Archive for October, 2009
I Have Questions About Entering a Debt Management Plan With MMI. – Jennicka
“Dear Steve, Thank you for your site. I’m at a precipice and need your help. I am employed making $130,000 a year with $76,000 in debt, with mortgage and school tuition monthly payments of $3200 a month not including utilities, car/home maintenance etc. My husband has been laid off since May and with the credit card rate increases it is harder and harder to make my payments. I’m barely making them and I’m a month or two away from really not being able to pay someone what I owe — with the rate increases I fear I may drown altogether. In an effort to reduce my rates with Chase I was referred to MMI. I see on your site a lot of discussion regarding bankruptcy vs. a Debt Management Plan and I’m really not sure what would be best for my situation. I spoke with MMI and they can get my monthly debt payments down to $1,200 with interest rates drastically reduced (from 29.9% to the max of 7% one is even 0%) which seems so much more reasonable that I actually could take responsibility for my actions. What are your thoughts? Also, if going with a DMP, do you recommend trying to double the first month of payments to avoid possible cross over issues and credit dings? Or are dings inevitable when going this route? My credit rating was around 700 last I checked. I’m not sure how much I should be worrying about my rating given I’m on the verge of not being able to many of the cards. I value your opinion. Regards, Jennicka” Dear Jennicka, Thanks for the trust and asking me for advice. Money Management International, MMI, is a fine credit counseling company. They can handle a debt management plan as good or better than a lot of people. But that’s not really the issue here. As I see it the underlying issue we need to focus on is if a debt management plan is a reasonable risk for you at all right now. First, no matter what you do, debt management or some other solution, it will impact your credit. While it is true that some credit counseling groups say that a DMP will not hurt your credit, that is partially true. While it might not be noted on your credit report that you are in a DMP, the accounts you include in the DMP will be closed by the creditors and that will impact your score. If you feel you could make the $1,200 monthly DMP payments for the next five years or so, then it might be worth pursuing. However, if those $1,200 payments don’t leave you room to save money each month and to build up an emergency fund since you can’t fall back on the cards since they will be closed, it might not be right for you. A debt management plan works when you can make ALL the payments and repay ALL your debt. If you fall short and are only able to make 60% of the payments then you are still stuck in debt. If I could assign you some homework it would be for you to first find a local bankruptcy attorney to make a free appointment with for a bankruptcy consultation. I want you to go in and discuss your situation with them so you can get a second opinion and be as informed as possible so you can make the most educated decision possible. After you meet with the bankruptcy attorney you can then decide if bankruptcy offers you additional benefits and options or if you are willing to be you’ll be able to make the payment for the next five years. Does that seem like a reasonable request and homework for you? Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: I Have Questions About Entering a Debt Management Plan With MMI. – Jennicka Other Related Articles to Read I Signed Up With Money Management International and Now I Have Bad Credit. – Anna Money Management international Gave Me a Monthly Payment That is Too High For Me. – Valeria I Owe American Express and I Am About to Start a Debt Repayment Plan With Money Management International. – Shelley What Do You Think of the CCCS company Money Management International? – Carol Disturbing and Potentially Deceptive Move by Credit Card Industry. HelpWithMyCredit.org
I Haven’t Paid Any Bills And Don’t Know Where to Start. – Hippy
“Dear Steve, So I haven’t paid any of my outstanding bills for some time now. I know that I owe $5,000 in credit debt and I had hip surgery and a severe car accident in the last two years. I have debt everywhere and have no idea where to start. Where should I start and who do I go to to fix it? Hippy” Dear Hippy, There are specific steps you can take but if you’ve been been struggling I would doubt that you’ve been able to maintain or have an emergency fund savings account . Before you start to open a can of worms on tackling the bad debts, I think you need to save at least $2,000 in the bank first to protect you from any further financial misfortune. You need a safety net. The emergency fund account doesn’t have to be anything fancy or complicated. Just a boring old savings account will do the trick. How long will it take you to save $2,000? As far as who you need to go to, you don’t need to go to anyone. I can show you what to do once you’ve got some cash saved for an emergency. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: I Haven’t Paid Any Bills And Don’t Know Where to Start. – Hippy Other Related Articles to Read How Can I Refinance My Car With Bad Credit? – Erik Nobody Will Give Me a Debt Consolidation Loan to Pay Off My Debts. – Scott Bill Collectors Are Trying to Get Me to Pay for a Lease From 20 Years Ago. – Tom How Do I Make the Collector Go After My Ex-Husband For His Debts Instead of Me? – Sarah Will I Be Responsible for My Fiancees Debt When We Get Married? – Ken
