I'm still reading and trying to research as much as I can. I have approximately 7 charge-offs where it appears that the OC is still reporting a balance and has not assigned to a CA. Most are due to fall off between 2015 and 2016. What is the best "repair' I can do for these tradelines? HSBC Orchard and Cap One are involved, so I feel like they will be the most tough - but there are other sub-prime, smaller banks that look like the last date they reported to the CRA was in 2009. If I pay the charge-offs, will they stay on my account for longer than 2016?? I feel like paid charge-off is better than an unpaid chargeoff and it will bring my utilization ratio down too....There are 7 CAs reporting as well. 2 should drop off within the next year or two and the others will fall off in 2016. I plan on just DV'ing and Disputing those and PFD if that doesn't work.
I'm sure you know that the FDCPA doesn't apply to OCs, so be careful in dealing with them. Cap One in particular seems to like to sue at the zero hour -- I know they did for me. Are the OC debts still within the SOL? If so, and if you have the money to do so, your best bet is to contact each OC directly and ask to set up some kind of payment arrangement. There is a chance that this will trigger a lawsuit and/or a barrage of the other OCs suddenly contacting you. At the same time, most OCs would rather set up a plan than sue. If the debts (OC or CA) are valid and outside of SOL, the honorable thing to do is pay them. However, you may be able to negotiate a steep discount. As far as reporting, I have never seen a clear answer on this. People far more educated than myself have debated this to no end. The delinquency itself should fall off your report within seven years, but your payment history may remain -- and it may show your last two or three years as constantly "180+ days past due". So the first step is finding out which debts if any are past SOL.
The OC debts are all within the SOL. I called Cap One and they told me the account was charged off and gave me a 1800 number to call. I did that and that number told me it was being handled by a law firm and gave me that number. That seems weird to me, especially since Cap 1 is reporting the full balance on the tradelines. I was thinking of trying to pay off the Cap 1 and Orchard and then disputing the others (cortrust, Bryant state, credit one, target, and 1st premier) through the CRAs since most of those last reported in 2009 (also year of charge off). I'm just concerned about making sure the money is paid to the right people and that the tradelines accurately reflect payment. Does anyone else have any experience in dealing with any of the above mentioned OCs? I feel like I can handle the CAs ok - dv, dispute, and hopefully PFD if that works...
