How to Settle Credit Card Debt with a Judgment
One of my credit cards I fell behind with sued me and has a judgment.
Can you settle credit card judgements like other debts
—Stressed
Short answer
Yes, a judgment can still be settled. Settlements can be negotiated at every stage of the collection cycle, but settling before a lawsuit is filed is easier and usually saves more.
Key points on this page
- Settlement is possible at any stage, including after a judgment has been entered.
- The largest savings usually come from settling with the original bank after a few missed payments.
- A judgment is enforced through bank levies, wage garnishment and liens on real property.
- Judgment balances keep growing at the interest rate set by the court, and most states allow a judgment to be renewed, often ten years plus another ten.
- Wage garnishment removes most of a creditor’s reason to negotiate, so act before it starts.
- If you cannot fund a settlement, bankruptcy can stop a levy, a garnishment or a lien.
The short answer to your question is – YES! CRN does assist in settling debts like credit cards where there was a lawsuit and then a judgment entered against you. Settlements can be negotiated at all stages of the collection cycle.
There are challenges to settling credit card debts that have reached the lawsuit and judgment stage. Before I address the challenges, I want to point out that the best time to settle credit card debts is before a lawsuit is filed, and even before the account is placed with a debt collection attorney.
Watch my brief video about some of the differences between settling credit card debts with your bank and debt collectors compared to negotiating with collection attorneys whether they have a judgment or not.
While this may not be instructive to your judgment debt, you may have additional credit card debts that have gone unpaid and I want you to be aware of the following:
- Settling a debt with your original creditor (the bank you had the credit card with) after having missed a few payments is not only possible, but in your best interest. In fact, reaching settlement early will often achieve the best savings result when negotiating is done correctly.
- You may end up with credit cards that are charged off and placed with outside collection companies. This is the next best (sometimes the best) opportunity to settle a credit card account you could no longer afford to keep payments current.
- If your overdue credit card account lands in a collection attorney’s office, you can still settle the debt before any court action is filed, or at a minimum, negotiate favorable payment terms.
There is a science to navigating the collection stages I briefly outlined above. Timing, balances, who your credit card debts are owed to, and your ability to come up with the money needed to settle the debts – all will affect the strategic design of which account to settle with first, second, third etc…. It is important to have a plan to follow if you want to systematically and successfully settle debts and save the most money in the process. CRN is excellent in assisting people in this regard.
If you want to learn about how to settle your debts no matter what stage of collection you are in, we have a ton of resource pages to help you. I recommend starting at the beginning of my debt settlement section.
If you are floating out there with several unpaid credit card accounts with no real financial resources to handle the situation, or a plan for doing so, you owe it to yourself to learn if you would be better off filing for chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy before a lawsuit is filed, or now that a judgment exists. You can consult with a bankruptcy attorney for free. I recommend talking with more than one.
Collecting on credit card judgments can be challenging too.
The primary ingredient found in any debt settlement recipe, whether there is a judgment or not is… money. If you have enough of this ingredient you need to be aware of a few things.
A judgment is just a piece of paper. It’s the court sponsored enforcement of that piece of paper that is the problem. You could end up with liens placed against your real property, your bank account levied and wages garnished directly from your employer. There are even instances where a sheriff can show up to take a look around at your “stuff” and inventory personal items that can be taken to satisfy a judgment (this happens, but relatively rarely).
Judgment debt, whether past due credit card bills, personal loans, medical bills and other debts, are easier to negotiate and settle while maximizing your percentage of savings results if:
- A bank account to levy cannot be found because one in your name does not exist, or does exist but is maintained with little money in it;
- If a W-2 wage source cannot be located to garnish and;
- Where there is no real property lien, or where the lien is filed, but has been in place for some time and remains unpaid.
The one thing you can control is whether you have a bank account with your name attached. If you do keep a bank account open, realize most bank levies are attempted at the beginning, middle and end of the month – when you are most likely to have deposited a pay check, or other money to cover bills.