We Can’t Afford Our Bankruptcy Payment Anymore But Want to Keep Our House. – Tymiee
“Dear Steve, My husband and I filed Chpt 13 bankruptcy a year and a half ago, to save our house, our cars, and an irs debt that we were dumb enough to have happen. We both had jobs, and even though the payment was really high we felt we had no other choice but to file so we would not lose everything. He lost his job this year and took a $4 an hour pay cut, my hours got cut also, and now I am barely working. We have a $2600 payment on about $200,000 debt, we have been paying for a year and a half. We are no longer surviving, sure we have the house and the cars, which we need with 3 kids still in the house, but some times the utility bills are any iffy thing, when food comes first. They take $1350 every two weeks out of my husbands check, if he didn’t work 7 days a week 12 hours shifts, he wouldnt get a check at all. Trust me it has happened. I was wondering if there are loans that would pay off the bancruptcy and give us a lower payment. We have been paying $2600 a month for about 18 mths, if there are loans out there, they got to have lower payments than that. If that cant be done, Is there any help out there to help releive this? We have no credit cards, AND no desire to get any other credit, we just want to keep our house and our cars with out drowning. I know the loan idea seems to sound a bit backwards, but I see ads all the time for loans for 200,000 at about $1000 payments, Im sure with horrendous credit it may be more than that, but still cheaper than what we are paying through our esteemed govt., like I said backwards thinking, lol Thank-you for your time and for answering my questions. Also… Thanks for the support banner, When my 21 yr old Coastie boy comes home in November he most defiantly will get big hugs!!!! My questions are: is there anything we can do to lower the payment, with out losing everything? Can you pay off the bankruptcy with a loan to a lower the payment? Tymiee” Dear Tymiee, First, the bad news, I know of no loans to pay off a bankruptcy. In all my years I’ve never heard of any legitimate loan to do that. You have a couple of options but they all begin with your bankruptcy attorney . You should contact your attorney and go see them face-to-face, if you can, and discuss a bankruptcy payment modification or to discharge your Chapter 13 bankruptcy and move it to a Chapter 7. If you did convert it to a Chapter 7 it might mean that you’d have to give the house back and move, depending on the situation, but it would also mean that you’d have all the money you are paying out now in a Chapter 13 to use for yourself to get by each month. The downside is that if a payment modification is not possible, you may have to make some radical changes in your living arrangements. The upside is that you are not on fire, you have a Coastie that loves you and there is hope for a new and better future. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: We Can’t Afford Our Bankruptcy Payment Anymore But Want to Keep Our House. – Tymiee Other Related Articles to Read No Related Post
Where Can I Get a Loan to Pay For Debt Settlements? – Yonaton
“Dear Steve, I am a college student who has over 10 grand in personal credit card debt and I am getting chased by Barclay Card for a DirectTV Rewards Visa and Chase Bank for an Amazon and Amtrack credit card. This week I got a letter from Chase saying they were going to take me to court over the money I owe them. I have no income and my parents will not help. I am getting married next November and I do not know what to do. Are there any organizations or groups where I can get a loan to pay for the settlements being offered by the Credit Card Companies and be able to repay them after I graduate this May. I am looking to get a job as soon as possible. I am desperate I will be getting served around November 20th. Yonaton” Dear Yonaton, The only possible place I can think of, LendingClub.com , probably won’t lend to you because your credit score is damaged by your recent delinquent payments and collection accounts. If you have no income then you won’t be able to do anything. You’ll just have to wait to be served, go to court for the case, you will probably lose and then have a judgment against you. That will appear on your credit report . But it is what it is. When you start to make money again you can either pay off the judgements you’ll have or proceed to bankruptcy to wipe them out. The underlying issue here is you incurred debt but appear to have no way to repay it. Now, unfortunately, you’ll just have to face the consequences. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: Where Can I Get a Loan to Pay For Debt Settlements? – Yonaton Other Related Articles to Read I’m in College and Getting Sued by CapitalOne. What Do I Do? – John I Have No Job, No House, No Car and No Way of Paying Back My Debt. – Diana I Lost My Job Two Months Ago and Have $19,000 in Credit Card Debt. – Steve I Am A College Student With Good Credit and Bad Debt. – Matt James in the UK is Feeling Horrible About His Situation.
