

Unfortunately, that hasn't been the reality in the early months of the year. Inflation was hotter than expected in the first report of 2024 and it increased in February and March. This means the costs of many goods and services will remain high, as will interest rates for borrowers.

Amid this environment, many Americans may find themselves looking for ways to make ends meet and pay off high-interest debt. With the average interest rate on credit cards and personal loans in the double digits right now, it can be difficult to clear your debt. But with the right debt relief service, it may be possible. 

You can easily review your top debt relief options online here.

How debt relief can help amid rising inflation

Here are three important ways debt relief can help amid today's rising inflation rate.

It can consolidate your debt

If you have multiple high-interest debts you're struggling to pay each month then debt relief may be worth pursuing. Debt relief servicers can help you consolidate your debts into one total debt consolidation loan. Not only will this help with budgeting (as you'll have one payment each month versus multiple ones), but you may also be able to get a lower rate on the debt consolidation loan than what you have with your other debts, saving you in interest costs, too. 

Learn more about your debt consolidation loan options today.

It can renegotiate your terms

If you think you can ultimately pay what you owe independently, but just need a little help with your current terms, debt relief programs can assist you via their debt consolidation programs. By choosing this option, you'll have debt relief professionals renegotiate your payment plans and interest rates directly with your lenders on your behalf. 

In the end, you'll wind up making a payment to the debt relief company instead of the companies you owe money to. Those funds will then be disbursed on your behalf to those companies, streamlining the payoff process in the interim.

It can forgive your debt

Debt relief services can also help build a plan toward credit card debt forgiveness. But the way forward here is key, as debt settlement programs can temporarily damage your credit score, but they won't have the same long-term negative credit score impact that bankruptcy would, for example. 

Either option could result in having your debt forgiven, though, so if today's inflation and elevated borrowing costs have left you with more debt than you can conceivably handle, these options are worth investigating now.

The bottom line

With inflation more problematic than many had hoped for this year, and the borrowing costs and daily prices for common good unlikely to fall anytime soon, it may be worth exploring alternative ways to get your finances back in order. Debt relief services can help by consolidating your debt, renegotiating your terms with lenders and potentially even having your existing debt forgiven (although, again, this comes with serious credit ramifications). Just don't let your debt stagnate and instead use this week's inflation news as motivation to restore your personal financial health.