Ms.

I was wondering if anyone here has successfully negotiated a decent settlement with United Collections Bureau (UCB) on their own. I have a delinquent account with Citibank for $15K. I tried to work with them for 6 months, but because part of my balance had a promotional rate, they couldn't lower my interest rate and put me into their balance liquidation program. They charged off the account a couple of weeks ago and placed it with UCB for collections. UCB called me last Monday night, and when I told the rep on the phone that I needed something in writing, she transferred me to another rep who was quite nasty. I told him the same thing, and after our conversation escalated into a bit of a shouting match, I told him I was done, that he needed to stop harrassing me, and that he needed to send me something in writing. I received official notice from them today in the mail that they are handling this account for Citibank and that I have 30 days to dispute the debt, etc. etc. I am sick over this, since I also owe an additional $50,000 to Chase, Citibank (a second account), Discover, and HSBC. Both Chase and HSBC have worked with me (I am a full-time caregiver to a very ill, permanently disabled husband, and our monthly living expenses outstrip our income) and put me on a 60-month liquidation plan at 0% interest. Discover put me at 3.9% for a year, and Citibank put me at 0% with payments of $173/month for a year. Am I better off trying to settle with UCB on my own, should I have an attorney handle this for me, or should I place it with a debt settlement company? I don't want to get sued, and I do not want to file for bankruptcy. I have around $5000 in savings that I could use to settle this debt. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.