If you're buried in bills, you need a savvy adviser who can analyze your problems, show you how to live within your means and get the debt collectors off your back.

Adept counselors can persuade creditors to forgive part of what you owe and establish a realistic, 36- to 60-month repayment schedule for paying off the rest.

Unfortunately, some of the most-heavily promoted "nonprofit" credit counselors and debt consolidation services are in it for the money. Your money. And you've got to avoid them.

That's why we recommend members of The National Foundation for Credit Counseling, the nation's biggest and oldest credit-counseling organization.

Its 120 member agencies charge reasonable fees and abide by a set of ethical standards that have served many individuals and families very well over the past 50 years. Click here to to find a credit counselor near you.