Everything is a Mess With Navy Federal Credit Union. – Lesley
“Dear Steve, Everything is a mess. Another navy federal question. I owe over 18 thousand to NFCU and around 7 thousand to other credit cards, My husband owes around 20 thousand to credit cards 6 of that is to NFCU. My husband has ended up in a nursing home. He has only retirement income. We have a medicaid trust set up and they take half of his income for the nursing home per medicaid rules. I have a limited community spouse amount which is the other half of his retirement income and barely enough to meet my monthly obligations. NFCU has been after me. I agreed to try and pay 120 a month for 12 months and they were suppose to take the interest down to 0-3% which now they say will be 6% well 6 percent on over 18 thousand is like interest only payment. I told them I need help to pay the principal down and please use the 120 a month to do that instead of all interest. I have already paid over 1,600 in interest this year alone before we fell on hard times. They said unless I can pay 180 a month which I cannot do right now they will not move the interest down. I said I will not pay the 120 a month then. My husband will not be coming out of the nursing home he is there permanently. Navy says they will take legal action. I want to pay them something and things might be better financially in a year but they won’t work with me except for the terms they insist on. We had excellent credit before and paying all our bills on time. My only other option is bankruptcy for me which I did not want to do to nfcu as we have been with them over 25 years. We own a modest home. Have one 2004 car and no other assets to speak of. How can I get Navy to work with me on this debt of mine? I do not want a lien on our home. I am afraid of loosing my car although it is paid for. Help. then I need to decide how to handle my other credit cards or just claim bankruptcy . Thanks, Lesley” Dear Lesley, This is a situation where long term debt was created but life just didn’t cooperate with you. It is unfortunate that your husband is now limited to the nursing home and I’m sure there have been some dramatic income changes along the path to that point. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do to force NFCU to work with you. Well, except for one thing, bankruptcy. As much as you want to avoid it, bankruptcy is a legal process that provides some protection and rights for the debtor. And I know you feel an allegiance to NFCU, after being with them for 25 years but shouldn’t that be a two way street? It does not sound like they are providing much value in the past relationship with you. That is not a justification, just an observation. I think at this point, be it $120 a month or $180 a month, there is not much of an expectation that you are going to be able to afford or service the debts of both you and your husband in your situation. Any monthly payments you send now will be essentially worthless if you can’t ultimately pay off all the debt. Your homework is to find a local bankruptcy attorney you like, make an appointment and go in and talk to them about what bankruptcy and its associated legal protections would mean for you. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: Everything is a Mess With Navy Federal Credit Union. – Lesley Other Related Articles to Read My Mother is Disabled and Bedridden in a Nursing Home and Chased by Debt Collectors. – Carolyn I Owe Navy Federal Credit Union $17,000. – Garr
Kansas Statute of Limitations Question. – KansasDebt78
“Dear Steve, I am currently working on fixing my credit….now I am finding some hiccups My question is fairly simple. I have been back and forth with a well known junk debt buyer. My defense is easy…..SOL has expired. The key problem I am having here is proving that this credit card is indeed considered under the TILA an “open account”. In Kansas the SOL on open accounts is 3 years. Plaintiff contests that a credit card is a written contract. We have gone back and forth on this and I am tired. I have spent mearly 100 hours researching various case laws in regards to this topic but nothing is concrete. As of right now it appears that the only discovery that they have is what may be a signed acceptance form by me…..The lawyer only flashed it at us. I will tell you this……Since I have been fighting this, the plaintiffs have asked for 3 continuances. Are they nervous? Am I about to get screwed? Aside from SOL I have another question…….I wonder if I can subpoena the Original Creditor my last statement showing my last deliquent payment? So far the only date that shows is 3/14/05 and that is on my credit report under date of last activity. The plaintiff is using this date as well…..by the way I received summoms 1 month past the 5 yr SOL…..guess they only have to file before the 5 yr SOL. Anyhow, any advice. I am actually pretty resourceful, but this is getting tiresome……maybe I shoud make an offer?? KansasDebt78″ Dear KansasDebt, Just my opinion but it seems that for all the time and research you’ve put into this that it would have been cheaper and more expeditious if you just went and got a legal opinion or representation from a Kansas licensed attorney. That’s what I would do if I was in your situation. