I have been in the process of cleaning up my credit since October '02. So far I've had success on removing several bad tradelines from all 3 CRA. However, I do not know how to deal with a Judgement which cannot be deleted from my Experian account. I am in California and I know the SOL is 7 years. The judgement was filed in 1998. I made an attempt last week to go through a lawyer referral service to settle the judgement and had to call back to schedule an appointment. I gave them my information (name, address, phone number) and they claimed that it was confidential. I just got a letter today from the Atty who is collecting the debt that they obtained the judgement against me. The want me to contact them ASAP to avoid levies on assets, wages, real property. The judgement was for $3,323.25. I would like to settle for less but, don't know how. I don't want to have them garnish my paychecks. Should I contact a lawyer to take care of this or should I send a letter to settle? Also, I'm in the process of moving to another address. Should I give them my new address? Will theyt file a new judgement with the new address? I plan on updating my address on the CRA and claiming "not mine". Thanks in advance!
The SOL to report the judgment on your CR is 7 years, but the SOL to collect it is 10 years and it may be renewable for another 10. Additionally, I believe California allows 10% annual interest on judgments. This year your balance could reach $5350, if you haven't paid anything and they add on the interest. They have a lot of leverage if they have the judgment and it isn't hard for them to seek levies and garnishment at this point. Your financial situation may be such that you can avoid this - other could posts the limits in Cali. You may be able to avoid levies and garnishment by setting up a payment plan. It's lousy and a lot of money, but I would prefer it over garnishment. I would think the only way they would settle for less would be for a large payment or two. Maybe they'll waive the interest if you can cover it over a few months time. In terms of moving, they don't need to file another judgment - it doesn't matter where you move. And if you move out of state you may toll the SOL [ basically, extend the SOL ]. If they don't already have your number, call them from a payphone and talk to them. See what they're willing to accept.
I've contacted an attorney to help me get through this mess. Basically, I don't want to make any mistakes along the way and am trying to avoid any levies and garnishments. The attorney has agreed to help me for a flat rate of $100. She will help furnish a letter to prevent any garnishments or levies and in the meantime has asked me to save up money in the event that I would like to settle. I sure hope that this works.
