4 credit cards.... Sending them Cease and Desist letter.

Cease and desist letters wouldn't work for the original creditors. FDCPA doesn't apply to them. You can avoid some of their calls but ceasing all communication may prompt them to take legal action against you.

There are no shortcuts, you need to be behind by about 3 payments before you should even talk about settlement. I turn the ringer off on the phone and the volume off on the answering machine and just take the calls I want. They never leave a message, so the only messages on the machine are from people you can call back. It's not perfect, but it makes a big difference. Talk to them about once a month.

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I am convinced that my willingness to talk with them was key in reaching settlements without getting sued. If you are asking them to basically give you $100k, seems like taking their calls and letting them know what is up would not be unreasonable. When they call me, I just excuse myself and take them privately. I also take their calls when I am driving alone. Good Luck

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You are in control! You are under no oblication to answer their phone calls. if you want to answer one time, record the call (your state may require that you inform them of this), before they start talking you ask their name and ID#, company name, Company address and the purpose of their call. you then inform them (talking over them if you have to) that "I do not conduct any financial business over the phone, if you wish to contact me you may do so in writing. Any further phone calls I receive from you will be considered direct and willfull harassment and will not be tollerated. Have a nice day". Then hang up! You then write them a letter saying the same thing you just told them and send it certified mail return receipt. Keep a log of date and time and subject of phone calls and other corrospandance. Remember, If it is not in writing it never happened.
Google "Fair Debt Collections Practices Act" and read it. You have more clout with these idiots than you realize. I'm happy to speak with anyone about my experiance with these thieves. timthewizard@gwi,net

If you can afford to get a 2nd phone line, in another family members name, I would do that, and just leave the 1st line open, with your machine so as your migrating calls that you much have, you have it. It will save alot of stress and interruption.

any type of cease & desist letter could cause your accounts to go legal right away, especially with your original creditors, i recommend dealing with the phone calls and waiting for the best settlement possible.

i always told my clients, " its better them calling you than a lawfirm in you home state"

change your number, turn the ringer off, i wouldnt fax anything legal usually it backfires and youll screw up your opportunity.

Tell them to Go F*** themselves (i.e. do not contact me in any form) and if you file a lawsuit, I will file bankruptcy, go ahead and see how fast it ends up in federal court with an immediate stay and later discharge. Next, ignore summons servers, you can know when one may be due to attempt delivery because in most areas, you can check online, when it shows, you be wary of who comes to the door and you ignore them. When summons can not be served within 120 days (most try 3 or 4 times) they send it back, usually within 20 days, as UNSERVED. This means the CC company spent hundreds of $ and received NOTHING. After Statute of Limitations runs out (often 3-5 years in many states), they can no longer sue you and after 7.5 years in ALL states, it is off your credit record and they can't do anything about it. Stick it to them, ESPECIALLY CHASE, CAPITAL ONE, CITIGROUP and TARGET NATIONAL BANK, to name three.

The Unemployed

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wow, that is some messed up advice!! Of course we all hate the credit card companies but that is very wrong.....

Let's not forget that we are asking them to basically "give" us a whole lot of money. We are not keeping our agreement and are asking them to not hold us to it. Try that with the IRS or a secured loan. They will tell YOU to f/o and take your property right out of your home. For these reasons, I take their calls. I have also found them much more understanding when I give them my sad story, if they can see I am not avoiding the calls. Good luck to you.

hey the unemployed dont you mean four companies? lol

My biggest concern is that even if the SOL is up and it falls off the credit report, what if that bank that you stuck it to takes over your bank someday? For example, I had old debts with Chase, my checking account with Wamu, when Chase took over, they now had access to my active bank account, luckily the Chase debts were sold before the take over of Wamu. But what if I have an old debt with someone who never sells their debt and continues to charge interest like Capital One,and should they someday acquire a bank where I do keep my money? They may not be able to take me to court for an old debt, but if they gain control of my other bank accounts, they can legally extract the funds they want which would restart the clock.

That would not restart the SOL clock. Only an action by you could do that. Nor do I believe that they would have the right to offset in the scenario you described.