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: Kansas Statute of Limitations Question. – KansasDebt78 Other Related Articles to Read I Have a 12 Year Old Debt I’m Paying On. – Steve CACH, LLC is Suing Me for a Debt That is 11 Years Old. – Sharon Bill Collectors Are Trying to Get Me to Pay for a Lease From 20 Years Ago. – Tom I’ve Ignored My Debt for a Long Time and I’m Not Sure How to Proceed. – Brian I Owe on a Cell Phone Bill for Downloads That Are Not Mine. – L
What Options Should We Consider to Avoid Foreclosure? – Joshua
“Dear Steve, 210,000 mortgage – 196,000 owed 4 months behind, foreclosure has not yet started but may within a month or so KS provides 120 days for the foreclosure process 15-20k unsecured credit debt/medical bills My wife has 18k in student loan debt 2 cars, not behind on and I’m not certain how much equity really is in them but the debt is 20k 13k for the 05′ highlander, 6k for the 04′ impala Lost my job 4 months ago I make 1200 a month on unemployment My wife makes maybe 800-1000 a month with her jobs. 3 children and on foodstamps. Trying to find work and if I can find a job that pays 50-70k I’ll do whatever it takes to pay the debt. No 401k or assets other than what is listed. Applied for loan modification and BoA denied it. House is an FHA 6% interest 30 year note. 1600/month payment. What should I do? I’ve been told to consider bankruptcy , but I have no idea what is really best for us to do and what options we should honestly consider. Joshua” Dear Joshua, This must certainly be an emotionally charged and stressful time for you. I’ve lived through that panic and fear myself and there is nothing fun about it. While bankruptcy is a legal tool that is available to you it is probably not a reasonable expectation that it will allow you to keep the house. In a Chapter 13 bankruptcy you’d need to make at least the regular mortgage payment plus some to get caught up. I can’t see how the numbers would add up to allow you to do that and still get by. But it would be worth finding a local bankruptcy attorney you like, schedule a free bankruptcy consultation and go talk to them. Ultimately the first thing we need to focus on is replacement income. Unemployment is good but will not last forever. That is even more important than the house situation right now. Shelter situations can change and moving is a pain but being homeless sucks. After your unemployment benefits expire, unless you can find income, you could be on the street. Just don’t let the mortgage situation distract you from the income issue. I know you are trying but it’s time to make a job of getting a job. You might even have to consider doing what I did when I found myself in that jam. I went and applied with every temp agency in my area, took every assignment they could send me on, and got to experience some horrible jobs. But I did them all with a smile on my face and grateful for any opportunity to earn money. In the mean time, if you have some extra time on your hands, start going through your stuff at home and start throwing away anything you don’t need. It does not hurt to lighten the load now if you have to move latter. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: What Options Should We Consider to Avoid Foreclosure? – Joshua Other Related Articles to Read My Husband Was Laid Off and I Was Referred to Money Management International For Help But I’m Leery. – Ann Because My Husband Lost His Job, We Can’t Make Our Credit Card Payments. – Susan My Husband is Going to Be Laid Off This Friday. – Lori My Husband Can’t Find a Job. – Elizabeth I Am 52 And Not Worked in Five Years. Creditors Are Chasing Me. – Lora
We’ve Been Struggling Below Poverty With Collection Agencies Chasing Us. – Dina
“Dear Steve, ‘ve been a single parent for the last 19 years of two children who receives SSI and my daughter’s survivor death benefit as our family’s sole source of income for the last 5 years. Before that it was welfare and FS only. I was not always able on my limited income (below poverty level) to make ends meet so out of necessity I ended up making the mistake of obtaining store cards and a couple credit cards to use mostly for emergencies, like health care, paying bills to avoid shut offs, food expense and the like. I was working with a non profit debt consolidation agency that required one monthly payment from me which I was faithful in paying for four almost five years, the alloted amount of time they indicated with their figuring it would take to pay my total debt off with the new lowered interest rates they obtained. Unfortunately they regularly didn’t pay the companies in time and late fees accrued for a few