I had a discover card that got charged off. They sold the debt to First Select. First Select is now threatening to sue. (I got a letter from their local attorney.) Now, what should I do? First Select was offering to settle for about 70% of the original Discover debt. (Which is still way over the credit line ever was...the extra stuff was for overlimit, late fees, and absurd interest. I suspect I should send a verification letter to the law firm, but I have no doubt that they actually intend to sue. That will buy me some time. But, I do, at the moment, have the money to offer a settlement. I don't know if they will still settle for the 70% amount, but I suspect they will. Of course, the account has been charged off, so the damage is done to the credit rating. I don't think there is anything I can do about that. My question is, should I try to get them to settle? If so, how much should I offer? And, most importantly, what should I insist as far as the credit rating is concerned? It shows up as a chargeoff from Discover, but I don't think it shows up, in any way, from First Select. Or, should I just send a verification letter to the law firm and see what happens? Of course, if they don't sue, then I could use that money to settle some other accounts that have not, yet, been charged off, like Citibank, although that account is closed.