If you have sources of funds electronically deposited, you may want to elect to have paper checks issued to you until the credit card judgment debt is resolved.
The lien on property will generally not involve forcing the sale of the property in order to satisfy the judgment. You should look to resolve the judgment prior to selling the home (negotiate a settlement before listing if possible), or refinancing (settling before a lender does a hard credit pull is often best).
Wage garnishment is a major concern. Once your wages are attached the creditor has little reason to work with you at resolving the debt for less because they will continue to get paid unless:
- You prove you meet garnishment exemptions in your state
- You leave that job
- You satisfy the judgment
Warning: Your credit card judgment debt grows from interest and can often be renewed!
Interest is accumulated at the rate set by the court, or the maximum allowed by law in your state for judgment debt. While you may be able to be creative in how you avoid paying the judgment you must realize that the balance of the judgment is likely increasing.
If you are struggling with overdue bills and other expenses and are unable to come up with a plan to get rid of the judgment or lawsuit through a negotiated settlement or payment terms you can afford, the fact that the debt is increasing should concern you. Stop and consider what your options to resolve the credit card judgment will look like next year. The year after that.
Judgments do have a “best collected by” date, but can be renewed. Judgments have a shelf life with a time frame specific to your state. Most states allow for a judgment to be renewed prior to expiration. For many, this is a ten year time line and renewal allows for an additional 10 years. That’s a 20 year shelf life!
Identify all resources you can tap to fund a settlement offer or payment plan successfully. If you cannot reasonably come up with the money to settle the debt, or make payments after reaching agreeable terms, look to bankruptcy to stop a bank levy, wage garnishment or lien on property.
Those are the unfortunate realities.
I highly recommend anyone with a judgment, that needs to be resolved in order to buy or refinance your home, to watch this video interview I had with a former debt collector: https://youtube/QpdDks73QUw
It is always best to put a plan together to address delinquent debts before a judgment becomes the concern and you are forced into crisis mode. If you have other debts, you can still put a plan together that includes resolving the judgment too, but it is important to not waste any time in doing so.
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About Michael BoveeMichael started CRN in 2004 with a mission to provide people in need with detailed debt and credit help and education. Michael has participated as an expert panelist in federal consumer protection rule making, collaborated on state law changes governing debt consolidation, has worked as an expert witness in court matters related to the debt relief industry. He is available to speak with you about your financial struggle and helps people resolve their debt problems daily.
My daughter, “L”, has a $2300 judgement against her for: $1600 original credit card debt, $333 interest, and $375 court costs. She makes less than minimum wage, much less than the amount for garnishment under federal law, has no car, or other real property to take. I am thinking of offering to settle the debt & interest for 30 cents on the dollar for the loan & interest, plus costs in full – total $1000. Is this a good strategy, bearing in mind there is no way the collection agency can recoup any money for the foreseeable future? (This was originally HSBC credit card debt, then assigned to LVNV holdings).
Sorry Michael, I forgot to mention she has no bank account and is paid in cash, as I said it’s about $80 per bi-weekly pay period less than the federal minimum for garnishing. She is a high school dropout & has little to no prospect of earning anything other than minimum wage for the near to mid-term. Reading earlier posts, maybe I should settle for $1,300 or so (60% of total)?
If you are prepared with the money if the negotiations stall out at a larger amount than you originally posted, you will have this knocked down quickly.
Dave – You do have a good strategy. You may even be able to get LVNV to accept 30% on the judgment if it is really old (a few years), and due to the lack of income. It is more common to settle at a bit of a higher percentage than that on judgement debt though.
Michael, thanks for the quick response! Yes, the debt is 6 years old. I will follow through with your advice and start low, and see where we go from there. As I said, I can go up to 60% if necessary. I assume a phone call to Machol & Johannes, the attorney acting for LVNV is the way to go? Thanks again.
Machol and Johannes are who to contact.You can call LVNV first if you like, but can expect them to direct you to Machol.