years and added to my total debt which they didn’t take responsibility to agree to remedy. They didn’t have an answer when I kept asking the reason for this. I came to the point where I lost faith in them, didn’t know where else to turn and due to the priority of needing to literally feed my children I let them know this lowered monthly amount which was the very lowest they could do for me was more than a hardship for me and that I couldn’t manage making payments to them anymore. For the last 8 or 9 years I have not done anything. Collection agencies are still tacking on charges and selling my debt to other agencies for whatever price added to my total debt. My attorney father indicated I needed to send letters to these agencies which I did and don’t remember getting any responses back. I don’t really remember the content of what I indicated in these letters. My father doesn’t really know the laws surrounding debt and hasn’t been too helpful in finding out info so I called bankruptcy attorneys which indicated I could apply but this didn’t make sense to me given I don’t really own anything of any value they anyone could take away from me and don’t even have a savings account let alone have the ability to afford the cost of going bankrupt,- pretty pathetic I realize. I’m still in the dark of what to do. I still get annoying collection agency letters so I am assuming no but I would like any info about options I have to resolve this as I don’t like this hanging over my head. I haven’t done recent calculations but I do know I get rejected when applying for any credit so I must have a lousy credit report . Other than that my best guess is I am 15,000 or 20,000 in debt. My question is, is there a set period of time of not being able to make any debt collection agency payments due to extreme hardship where one’s debt goes away or is forgiven and you are given an opportunity to get a fresh start? I’ve heard various things such as after 7 or more years of not having any credit cards and or store cards that this can happen, but I have questioned this given I can’t get approval for credit cards( I have done this to find out if anything has improved as far as my credit standing over time since I don’t know my current credit rating and can’t afford getting my credit report ); I still get collection agency debt notices, though no longer the harassing phone calls. I did get approval on two store cards but no credit cards so I don’t know how to interpret this. Is there such thing as what my attorney father thought there might be where you write letters to these agencies explaining your plight and with them never responding within a given time frame, after a certain amount of years your debt is absolved? If not so, please let me know what else can be done and what other options I have if any Thank you!!!!!! Dina” Dear Dina, Well I owe you a big thank you for giving me so much information. It really helps in answering your question. Let’s just get straight to the bottom line. There isn’t anything we can do about the past now. It is certainly too bad the debt management plan with that credit counseling program did not work out. But many don’t. Probably the best thing to do at this point is nothing. Sounds ridiculous right? It is most likely that these very old debts are now beyond the statue of limitations for you to be sued for them. Although, companies can still attempt to collect until you die. It seems to me that your biggest issue at this point is not to focus on repairing the past, but to turn around and focus on making your future safer. To do that you should probably not send any more funds towards those old debts and take whatever, if any, money you would have used and save it in a boring old savings account . Again, in my personal opinion, I think you provide a greater benefit and service to yourself and your children by doing the best you can right now to create some financial stability moving forward. It seems that now is the time for you to think about finding a job, or two in order to start to build up an income stream that is not primarily dependent on SSI. I would also suggest that you avoid the store cards or credit cards until you do. Otherwise, this will be a repeating cycle and I need for you to build up income before you even get tempted to use credit again to help makes ends meet. The difference in this approach is rather than using credit to bridge you in time when you have needs and no money, the proper use of a credit card is as a convenient financial tool to use when you have the money to pay for it. Credit cards are are a transactional tool, not a life bridge or safety net. Oh yes, the letters were not a waste of time but probably didn’t change much. When you can afford to, get a copy of your consolidated credit report and it is time to take a look at what is still on it after all these years. Since it has been longer than seven years, the old stuff should not be reported on it anymore. Don’t confuse not being reported with not being collectible. You can still be chased even if it is not on your consumer credit report. One place you can get a free copy of one of your credit reports and credit score is at Credit Karma . It’s probably worth even getting a look at that just to get an idea when you stand now. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: We’ve Been Struggling Below Poverty With Collection Agencies Chasing Us. – Dina Other Related Articles to Read Recent Searches for Debt Advice Holy, Divorced, Disabled and Desperately in Debt Samantha Says “My Husband And I Are Young And Don’t Want to File Bankruptcy. What Do We Do?” About Ads
