Credit Counselors
Business and Financial Operations
Interviews clients by phone or in person, then reviews income, assets, debts, expenses, and credit reports to see what they can realistically pay each month. Builds budgets, spending plans, or debt-management plans, and ranks which debts to pay first so clients can avoid foreclosure, bankruptcy, or extra interest. Explains loan types, program rules, creditor concessions, credit reports, bankruptcy and consumer-protection laws, and collection actions, then recommends options such as a new loan, a budget change, a debt-management plan, or bankruptcy. Fits people who prefer one-to-one advising and turning a full set of bills and income into a clear plan.
Typical education: Bachelor’s Degree (4-year)
Annual Median Wage in Field (2025)
$52'230
Median Wage Market Position
$52'230
What you might do
- Look over a client's income, debts, and credit
- Interview people about bills, assets, and expenses
- Figure monthly income left for debt payments
- Build a repayment plan or household budget
- Rank debts so the costliest ones get paid first
- Explain bankruptcy, credit scores, and collection rules
Skills that matter
- Interviewing clients about income and debts
- Walking through credit reports and bankruptcy law
- Building debt-management and spending plans
- Choosing which debts to repay first
- Assessing income, assets, and expenses
- Guidance on loans, budgets, or bankruptcy
AI & the future of this role
Debt analysis, repayment scenarios, and routine plan drafting are tasks software may increasingly handle. Empathy with stressed clients and judgment on messy personal finances still matter, yet much of the core advisory work sits in a highly automatable zone.
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Includes O*NET® 30.3 Database information by USDOL/ETA under CC BY 4.0; modified by LostInCareer. Wage/outlook from BLS. Attribution details