Michael;
An update – whilst I was saving up the money to settle, Machol & J went ahead & sued & got a garnishment against L’s wages. As she makes the bare minimum, however, the garnishment was waived based on Federal/Colorado state guidelines for how much can be garnished ($0 in her case). Am I still in a position to negotiate? I would assume so, as she is (and probably will remain) “garnish-proof”. Should this make any difference to what I offer initially? (It was going to be 30%). Thanks!
Dave
It would not change my strategy if I were you. If you are adding costs, like had been mentioned in prior comments, you really come in higher than 30% of the total. And I would be working from a total, not segregating the debt by balance, interest and fees, court costs.
If I have a judgement against me for unpaid credit card debt in NC can they attach it to property in another state?
Samantha – Talk with an attorney that specializes in asset protection or debt collection (from the consumer side – not the creditor) about this. What you are concerned about is generally possible, but can require getting the judgment in North Carolina recognized by the courts in the state where the property is located.
Hello Mr. Bovee,
I live in California. September of 2013 I received a letter from Kenosian & Miele, LLP, the attorney’s office for a collection agency, I believe, named BH Financial Services, LLC for a debt from original creditor, CitiBank. The letter stated that if I don’t contact them, I will get sued. I didn’t remember owing CitiBank but I got scared and didn’t know any better, called them and arranged a payment plan and signed a Promissory Note with BH Financial Services, LLC as they required that I do so. I made 4 payments total for Sep. 2013 through Dec. 2013 through my bank account.
The thing is, the debt stated in their notice is under a name similar to my old name. But my old first name is a hyphenated name (as shown on my previous social security card), and the name on the notice is just written together. My name changed when I became a citizen in 2007. I had a couple credit cards with CitiBank years ago but I don’t remember owing them anything. I haven’t had a credit card probably since 2008. So I decided to check my credit report and this debt wasn’t even on there (I also found a few other accounts and another name linked to my credit report that is also similar but has a middle initial and an address that I never lived at. I am disputing the aforementioned with the credit bureaus. I think I might be a victim of identity theft). I talked to a debt relief/credit repair place in town and was advised that I should not have called or signed anything with the collector (but I did 🙁 _ so they said not to make anymore payments so I stopped making payments since my last payment in Dec.2013.
A few days ago, a copy of the Summons was placed in front of my doorstep, I was not home so I wasn’t personally served. I am being sued by these people and I don’t know what to do. I don’t even know if this debt is really mine. If it is not my debt, by signing the Promissory Note, does this mean I am liable for the debt regardless?
Assuming it is a debt of mine that I had forgotten about, having signed the Promissory Note, would this have revived the statute of limitation? What should I do at this point? I can’t afford the filing fee for the Answer to the Complaint nor do I have the funds to negotiate a settlement. Please help!
Ellie – You did make some missteps, and if the debt is not yours (which is what you need to get to the bottom of), it will be simpler to handle. You need to be talking with an attorney with debt collection defense experience. It sounds like you may qualify for low income legal aid if you cannot afford filing fees, so check into that first. There are law clinics run at some universities (professor and students work together with qualifying participants), so check to see if nearby university law programs have anything like that going.
I can refer you to an experienced consumer law attorney for help defending against the suit, but that will require you to hire/retain them.
Thank you so much for your time!
I can only afford 30% to 50%, anything more and I may go into default.
I just do not see much of a shot at negotiating a settlement for under 50% based on current trends with your situation. 50% is something of a long shot, if I am being frank.
If you cannot get this wrapped up, you can save up money to make up the difference and settle the Capital One account post judgment.
I received a court summons in January of this year, unsure of what to expect. I did not research how to proceed. I appeared for the summons and thought that if I could explain to the mediator my situation, surely I could have the debt forgiven. Unaware that I would only have three options for Capital One, all with the end result of some type of payment plan. I decided to go with the option to have a trial. The attorney for Capital One presented me with a statement of my last balance. And they have a recording of me agreeing to terms I don’t remember. The attorney is going to submit the recording at the trial. I owe including court fees, $1900 as of today. I now regret my decision and would like to know if its to late to settle the payment before trial and for a reduced amount? I’m a mother of twins and unemployed, not to mention very concerned and afraid….please help me!
