Has anyone had a GOOD experience with debt settlement at all???

May I ask what company you went with ? The reason I ask is there are a lot of crooked settlement companies out there so be sure you do your home work on them by checking them out on the BBB to make sure they have a solid track record.


No matter what company you choose to go with " good or bad " there is always the risk of lawsuits, judgments and garnishments. Creditors have the right to send debts to a third party collection agency and / or law firms in order to collect a debt. Typically if this happens , your settlement company will continue to work on your account and will the treat the account as a priority creditor ( meaning they will try and resolve it first , before moving onto your other accounts ). Based on past experience ,it is a small percentage of cases on which lawsuits are actually filed. When this does happen , usually the purpose of a lawsuit is to force a settlement.Your settlement company should continue to negotiate to settle the debt , although the settlement percentages are often higher than typical "non-legal" settlements. Worst comes to worst , if a lawsuit is filed before you have saved up enough funds to negotiate a settlement , they "the settlement company " will seek to resolve the account by putting it on a long term payment plan for 100 % of the balance.

debt settlement works great. i can attest to that myself and i've seen dozens of people go through it. but mobile0311 is right. the risks are always there - yes you could get sued, yes you could get garnished but as it is a small percentage - especially now days.

Be sure to check out the company with the BBB, I have had success with CCCS but have had 2 other companies that weren't sucessful-they were taking my payments and paid for the 1st couple months and then stopped-1 of them had several complaints w/the BBB and if I would've steered clear of them, the other didn't have any complaints, however I think they were just too overwhelmed with the amount of business they were getting(from what the reps said on the phone) needless to say, I didn't stick with them for long because of that issue. If you start with a company and it's not working shop around some more, it will put you back at the start of the program, but you may find a better fit the 2nd time around, which is better than working with a company that isn't doing their best for you.

They are called pacific debt. I checked them out on the BBB and they have a Satisfactory rating. They have 4 complaints filed against them, and all have been resolved. Also, my rep knows I am nervous so he keeps up with me, e-mails and calls just to check up on me and see if I have any questions or anything. Thanks for the info everyone. I guess I just have to wait and see what happens and take it one step at a time.....all I can do at this point I guess :oops:

debt settlement companies are great. I did not know about the programs available until I recently started working with one and immediately put my debt into the program. It is the best thing that couldve happened to me as far a solution. Let me put it like this, if there was a lawsuit to happen (which is very unlikely), would you rather go against it by yourself or instead with a company of attorneys backing you up?

debt settlement companies usually are no help whatsoever if you are sued by a creditor

How do you know that? Were you in the situation? Just wondering. I guess I just want a "worst case scenario" if I were to be sued? Mobile0311 had given one. I feel sort of lucky b/c I guess I could always move back in with my parents if worst came to absolute worst to get the money but I just want this not to go into a big fiasco, I hate the idea of courtrooms and lawyers, etc

Read the FAQ's and disclaimers on any website you visit. Most will state that in the event you are sued by a creditor, seek legal counsel.

that is right they will work with you on debt that has not had judgment against you, however most CA won't file suit if you have a program and are making the scheduled payments, with or without a settlement company.

I signed up reputable company in FL and had to cancel the program because I have been experiencing a major slowdown in work. And that company is highly recommended on this forum. To make a long story short I cancelled the program before the first payment of $1500 was due as per my contract and it was still taken from my account. They never would return my calls and my calls always go to their voicemail. I ended up calling them for almost a week and hours and hours and finally got my money back a month later. The money taken was for my rent and I told them that, and they still stroked me along. The said they were having problems with a new phone system or something like that. This was a few months ago and I call every week and I have still not received notification that I cancelled my contract. Because of this I had Wells Fargo put a stop on their company for 6 months.

After reading this board for several months I have learned alot and I have started doing my own debt settlement. Plus I really wasn't comfortable with any one company. That's an option if you are good on the phone and have the time and patience.

Today I got a debt settlement offer for 25% on a $17000 balance and I have til March to pay it off. First payment was today, Woo hoo, lots more to go.

Keep in mind that none of the debt settlement companies can stop any civil suits. There are some good companies out there but you have to stick to the program and even be able to make some larger payments if you can.

Good luck to ya.

Thanks Bman. May I ask how you were able to settle your accts with your cards? I would like to do this very much, but do not know who to call, or what to say. Any help would be appreciated if you have time. Thanks!!

First question I would have for you is how late are you so far? What cards are you in debt with?

