There are a lot of sham debt consolidation companies out there. It shouldn’t be as hard as it is to discern the good ones from the bad. Unfortunately, it seems to be, as many people not only lose money, but end up with bad credit at the same time.

American Debt Resolutions is one of those companies. Based in Texas, they’re one of only four debt consolidation companies in the state registered with The Association of Settlement Companies (TASC). Companies that are registered with TASC have to pass certain standards to be allowed in as members, and are almost the certification arm of debt collection organizations. However, there are some companies that end up with negative ratings that belong to TASC, so it’s not a slam dunk.

Although Better Business Bureau rankings can sometimes be subjective and not the overall standard for how competent businesses are, it’s nice to note that the BBB has never had a negative complaint against them. We couldn’t find anywhere on line where there have been complaints about them either, which is a great sign.

One thing that helps you to realize this is a legitimate company is that they encourage you to visit them in their offices, and to call them whenever you have questions about your account. They’re even known to pick up the phone, which sounds strange to say, but with many debt consolidation companies, once you’re on a plan with them they’re sometimes hard to reach.

There are some other upsides with American Debt Resolutions as well. They charge less than average for set up fees, which is a percentage of what companies charge you based on your outstanding debt. Their fee is only 13.5%, whereas the average is 15%. Also, there’s no monthly fee, whereas other companies will have fees that can range between $25 and $100 a month. So, they not only work with you in resolving your debt, but they save you some money also.

Although American Debt Resolutions touts the same party line as many other debt consolidation companies when it comes to building themselves up while tearing down other methods, one thing we noticed is that they also put out articles on the internet that describe other methods of debt protection, including Consumer Credit Counseling, and those articles are non-biased and accurate representations of exactly what the other methods might do for you. That was a nice change of pace, even if the articles still have a slight slant that builds them up in a less direct way.

American Debt Resolutions, which has been around since 2006, seems to be a reputable company. They’re at least worth a look if you’re having credit problems in Texas.