Michelle – You can negotiate a settlement with Capital One (through the attorney they have suing you) now, or even after a judgment were entered in the court. The savings is not going to be great. Can you come up with 60 to 80% of the 1900.00?
I was paying before my credit card bill almost one year and I lost my job and after 4month i. had serjery and right now I m in disability and I miss my payment ,right now my acount is frozen my safety box freez to and I have court date what should I do please help
Aralia – The debt collector is acting on a court judgment. You will want to let the court know that the only money in the account were from disability etc. You need to get your concerns in front of the court. Look for a low income legal aid office near you and see if you qualify for assistance. You can call the court clerk and find out what steps you can take to contest the bank levy. I am not sure about the risks to the contents of your safety deposit box, but you can learn more about that when talking to an experienced debt defense attorney in your state.
Michael,
You are a great person! Thank you so much for your help!!
Matt
Judgement is in my name and the business is a general partnership but the banker told me the other day I never switched bank accounts to partnership, they (business checking and savings accounts) are still listed as sole proprietor . I need to be able to deposit the checks that come in, do their 24hr hold thing then pay all electronic bills and then pull the remainder out away. But I’m worried they might “capture” one of the checks within the 24hr wait period. Hence new bank account outside of the county. All of this is until they receive there 9.2k then I’m hoping they will accept a couple more thousand and call it a done deal.
Matt – Given that info I would personally be looking to open another account. Not close down the current one, just buffer its use until settling off the remainder of the judgment balance. I would target about 3k to settle the rest of it.
Michael,
Would you happen to know the likelihood of them throwing another levy on my accounts again to get the remaining 7.2k , or do they wait until they receive the money they all ready levied (up to 2-3 onth wait for money from sheriff) as this is a business account and I need to use the account (deposit check and withdraw asap) frequently. Thank You Very Much!!
Matt
I do not know their cycle. But I would not put any money in there for more than a day until this is worked out.
Was the judgment in your name or the business name. Do you run a DBA? How are you structured?
One more question, Does it make sense to open another account somewhere and do business out of that new account? Thanks for all your help!!
Matt – Opening up other accounts can make sense to some, but what limited information I have about your situation, it would make more sense to negotiate a lower payoff for the remainder of the judgment after the 9200 bank levy is applied.
First off thanks for the list of attorneys in my Texas area. One attorney is familar with Unifund partners LLC and wants to reach out for a settlement. One attorney says I need to file an exempt property code stating my home is my only homstead and get a release to contine getting my refinance. To make matters worse my morgagate people reached out and the lawyer that has my judgment wants 69 thousand dollars. I am not sure why they reached out and found the attorney. I was told they did not have but limited information and they placed my account on hold. I am upset because I feel they put me in a bad situation and that Unifund will want more money because I am trying to refinance my home. I was not wanting them to be aware of this. I am know more consused than ever. What a nightmare that seems to never end!!!!
The mortgage company did you no favors. If your goal was to settle, you are now going to be at a severe disadvantage. What is the name of the mortgage company, and the loan officer?
I would encourage you to work with the attorney suggesting the homestead route. And I would NOT use the mortgage company that just cut your negotiation angle off at the knees. Perhaps that attorney could recommend one to you.
Thank you for the help.. I’m not going to file bankruptcy. I thought if I told them that it might be my only way out of this, I thought they would make some kind of deal right away! Is this feasible ? In other words they don’t seem to want to negotiate until they receive that 9,200. I’m worried they might slap another blind levy in the near future, and that is what I’m trying to avoid!
Thanks again!
Matt
Thanks again!
Matt – Bankruptcy is a real option for many folks that every flavor of debt collector will be in contact with. Turning down a consumers low ball offer and getting notice from the bankruptcy trustee a couple months later is just standard. It is built and factored in to the sophisticated debt collectors business model. And the threat of bankruptcy will not get a nod from credit card issuers. So… no, not feasible. Some other compelling reason to settle, like fixed income, medical concerns, or other types of sincere hardship, can result in better than average settlements being negotiated.
