Okay. So I had a couple of credit cards, lost my job, and then left the country for 2 years. Now I owe a whole lot. I know I've got to pay, but is there a way to not pay so much??
Pull your credit report to see who has them now. You can get a free credit report on annualcreditreport(dot)com, you can then find out where they are, call the companys and try to make a settlement with them or some type of payment arrangement that you can afford. Once you make the arrangement, stick with it.
It most definatley will be in SOL. So you want to take care of this asap. Usually these companies will settle for anywhere from 70-80% of the debt they have listed. So always try to negotiate an offer. It still will be more than you owed but its better than having it hang over your head or being sued.
Since you have ignored them for that long, there is probably a lot of fees that are taked on these cards, so you can work out a settlement with them but these fees will be included.
I still believe they can get this debt settle for less. Not alot less but hey anything is better than full price. Does the original creditor still have this debt? If not and it is in a collection agency I would still request debt validation.
Hi resolutioner
Welcome to the forum. As goodnatured said, you should first pull up your credit report to find which creditors or CA are listed there. Send them a DV letter by certified mail. On getting validation of the debt from them, try to negotiate with them for pay for deletion agreement. They may agree for 80% of the total debt as Fireyone said to get it out from your report. But if the debt has been charged off, it cannot be removed from your report even if you pay it back. So in that case ask the CA to change the status to "paid as agreed" instead of "paid charged off" as soon as you pay it off. You may either for debt consolidation loans to pay off the existing debt or ask the creditors for a repayment plan which you think will suit you.
You can usually get a repayment plan that will work for both you and the creditor. I believe it won't be the smaller monthly payments that you had on the credit card but they won't want it all at once.
The main thing here is do not make a commitment on a payment plan you know that you can not do. Be honest and up front. They will work better with you.
Hi resolutioner
I too think that you should ask for a debt validation from all the CA who lists in your credit report and then come to a repayment agreement if they can validate your debt. Their validation will prove whether they are authorized to collect the debt or not. However, if the creditors cannot validate the debt within 30 days of receipt of your letter, send dispute letters to the credit bureaus and ask them to remove the listing from your report. You will get sample letters from this site itself.
When you do send a debt validation letter you should send it certified and return reciept requested, I would make sure that you keep copies of everything, you may need it in the future, especially if you end up in court at a later date for this debt.
Pull your credit report to see who has them now. You can get a free credit report on annualcreditreport(dot)com, you can then find out where they are, call the companys and try to make a settlement with them or some type of payment arrangement that you can afford. Once you make the arrangement, stick with it.
It most definatley will be in SOL. So you want to take care of this asap. Usually these companies will settle for anywhere from 70-80% of the debt they have listed. So always try to negotiate an offer. It still will be more than you owed but its better than having it hang over your head or being sued.
Since you have ignored them for that long, there is probably a lot of fees that are taked on these cards, so you can work out a settlement with them but these fees will be included.
I still believe they can get this debt settle for less. Not alot less but hey anything is better than full price. Does the original creditor still have this debt? If not and it is in a collection agency I would still request debt validation.
Sure fireyone, he will be able to negotiate them down, I just did not want him to freak out when he sees a card that used to be $300 is now $1500
Hi resolutioner
Welcome to the forum. As goodnatured said, you should first pull up your credit report to find which creditors or CA are listed there. Send them a DV letter by certified mail. On getting validation of the debt from them, try to negotiate with them for pay for deletion agreement. They may agree for 80% of the total debt as Fireyone said to get it out from your report. But if the debt has been charged off, it cannot be removed from your report even if you pay it back. So in that case ask the CA to change the status to "paid as agreed" instead of "paid charged off" as soon as you pay it off. You may either for debt consolidation loans to pay off the existing debt or ask the creditors for a repayment plan which you think will suit you.
You can usually get a repayment plan that will work for both you and the creditor. I believe it won't be the smaller monthly payments that you had on the credit card but they won't want it all at once.
The main thing here is do not make a commitment on a payment plan you know that you can not do. Be honest and up front. They will work better with you.
Hi resolutioner
I too think that you should ask for a debt validation from all the CA who lists in your credit report and then come to a repayment agreement if they can validate your debt. Their validation will prove whether they are authorized to collect the debt or not. However, if the creditors cannot validate the debt within 30 days of receipt of your letter, send dispute letters to the credit bureaus and ask them to remove the listing from your report. You will get sample letters from this site itself.
Sounds like good advice. Just be sure to get that validation letter before anything else. If you need help finding a copy of one on our site just ask.
definately validate
When you do send a debt validation letter you should send it certified and return reciept requested, I would make sure that you keep copies of everything, you may need it in the future, especially if you end up in court at a later date for this debt.