I'm a newbie who's been drinking deep from this forum's spring of knowledge. Great site and very informative. I retained Lexington Law Firm last year and am nearing the end of my credit repair journey. TU-729, EQ-689, EX-683. Previously all of these were in the mid 500s. Practically all of my negative items have been removed. The next step is to pay down substantially all of my balances, and I expect more dramatic increases. Now I have been living with my girlfriend for several months, dating for a couple years. Our income and experience are largely comingled. Marriage is on the distant horizon, and more to the point, so is buying our own house. My credit is on its way to recovery, hers less so. She has a number of credit issues, but the first step in the overall strategy is to address an outstanding car loan on which she has fallen several months behind. I was planning to go with her to the bank this coming week to negotiate a settlement for about 60% of the loan balance. (The car is valued at about 40% of the loan balance, so repossession is probably not in the bank's or our best interests). I am trying to get the settlement in writing for 60% of the loan, with the stipulation that the account be reported as paid in full or if possible get the credit line deleted. My question is: should we go to the bank in person at all, even as a preliminary step to writing, or should we simply send correspondence? Any other advice will be greatly appreciated.