That levy is in motion through the legal system. It is not getting backed out. You can negotiate a settlement, and for a fair savings, but they have the leverage right now. Keep accounts with a bare minimum in them until you resolve the judgment.
Hi, I had a discover card that I stopped paying on (due to hardships) I believe the last payment I made was in the late 90’s. Last week a law office put a(blind) levy on my bank accounts. I had no Idea about this, They told me the last payment I made was in 2004 and a judgement was refilied in 2006. They say I owe them 16k and they captured 9.2k out of my accounts. They said I can pay $350 a month on the entire amount owed to stop interest. Then in a couple months when they receive the 9.2 from sheriff can try to negotiate. I asked them to lift the levy and I would pay them 12k, they said no, they can only set-up a payment plan until they receive the 9.2. Is this all legal since may last payment to that card was over ten years ago (California). Also, I read some where that I can request the original document with discover card with my signature on it, if they can’t show me that the whole thing get’s thrown out. Is that true?
The bank told me the money goes to the sheriff on April 4th. Would it make sense to call the attorney/debt collector back (the moore law group) and tell them if they can’t negotiate I’m going to have to do bankruptcy? Thanks Very Much !!
Matt – You can call the Moore law group and talk about your options to settle this as an alternative to filing bankruptcy, but that is not likely going to result in the 9200 being released. But the chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee could claw that back sometime after you file.
I am not sure where you are reading, but the time to request anything from Discover was years back, and before a judgment was issued. There really is not much to bring up to the court to get this bell unrung, at least, not this far down the line.
I have a judgement on my credit from a couple years ago. The debt is about $7700. The credit card was only in my name. I have been summoned to an asset hearing in couple days. I’m wondering if they will make me pay the full balance or if they will settle for less. I also want to know if at this point it is legal for me to take my name off of my joint checking account with my husband. I do not work as I just had a baby in Dec. I haven’t worked since last May when I taught school. We cannot afford another monthly payment. We are trying to get a loan but won’t know about that until tomorrow. We wont receive the $ for a month if we are able to get it bc its a home equity loan. I have been asked to bring my last 3 months of bank statements and checkstubs from employment and proof of my home. Do I have to bring my husbands info since I don’t work? He isn’t on the account I’m being summoned for. I am on the home loan. Please help. Any advice appreciated. I am very nervous as I have never done anything like this. We settled with our other debts several years ago. This one refused to accept a cashiers check and only wanted acces to my bank account which I refused so I let it go. I know that was not the right thing to do to just ignore it, but that’s what I did.
Brandy – Anything like this that involves the court should be run by an experienced debt collection defense/consumer law attorney. I know money is tight, and an attorney of the sort you need to consult with may charge a little for the consultation time on something like this, but it is nearly always worth getting expert advice on how to progress with your hearing, and ultimately your goals.
You can settle with the judgment creditor now, or after the hearing. My experience would suggest you would have a better settlement savings outcome after the asset hearing, and once they have a good view of your lack of income.
You should be able to take yourself off of any bank account you choose to, at anytime.
These days, paying a settlement you negotiate via phone authorization (so long as you have everything documented before hand), is normal and even advisable over using a cashier check.
Unifund partners LLC put a judgment lien on my house. I just found this out while trying to refinance my home. It is for $18 thousand dollars. Do I need to try and reach out to them or get a real estate attorney? I do not want to open a pandora box of them calling and threatening me or for me to make it worse by reaching out. I heard once you call them the cylce starts over. I need knowledge how to handle this sticky situation. This credit card was over 10 years ago when I had loss my job. Bank one credit card sold my account. I do live in Texas. The 7 years have passed it has fell off my credit. I understand I made a bad descion and am unclear how to fix this. however I know they bought my account for pennies on a dollar and want to make a profit on my hardship and stupidity.
Do you know any good real estate attornoys in the Garland TX area? That is if I need one of them?
