Garnishment and Judgement

Were you ever served papers for a court appearance on the matter? If you were and didn't show up, there could've been a judgement by default. I don't know about the interest, I wouldn't think so if a judgment has been made, I thought it was only for amount of the judgement.

It depends on a few things...What the original judgement is for, and how long the debt has been in default. $3000 is extreme, but I file these things for a living and have seen much worse. You bet they can(and will) charge you interest, This sounds like some sort of federal or state debt..Can you explain it to me? You can pm me, if you'd like.

You have a few options, and I'd be glad to help you, but I'll need the details. Please pm me, and I can help.

BTW..You don't have to be served court papers for certain judgements..Certain debtors can garnish you without a "lawsuit". But you must receive what is known as "appropriate notice."

Don't forget to check for this judgment in your latest credit copy. If it is legal, it should be listed in your credit report and it must be available in the records book of your local county also. Make sure that you have verified about this judgment to be authentic.

You should check for the laws on Judgment in your state. Each state law varies from each other. There must be some specifics in your state.

Unless you are in The Carolinas, texas, or Pa, federal law says you can be garnished 25% for consumer debts..For non-consumer debts such as IRS or child support, there is a very small variance state to state. Garnishments are pretty federally mandated in the US

Fin,

Out of curiousity, what types of debt do not need to go through a lawsuit or through the court system?

And also too, wouldn't part of this three grand be court costs? Just wondering and waiting for education :))

Mishele,
Child support and felonious judgements don't need a law suit. They do go through the court system, but no magistrate needs to decide anything. I know there are others, but I don't know what they are off the top of my head. There are all kinds of little loopholes and such..usually there's nothing set in stone!

Part of that three grand most definitely is court costs! A couple hundred would be filing fees, and interest may've already been accrued. Judgements are an ugly stinky mess.

Federal Student Loans that go into default, unless you consolidate or go through rehabilitation program. That happened to me one time, but I only had 2 paychecks garnished and was able to pay on them through my Chpt. 13, when my 13 is discharged I will be able to consolidate them. I have the paperwork to do it, I just have to wait for the discharge which is only a few months away.

How can I find out where the dept originated from.
All I can find is the collector that bought my dept.

Send the collector a debt validation letter. Send it certified so you have a receipt that you sent it.

defaulted student loans don't equal a garnishment..there are quite a few companies that step up to take over the loans when they default. At any rate, a student loan cannot be garnished more than 15%, so at times it may be cheaper for a student loan to be garnished.

They garnished mine at 10% for 2 pay periods. When it got to that point I didn't know that I had other options until after the fact. Now that i know them I am going to use them to keep them out of default.

Amy,
It's no accident that you didn't know you had options! Unfortunately these people will do anything they can to keep us from finding out we do have options. It's a shame.

Finsfan13, I just recently found out I could consolidate after my Chpt 13, a credit counselor gave me the info a few weeks ago and he told me that whoever told me I couldn't consolidate because I defaulted misinformed me, he gave me all the contact info., I called and I now have the application to do it. I will save alot of money every month by doing this and will be paid off in 5 yrs. (student loans)

I am so glad for you! It's too bad someone told you that you couldn't do it before, it could've saved you a lot of money!