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Debt consolidation products follow a straightforward pattern with Method: discover the borrower’s existing debts, verify current balances, and route payments directly to each creditor. This guide continues the James Rodriguez scenario from Getting Started, where Connect discovered 6 liability accounts.

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Identifying Payable Accounts

From the Connect results, James has 6 liability accounts. Before building a consolidation plan, determine which accounts Method can actually send payments to by checking the products array on each account. Only accounts with payment in their products list are eligible for payoff through Method. This reflects whether Method has a payment rail to that specific creditor. 
GET /accounts/{acc_id}
→ check for "payment" in the products array
Account IDCreditorTypeBalancePayable via Method
acc_WqNhMRNVZjbKgChase Freedom FlexCredit Card$3,200payment available
acc_nPvJM9KXRwQE4Discover itCredit Card$1,800payment available
acc_TmGPLxkz7Nrh6Toyota Motor CreditAuto Loan$18,450payment available
acc_RkFqVbD8HjQxPFedLoanStudent Loan$34,200Data only (balance, update)
acc_YXDrjADGjC76UUpstartPersonal Loan$12,000payment available
acc_KpLnWzFt9Mjd3Rocket MortgageMortgage$245,000Data only (balance, update)
Four of James’s six accounts support payment disbursement through Method. The FedLoan student loan and Rocket Mortgage provide real-time data (via update) for DTI calculations and underwriting, but payment routing to those servicers isn’t available through Method. If your consolidation product needs to pay off those accounts, you’d handle disbursement through your own payment rails. Your product’s underwriting logic determines which payable debts to consolidate. A typical consolidation product might target the two credit cards ($5,000 combined), while a broader consolidation loan might include the personal loan and credit cards ($17,000 combined).
Always verify payment is in the account’s products array before including an account in a consolidation plan. Attempting to create a payment to an account without payment coverage will return an error. Build your UI and underwriting logic to distinguish between accounts that are discoverable (visible via Connect) and accounts that are payable (eligible for disbursement through Method).

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Verifying Balances with Account Updates

Before calculating disbursement amounts, pull real-time balances to ensure accuracy. The Application & Qualification guide covers Account Updates in detail. The key insight is that balances can change daily as transactions post and payments clear — a balance from application time may be stale by funding time.

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Disbursing Funds to Creditors

Once your consolidation loan is approved and funded, use the Payments API to send funds directly to each creditor. Payments flow from your corporate funding account to the borrower’s liability accounts.

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Pay Off the Chase Freedom Flex ($3,200)

curl https://production.methodfi.com/payments \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2025-12-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "amount": 320000,
    "source": "acc_hmap9mbgfLcf9",
    "destination": "acc_WqNhMRNVZjbKg",
    "description": "Payoff"
  }'

{
  "id": "pmt_Qm4RnKx8Wb",
  "source": "acc_hmap9mbgfLcf9",
  "destination": "acc_WqNhMRNVZjbKg",
  "amount": 320000,
  "description": "Payoff",
  "status": "pending",
  "estimated_completion_date": "2025-09-22",
  "source_trace_id": null,
  "source_settlement_date": "2025-09-16",
  "source_status": "pending",
  "destination_trace_id": null,
  "destination_settlement_date": "2025-09-22",
  "destination_payment_method": "electronic",
  "destination_status": "pending",
  "reversal_id": null,
  "error": null,
  "metadata": null,
  "created_at": "2025-09-15T15:15:42.318Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-09-15T15:15:42.318Z"
}

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Pay Off the Discover it ($1,800)

curl https://production.methodfi.com/payments \
  -X POST \
  -H "Method-Version: 2025-12-01" \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer sk_WyZEWVfTcH7GqmPzUPk65Vjc" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{
    "amount": 180000,
    "source": "acc_hmap9mbgfLcf9",
    "destination": "acc_nPvJM9KXRwQE4",
    "description": "Payoff"
  }'

{
  "id": "pmt_Xp9TnLw3Vf",
  "source": "acc_hmap9mbgfLcf9",
  "destination": "acc_nPvJM9KXRwQE4",
  "amount": 180000,
  "description": "Payoff",
  "status": "pending",
  "estimated_completion_date": "2025-09-22",
  "source_trace_id": null,
  "source_settlement_date": "2025-09-16",
  "source_status": "pending",
  "destination_trace_id": null,
  "destination_settlement_date": "2025-09-22",
  "destination_payment_method": "electronic",
  "destination_status": "pending",
  "reversal_id": null,
  "error": null,
  "metadata": null,
  "created_at": "2025-09-15T15:16:08.774Z",
  "updated_at": "2025-09-15T15:16:08.774Z"
}
Both payments are now in pending status. Method will process the payments and deliver webhooks as each moves through the payment lifecycle: pending → processing → sent → settled.
Payment descriptions are limited to 10 characters. Use short labels like "Payoff", "Consolidat", or "Paydown".

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Summary

The full debt consolidation flow combines four Method capabilities:
StepAPIPurpose
1. Discover debtsPOST /entities/{ent_id}/connectFind all liability accounts
2. Check coverageGET /accounts/{acc_id} → productsConfirm which accounts support payment
3. Verify balancesPOST /accounts/{acc_id}/updatesGet real-time balances and rates
4. Disburse fundsPOST /paymentsRoute payments directly to payable creditors

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What’s Next

Monitoring & Retargeting

Monitor post-funding account activity and identify retargeting opportunities.

Payments Lifecycle

Understand payment states, timelines, and webhook events.