Hi, I met with a real estate agent on Thursday of last week. He looked at my credit report and determined that I should pay a medical collection which is $1276. He said that even though it is due for deletion in 2014, if I were to obtain a mortgage the collection agency could put a lien against the home. Keep in mind there is no judgment. I have been thinking of settling for $300 if I have to go this route. Also, I am a veteran and wanted to obtain my mortgage under VA. If I have to settle, how do I go about doing this? Thank you.
You'll definitely want to take care of any unpaid collections before seeking approval on a mortgage. Keep in mind that settling this debt won't necessarily improve your FICO scores in the short run. However, settling the debt should allow you to appease the underwriters and move through the approval process as long as your credit scores are still high enough to meet their standards. Have you received any communication from the creditor regarding this medical collection? Is it still in the hands of the OC, or has it been sold to a 3rd party collector? First step is to find out who owns the debt, and then you can begin planning your strategy to get it taken care of once and for all.
Thank you for responding. It is with a 3rd party collector in this area who is famous for medical debt collections. Can you advise what to do next?
Have they purchased the debt, or has it just been assigned by the medical provider for collection? Also, what communication have you received from them to this point?