Help in Texas
Do you have any ability to pool together a realistic settlement amount? What if you could pay off the judgment for, say, 10k? How long would it take you to raise the cash?
When you think of an attorney to help you with this type of thing, you really need to work with one that has debt collection defense experience, and not many do. There are several in Texas you can consult with, but frankly, you may be past that point with a judgment this old.
What do you suggest that I just live with it?
You never gave me any attorney’s names to consult with? I do have equity in my home?
The loan processor said it will never go away. She said I was going to have to deal with it. But you said it is to late. To late for what? To late to contact unifund partners LLC or too late to contact an attorney? Are there stature limits in Texas? I am not following what you are saying?
Deborah – I am not sure what you mean by live with it. What is your goal with the account? Are you looking for some way to get the judgment set aside? If so, that is going to be a stretch with a judgment this old. You are going to have to consult with an experience consumer law attorney, and if you take that path, will need to factor in what it will cost for the attorney to take a swing at this.
If not trying to get the judgment set aside or vacated, you are looking at needing to settle this to clear title. It is not too late to contact an attorney to help you, but it is more realistic to work with one to settle this for as much savings as possible.
The SOL to renew a judgment in Texas is 10 years. And the renewal process is very simple, so this issue is likely not going anywhere, and the judgment is likely growing with interest.
I sent you an email a moment ago with contact details to a half dozen attorneys somewhat near you. Run your scenario by one or more and see what type of feedback you get.
I am trying to decide what to do because I have no plans on selling my house at this time. I do not like the fact that is attached to my house. I received a letter from Dynamic Recovery Solutions saying they are trying to recover debt from bank one Texas current owner International Collection Services. This is the same credit card different amounts of money $810.78 versus $18 thousand as Unifund partners only less money. I am not sure if it has been sold partial. I called the lady is researching it. She stated she just got it in the office about 1 month ago. This is around the time it dropped off my credit. I am not sure what to make of it. They have the last 4 digits of my ssn#…
I do not want to open the door with Unifund to start them back to calling me again…
more drama in Texas
I am from Minnesota. I had a Citi credit card (Home Depot ) I believe North Dakota citi.
Minnesota debt Collector had called us . We owed 14k and settled at 8k. We paid 7k immediately and made payments on the remaining 1k. Our agreement was they would take an auto pay from my checking account of $50 a month for 4 months then a final balloon of $800 to be paid, which we thought they would also deduct from our checking account, but apparently we were supposed to mail the $800. Because we were confused on that, they call it default and are now wanting 9k. I am at a loss of what to do. We did not sign anything on our agreement. We were dumb and naïve. Never thought this would happen. That 7k we paid was all of our savings and with 3 kiddos , was tough to make. We are now just heart broken and lost. They send us letters all the time. Judgments etc. Any input would be appreciated. I have other debt I am trying to manage as well. This one I just don’t feel its fair I should have to pay 9k again. In my mind I had this debt down to $800. I get the fees because of our miscommunication, but $7200 🙁 Help please
Courtney – Who is the debt collection attorney in Minnesota you are dealing with?
The law firm is Rausch, Sturm, Israel, Emerson & Hornik LLC
Washington state – Long before we were married my husband had a judgement filed a lien against our home from an upaid credit card balance with Discover for roughly 8-10K. It has been some 8 years ago or so. It has been passed to a new attorney recently. We don’t have joint bank accounts because of this and he has had fairly steady employment, but I think they just gave up looking.
We are able to borrow some money from someone to pay on it now. The balance is over 18K at this point. They newest attorney told my husband they would settle for 6K and have sent us a settlement letter for the 6K. Is this kosher & will it take care of the lien on our home? Do they legally have to release the lien and file paperwork to indicate satisfaction of the judgement upon payment of what is on this letter? How can I be sure they will file the paperwork with the County. We tried to get home equity loan a few years ago & it was on the title report so we were denied the loan. I’m concerned if we ever sell we may be in for a surprise. I don’t want the 6K to be a “down payment”, if you will, and then still be stuck in the same boat we are in now or start getting garnished or worse my bank account levied.
