In 2008 my boyfriend and I got our truck repoed after falling on hard times. They now have a a judgement to garnish his wages and are currently doing so. My question is would they be willing to settle after all of this? Or at least drop the amount that is taken? I'm young and new to all of this. So any information and help would be wonderful. Also, the amount we owe is $15,000, would would be an exceptable amount to offer. We don't have much to work with and are still down on our luck but working.
Welcome to Creditnet Kayla. Yes, it's possible that the creditor would be willing to settle for a lump sum and then stop garnishing your boyfriend's wages. I'm sure they would much rather take your money now instead of garnishing a few hundred here and there over a long period of time. It's important to remember that if you settle for less than the full judgment you could end up with a 1099C at the end of the year, which will report the forgiven amount of debt as taxable income. Ask that they not report any forgiveness of debt with the IRS as part of your deal, and you can protect yourself from running into that issue down the road. My guess is that they would be willing to settle for about half of the full amount, but every creditor will be different. How much cash can you come up with for a lump sum payment?
I could come up with about $3000. I'm clueless as how to go about doing all of this. If you have a guideline with steps I would appreciate it.
I doubt $3,000 is going to cut it on a $15,000 debt, especially since they're already garnishing wages. However, if that's the absolute best you can do, put your offer in writing (keep it simple and to the point) and await their response. It can't hurt.
