I agree- total falsehood. The SOL is specific- depending on your state it stops after a certain period of inactivity. Calling you to ask about the debt does not reset the clock. A payment on the account will.
THANKS GUYS.. the fact that they want to settle for half leads me to believe they won't get a judgement and freeze my bank account. i would imagine they would have done so already? thats another fear of mine,my bank account getting frozen.
Read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fair_Debt_Collection_Practices_Act Post your questions here: http://www.creditboards.com Ignore everything written by peilthetraveler
Bk is worse on your record by far than delinquencies. _______________________ I'd would tend to agree with this statement only because various events in the future may ask you if you ever filed bk. Not a good thing.
Indeed. Most debt collection companies now are looking to settle for something, ANYTHING to get from you. $.50 on the dollar is average. In fact, many are working with or are subsidiaries of the cc company. I have ICO which is part of AMEX offer me $.25 on the dollar for a ~8,000 account. Still won't take it; I also don't have the money as I work my way into business profitability and owe on other accounts still. (got a little careless when young). Better to keep the money now then settle, unless you can settle both. Settling one and not the other does you no good. As for judgments, yes it can impose one typically through a "local" attorney's office to you. If it's deemed your assets don't meet your liabilities (i.e. you're considering bankruptcy and the like), then they most likely won't go after you and just "keep the judgment running." Check to make sure you're eligible for bankruptcy too in the end. I've been through a judgment twice on a ~3,000 account. Waste away a couple of hours in your local courthouse as I was there with like 85 other people. Worst they do is continue the judgment for another 3 months when it's deemed you can't owe anything. The garnishing the check bit and whatnot is a bit more myth then fact; could it be done? Only if it's deemed you make enough and your bills are low. The kicker on settling is to make sure it's reported right on your credit report, otherwise it's practically for naught. Call the original creditor when you have enough to pay on both and negotiate to get it taken off (charge off's stay on for 7 years I believe) as long as you pay it (not the full amount, start low and negotiate no higher then say 60 cents on the dollar).
every word in this post is wrong......... make them prove the debt if they ever start harassing you....the idiot collections agencies will not be able to.
Just got another settlement offer on a small account...either citi or amex? Can't remember offhand. $.30 on the dollar now. They're getting desperate.
Take it from a guy with experience. My first marriage 23 years ago to a disaster left me in 50K hock in only 13 months. I was making peanuts and was hounded by collection agencies all day long. I did learn a few things. If you settle, BE SURE YOU GET IT IN WRITING. The letter should include that it will be reported to the credit bureau as a paid account. I learned this the hard way with one creditor. I settled for half and did not get it in writing. I paid it but the account was not marked as paid. That agency sold it to another agency and they hounded me for years afterward trying to collect the other half. A paid charge off is better than an unpaid charge off when it comes to your credit report. An unpaid account can stay on your credit report past 7 years. It is based on the Date of Last Activity on the account. The creditor can update the account on your report and the counter starts over again. If you make a payment, that resets the counter. I can never in good conscious tell somebody not to pay a debt, but if you choose that route, make no contact with them ever. They will eventually charge it off. If you ever try to buy a house though, the lender might make you pay your unpaid charge offs though. Don't do a BK.
Otally wrong and miss informed. Only a payment from the consumer can reset the statute. Although I even question this. The statute cannot be reset by the creditor due to activity. They will tell you this but a letter from a law firm should set them straight