I have been in a hardship condition and I just initially called the creditors and explain to them I need to talk to a dept that will be able to discuss hardship options in regards to my account. Don't waste your time talking to a regular rep as they can't help you...You need to be in the specialized department to handle your debt. Tell them you are in a hardship, overextended, whatever it takes, but try and be truthful as well. Be sure to make notes every time you call and get their names and extenstions and the name of their dept.

Keep in mind those specialized departments are looking at your credit report at that time you call and tjhey know how bad off you are. If you have money, tell them you are looking at settling with a creditor, but you are looking at the best deal to settle with your creditors, if that's your case. Focus on handling one settlement at a time. If you have more than one creditor. Call each one and see which is best for you at the time, considering the best debt reduction and what you can afford.

Many card companies will start to charge off at 6 months so you will want to try before that if you can. If the card gets charged off which I believe has to happen at 7 months (Federal Law) you will have to negotiate with the collection agency. I have a few cards in outside collections. One company has offered me 45% but I couldn't swing it yet.

I have a Discover card that is set to charge off tommorow and they said if I made payments close to or right at 1% of what I owe them for up to six months, that will keep it with them and not charge off. Then I can do a settlement or let it go if I can't do it.

One more thing...Don't pay a penny until you get a letter stating your settlement. Look up sample letters in the search and you will find some great samples.

Brian

I just want to say that there is more than one option. Most of you seem to only know of debt settlemen, but there is another program many of you are unaware of, its a debt management Program. The program was created by creditors themselves in order to recapture the original principle owed to them instead of risking loosing it, and at the same time allowing you to get out of debt about 75% faster while keeping your payments around the same, or in most instances, actually lowering the payment. This way, most of your payment will go towards your balance which will allow you to save a significant amount of time and thousands on interest. It works by making one simple payment that is distributed to all the creditors for you at lowered prenegotiated rates they are willing to offer you for being on the program. Being on the dmp, most creditors will give you the benefit of waiving late/overlimit fees, plus they will report your account in good standing so it will also help you rebuild your credit if you have deliquencies. It is a win win solution that can lower your payment, save you thousands on interest, pay off your debt 75% faster, plus help your credit at the same time. Neither is there a need to pull credit or be within a certain Debt-to-Income ratio. If you would like to find out more about it, dont hesistate to contact me with any questions, ill be more than glad to help: XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX. If you would like to find out more by talking to someone, you should try this # XXXXXXXXXX


OK Shoyo...no more warnings...your posts will just be deleted - ND

Nice Spam there shoyos , Your suggestion is only good if they are not overextended and can afford monthly payments.

I would negotiate your own payments with each creditor if you go that route. There is NO need to pay any fees to companies, plus I've been able to get far better payments on my own versus any DM companies.

thank you so much for all of your input it was very helpful!

The same works for debt settlement. Dont go with a settlement company that's going to charge you a lot in fees to sit on your money and tell you to ignore all the phone calls. Put your money in your own savings and then settle your accounts yourself. If you do it before they charge off and your not with a settlement company you can get as low as 15% and usually between 25% and 30%.

I work for a affiliate of a debt settlement company that is done under a legal umbrella with attorneys in place in 45 states. While the attorneys wont appear in court for a debtor without an additional fee, they do offer telephone counseling/instruction
to clients being sued. Most consumers are so beset, that they
simply do not have the time, & know how, to work on their own credit card debt. Card companies are loading up on consumers prior to Aug legislation going into effect regarding rates and fees. Debt managment or Consolidation takes twice as long in general as DS and you pay off every dollar owed, albeit at a reduced interest rate. These companies are almost fronts for the card companies. A cardholder just paying the minimum is purposely turned into an indentured servant for life by the same banks and lenders that take TARP funds from the govt, and offer depositors little interest on their CDs and deposits.
Credit card debt is the most profitable and insidious money grab by the banks to to point of obcene profitability.

To the people that have a contiversy on debt settlement companies there are good ones and bad ones but all I can tell you is that White Light Financial is a good company My suggestion is that you inquire, just hear what they have to say and if interested use them

I have been with Innovation Financial Consulting for about 6 moths and they have already resolved 2 of my debts. From day one they put my mind at ease about this type of program. I would highly recommend them

I am sure there are some good ones out there. But after just recently settling 4 cards on my own I highly suggest anyone looking to settle really think about giving it a try yourself! Honestly, if I can do it anyone can! I hate confrontation and am not a good negotiator. But I just knew what I could do and researched what was a good settlement and stuck to it. We settled $31,010.00 for $10,109.00.

Sorry, wasn't logged in
Jill Adams

Jill A,
i am in desperate need of doing the same thing. where did you get your info on how to settle your cards yourself?

Thanks.
Debbie B.

You wrote about 3 years ago you were nervous to do debt settlement. Well, how did it go??