HF – Cross reference everything I highlight in this report, with the settlement letter the attorney sent on the judgment. Post any questions you have after that in the comments of that page and lets go from there.
Yes, they should update the court that the judgment has been satisfied. But if they do not, you can use a proper settlement agreement and proof of payment to get that done too. I would want the judgment creditor to be the one doing that if it were me though.
Back in August 2011, Citibank brought a suit against me for a card that I did not pay for 6 mos. To my knowledge, it was not sold to a “debt collector”, only the Attorney. I did not respond quickly enough to the lawsuit and it was added to my credit report at a judgment. Since it entered judgment status, I made payment arrangement with the attorney representing Citibank. Unfortunately, I was not aware of how the interest was accrued over a long period of time. Long story short, I’ve been pay $90 a month on a $2700 judgment (which was the balance owed on the credit card account) and $520 in court/attorney fees. From my calculations, I thought my last payment was to be next month (April 2014). When I called to verify this, I was surprised with the news of owing $975.36 because of the interest.
I do not want to continue to pay the interest, especially when I’ve paid the debt. How should I proceed? Do I ask to settle the account now? Is that even a possibility? NC has a limit of 8% (I believe) and their Judgment Payoff calculator is a POS. Literally. A POS. I don’t understand it and I’m irritated that it’s been accruing this interest for so long and now I owe $1,000 more than what I originally owed, EVEN WITH COSTS ADDED.
Any advice is appreciated.
Thanks!
Unfortunately, judgment interest is what it is. You can often settle the remaining balance is a lump sum, but be prepared for 50% being a good deal, and perhaps not even on the table.
Who is the collection attorney? Did you have a written agreement that outlined your payment arrangement?
Bernhardt & Strawser, P.A in Charlotte, NC.
I do not recall receiving an agreement, only verbally over the phone.
Would it be beneficial to send a letter stating the amount to settle the debt for? Especially since the entire debt (without interest) is just about paid?
I nearly always suggest working out the details of the settlement verbally over the phone, making sure that anything agreed to is in a written agreement before remitting payment.
Hi Michael,
I just want to get some more advice regarding this situation I asked you about a few months ago.
I have not made any payments to this law office since my balance that was “charged off” and the amount entered into the judgment was paid. Since my “regular” payments have not been received since March, my credit report has been updated. Citibank shows as “paid, closed” and of course the judgment hasn’t changed. I’ve received one letter from them, which was Friday. They said they’ve not received payment and that I have ten days to bring my account current. I’ve not responded to them, because I do not know how or if I should or how it will effect me if I don’t.
I know the judgment stays for 7 years, but do you think that if I pay them, they’ll be able to remove it? Should I pay them? I’m only paying the law office at this point…..please help. I just don’t know what to do.
You are likely going to have to come up with some form of an agreement about the remaining amount. How much can you come up with to settle the remaining fees?
You are not going to be able to pay any amount and have that result in anything being removed from your credit report. This will have to age off. And that is okay, your credit can still heal, and more so when the judgment is shown as paid and satisfied on your credit reports (while maintaining all other elements of a healthy credit score).
Have you connected with a consumer law attorney for an opinion?
Thank you for your response. I have not contacted an attorney. I do not know who to contact. Would you recommend I send a letter to the suing attorney asking for my balance, along with original paperwork? I don’t want to ignore this, obviously. I just wonder what the suing attorney can do at this point. Would you be able to help draft a letter to the suing attorney?
If you are in North Carolina, call and talk about your options with the attorney I emailed you contact details for. I would ask for an accounting of all payments and how applied. But talk to Chris about that too.
i have a judgement of $2418 in 12/4/08 its in my credit report.. but i have the conversation recorded that i made a settlement offer too the credit card company.. and i paid for it..what can i do now..should i call the judgement people?
james – Did you settle with the creditor after the judgment was already entered in the court? If so, does the judgment show as satisfied on your credit reports?