Wow! Collectors can make the BIG bucks! (Article)
Date: Mon, 03/24/2008 - 08:55
Where The debt collectors Do Roam
Who would've guessed that credit card debt and the subprime meltdown would be the saving grace for one of New York's decaying cities? Buffalo now hosts over 100 collection agencies that employ 5,200 people who spend their days prodding delinquent consumers to pay their bills. The cottage industry relies on the "strong work ethic [and] even-handed temperament" of Western New Yorkers, who once powered long-departed industrial giants like Kodak and General Electric.
"Within the industry, everyone knows about Buffalo," said Aaron Siegel, chief executive of Franklin Credit Solutions, an investment firm here that buys debt from lenders and farms it out to collection agencies to pursue.
Demand for collectors is so strong, Mr. Siegel said, that good ones "can walk out the door and get another job that afternoon."
[...]
As an added benefit, Mr. Costa and other executives said, people in Buffalo tend to be loyal, so turnover is only 20 percent after the first 90 days, compared with 50 percent or more at agencies in other parts of the country.
On average, experienced collectors in western New York earn $32,000 a year; homes in the region can cost less than $100,000.
The downside, executives say, is that the best collectors -- some of whom get performance bonuses that boost their salaries to $150,000 a year will quit with little notice if they get a better offer.
consumerist.com/371123/buffalo-where-the-debt-collectors-do-roamreply
they'll quit without notice right,or they'll be fired for not meeting there quota.you be judge.
I think the better the agency the better the money. It's easier
I think the better the agency the better the money. It's easier (IMO) to work for a good company than it is for one that tries to stress you all of the time.
Police yourselves or the feds will do it for you
to paulmergel. If this is so, than why are there so many "fly by night agencies" involved in racketeering...especially in the Buffalo New York area? There maybe some good CA's, but if the industry does not start policing itself and or reigning in all the crooks and gangsters, than don't be surprised when the feds (It won't be too much longer) will begin taking drastic steps to police and possibly jail some of your fellow co collectors for breaking the law.
reply
dude,i'm not a collector.i just know from experience with other than pdl's there are CA'S that operate withn the law.managed to pay cc's i owe with legit collectors.by the way FYI is a collector and a good one.so please,do not go there.me a collector,now iv'e heard everything. :roll: :roll:
Here's an ironic twist... One of my best friends, her husband
Here's an ironic twist...
One of my best friends, her husband is a collector. Last year they had to file bankruptcy........because they were behind in all their bills and drowning in PDLs.
Apology
I apologize to Paulmergel for mistaking you as a collector. I am sure that there are some collectors that do the right thing. I still however stand by my statement that the industry needs to start "policing" itself or the feds will do it for them. All the criminals and thugs that are involved in this industry make everyone else that is trying to abide by the law, look bad.
reply
apology accepted,i too agree that there is alot more bad than good.i have been harrased by some myself.so i know where your coming from.
I agree that the financial industry needs to police itself. I al
I agree that the financial industry needs to police itself. I also agree that the lending police should be more strict and force more Americans to actually save for things they need instead of relying on credit by denying credit applications unless the applicant has taken a course in what it means to even have credit and the consequences of what happens when things go unpaid.
I also think that more lenders should have the ability to sue their consumers who are past one year of default at a lesser cost in order to prevent the selling of accounts to collection agencies.
There are two courses that I would dearly love to see made manda
There are two courses that I would dearly love to see made mandatory in high school:
1 - Personal finance
2 - Driver's ed
Fat chance that either will ever come to pass. But I can hope.
I took Driver's Ed in High School. And yes, I cannot stress eno
I took Driver's Ed in High School. And yes, I cannot stress enough as a younger person that I WISH they taught credit, budgeting, and finance in High School as a required course.
In elementary school, they taught us how to properly write out a check. And we would pretend to buy items with our properly-written checks. Scary, huh?
National overhaul of Economy
Was watching the news last night and was shocked to find out that most of AMerica's basic resources more and more are owned by foreign interest. This nation is in debt up to it's own eyeballs. America basically runs on buy now, pay later, but we are actually beholden to foreign governments for our debt, namely China. It is'nt enough to communicate to Americans to save our money. With todays economic situation, almost every penny you make goes into the process of day to day living. Most Americans except for the top 1 to 2 percent can afford to save. So much deregulating of bank and finance Companies etc..that started during the Regan years has led us to the situation that we are in now. Yes the economy does run in cycles, spurts of feast, and famine..., but this crisis appears to be much more serious than any other era of inflation within the past twenty years. What I believe there should be is a requiem on the nations economy. An overhaul of the system that would actually penalize banks and other financial industries for predatory lending and collection of debts. (Revisit depression era laws that protected consumers from banking exploitation) Overhaul and streamline the economic system that would profit everyone during both the good and the bad times. Keep jobs here in this country and pay everyone a livable wage...many things can be done if Americans band together and demand these changes.
My husband and I made less than 60k last year for a family of 6.
My husband and I made less than 60k last year for a family of 6. If we can manage to save for things that we want I imagine that many more Americans can as well.
I'm not talking about saving up 10-20 grand for a car or 60-150k for a house, that's where credit plays a part. By saving I mean pay for your groceries and gas with cash. Buy your Christmas and birthday presents with cash. Save up for new furniture. It can be done you just have to realize what you can afford and what you can't.
Your right FYI. The only time a person should try to obtain cred
Your right FYI. The only time a person should try to obtain credit is if they need it soon or if they are just trying to build up their credit. I applied for a fashion bug card a few years back. Great thing about it is there are no annual or monthly fees and it doesn't matter if you don't use it. I'm a guy so I have no reason to use it so it just sits on my credit report with a zero balance and reports positively every month. :D