I am about to wake up some sleeping dogs... I want to settle my debts, but of course for much less than the balances they are reporting. They are all charge-offs, some are with CAs. I know that I should proceed with MUCH caution, so I am looking for wise advise. Please help.
It's all about negotiation, and the key to effective negotiation is knowing what you want, and what you will settle for. It also involves figuring out what is of "value" to the other party. So..... If your goal is to settle your debts, at a discount then I would start with the following plan: 1) Lay out all these accounts, and total up the amount owed. It may help to put this on an Excel spreadsheet. 2) Calculate how much cash you have right now (to pay these debts with), and divide that total into the total owed, this will be your rough payoff percentage. 3) The above will give you a starting point to negoatiate with. For example, you have $3,000 in debt, you have $1,000 in cash, so your goal will be to settle for 30% on the dollar. 4) Next calculate how much you can "budget" within the next 3-6 months. This will be "time payments" if needed to settle. 5) Get an aggressive mindset for negotiation, don't be afraid to ask for anything, and a key tactic is, "Ask, and Shutup!". When you ask for something, do not speak until the other party says something. There is an old syaing that "the first one to speak loses".... 6) Armed with your "ability to pay data", start calling the CAs, and requesting settlements. Tell them of your desire to clear these up, had some troubles, etc., and tell them "this is what I can afford to pay today to settle this in full". CAs are concerned about closing out accounts as quickly as possible, so they'll be eager to take what you have. 7) While your negotiating, ask for "Pay For Deletion", ask for removal of tradeline as part of the settlement. Since your are "settling", they probably will not go for it, but try anyway. 8) GET ALL AGREEMENTS IN WRITING BEFORE PAYING ANY MONEY! Do not overlook this step. Once you part with the cash, all bets are off. 9) Use the "age of accounts" as leverage, if some are older, and nearing end of Statute of Limitations, use this as "business leverage". 10) Review all of these CAs actions for any possible FDCPA violations, you will want to keep these as further leverage to use, if needed. Any questions let us know, Good Luck!
Thank you for giving me a very easy-to-follow program. I greatly appreciate it. Unfortunately, my DOLA are only two years old or less. My state's SOL is 4 years.
Hi! New to the site but thought I would interject something here. I don't know if you still have the same phone number or not. If you don't however, you will discover (if you don't know this already) that any company you call that uses a toll free number, automatically has your number once you call. It shows up thru their computer system. Blocking methods do NOT work. You MIGHT want to consider writing them instead. I agree with the other response regarding "he who speaks..." I would keep it brief and to the point. See what figure they have in mind and let them get back to you on it. You do NOT have to list your phone number. As a precaution, I would be sure to send the letters Certified Return Receipt just in case you end up in court. At LEAST you can show good intent and sometimes that goes a long way. Also, even if a CA has it, you MIGHT still be able to go through the original creditor. I have done this myself and gotten a better situation in the long run. Hope it helps and wish you luck!