Freedom Debt Told Me Not to Speak to My Creditor. – Karen
“Dear Steve, I owe $26,000 in unsecured credit card debt, plus $6,000 in medical bills from 2008 and 2009. 6 months ago, I turned the $26,000 over to Freedom Debt. Of course, they are taking their fee out first, they have negotiated and settled one $1,700 account for about half. The last payment goes out to that creditor November 5. Regarding the others, it is apparent they are not going to negotiate until there is money in my account to negotiate with. I just received a call from an attorney requesting I phone them regarding a debt. Freedom Debt says “Do not call your creditors, that will compromise the negotiating.” My friend, also with Freedom Debt, has been summoned to court over a $17,000 debt to Chase, and they offered $10,000 settlement payable immediately, or a $17,000 settlement, payable in ridiculous terms. Do you think it is prudent for me to contact my creditors and begin my own negotiations or at least start paying them back for the last 6 months? I do not have any money to send them full settlements, nor even half of the balance. Would creditors listen to little old me in my request to have interest reduced, eliminated, and accept me catching up my past 6 month balances over the next 3 months? Thank you for your help so much! Karen” Dear Karen, This is unfortunately a common situation. Here is the problem. You have made arrangements and paid high fees with Freedom Debt to make an effort in settling your debts. In the meantime I assume you are sending your money to Freedom Debt instead of to your creditors. By doing that you are clearly in default on your creditor agreements and the creditors can avail themselves of all remedies under the law, including suing you. The fact you are working with a debt settlement company and sending your money there is not a defense. All this time, your credit report is getting worse and worse. The accounts are showing up as delinquent and the settlements still leave a residual amount of debt that will show as a bad debt for the next seven years. I don’t know if the person that called you was an attorney or a collector posing as an attorney. And the reason Freedom Debt probably does not want you to call is so you don’t make a promise you can’t pay or will pay them instead of sending payments to Freedom Debt. All I can tell you for certain is that if you are in default the creditor has the right to sue you at any time, no matter who you are working with, the exception is a bankruptcy attorney . It is up to you if you want to call this person back, it is your debt and your responsibility. If ever there was a slippery slope, I think this is it. You pay a debt settlement company for services, you don’t have the lump-sum money to settle, and before you can save years of money to settle you get sued and lose. In the meantime your credit is shot and gets worse, collections continues and life does not improve. My opinion is that bankruptcy is a much better approach than monthly payment debt settlement programs. Bankruptcy blocks and stops all law suits, it gives you legal protection, it is much cheaper than debt settlement, and it let’s you start your life over now. Karen, I think you owe it to yourself to find a local bankruptcy attorney you like, make an appointment, and go in and discuss what advantages bankruptcy might offer you. Only then, with that legal advice, will you be able to make informed and educated decisions about which path is right for you. Please update me on your progress by posting updates here in the comments section of your question . I’m very interested in how this works out for you. Big hug. Steve @GetOutOfDebtGuy P.S. Be sure to read ‘ The Secret of Surviving Through Difficult Economic Times. What I Learned On My Journey ‘. If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form . I’m happy to help you totally for free. Source: Freedom Debt Told Me Not to Speak to My Creditor. – Karen Other Related Articles to Read No Related Post
The day Leonard Asper lost the Street – Globe and Mail
Globe and Mail The day Leonard Asper lost the Street Globe and Mail … acquisition on what amounted to a Goldman Sachs credit card undermined Bay Street's confidence in him. It also raised CanWest's debt to $3.8 billion. … and more »