what does charge off mean?

A charge off is a bad debt. It reflects on your credit report as a R9 for as long as your state allows. Should your credit card agreement or state laws allow you can be charge continued interest on the account, as much as your state allows, until it is paid.

That is why validating the debt is so important and why just statements for example are not enough. In order for them to legally charge you interest, they either have to use your state's interest laws, or what was specified in the contract. If they don't have a copy of the -signed- contract or agreement, they can't charge you interest like that.

isn't a charge off a bad debt that can no longer be collected upon?..and is not a big hit on your credit report?..just asking because hubby with ex wife and many many bad debts 10 years ago had many out of sol charge off's with ex and we now both have excellent credit scores..of course mine is better..but occasionally I do list him as a co-ap..a charge off from what I have seen in his case only instigated about ten more credit card offers for incredulous amounts!!!!! charging off bad debt often opens the door for allowing you to have often three or four times more debt..I think from my own experience..of course my experience could have been an exception....

Charge off simply means the creditor has not been able to get payment for that account and so closed it out with a zero balance and likely got a tax break on it. They no longer care about it and will more then likely sell it in a batch with other ???????charge off???????? accounts.

The reason that old charge offs don????????t seem to affect your credit score is because they are old. The older an account gets the less impact it has on your score (at least this is what I have been told).

Honestly I think it was a coincidence that he got a bunch of offers due to charge offs. The only time I have heard of that happening is right after bankruptcy. I guess creditors figure you can????????t go bankrupt again.

golden..he didn't bankrupt..he simply divorced ex and married me 3 years later...our tax adviser told him to throw away anything that arrives from companies who try to collect on anything out of sol....he still gets letters from the parasites trying to collect on old debts..but at the meantime...gets letters from credit card companies wanting him to apply! I have had excellent credit for over 30 years and recently changed my last name to his and am now worth more credit wise due to our combined incomes! go figure!

I just meant that the only time I have seen a deluge of credit offers is right after someone files for bankruptcy. Someone told me once that since you can????????t file for bankruptcy again for a long time, creditors offer the credit because they know that person can????????t charge it off in another bankruptcy.

I saw that happen with my mom and dad..they couldn????????t get credit at all, but after they went through bankruptcy they suddenly got inundated with credit offers, I recall even a car dealership sending a letter offering to finance a car guaranteed!

And some folks say that predatory lending practices are limited to pdl's and the like........

Alot of times when an account is charged off, they "bundle" or put it in a portfolio and sell it to junk debt buyers for pennies on the dollar. Then the sharks come after you and try to get what they can.

I went back and paid a charge off, it wasn't very old, simply because I didn't want it sold and at that time we were financially able to do it.

On the other hand, I had a collector contact me on an old hospital bill that had been paid off about 10 years ago-I just wrote them that it was out of the SOL and to C&D from contacting me again!..karen

great info Karen!!!! charge offs are in a ball-park of their own depending on situation and circumstance...
hubby says he already paid debts and settled years ago on many of things he throws away today....
all I can offer from personal experience... is that the Sol debts don't effect credit scores or offers for more credit...everyone should pay their debt if they can and are financially able to do so..this is the honorable thing to do and what most advocate here on the sight...
also this may be crazy but I tell hubby NOT to contact anyone with old debts when he receives a letter for the old stuff.. (over 10 years old)....to throw it away and ignore... so as not to restart another cycle of junk debt collection attempts..I may be paranoid by thinking if you actually acknowledge and respond to junk debt buyers that it may give them some sort of leverage?
paranoid rules by the way lol!

Thanks-- I am not sure if if gives them more leverage or not. I know that old hospital bill they were trying to collec on that I paid, I called them back and spoke with them.

I didn't have any proof after all those years that it was paid, but each time one called or sent a letter, I responded-this was before I found the forum.Luckily I just didnt' give in and agree to pay it again.

I have a friend that is an attorney and he tole me it was out of the SOl and write them a letter to cease and desist from contacting me agian because it was out of the SOL, and it worked.

That's why it is important to get a debt validated--you don't know if they have the right to be collecting or if it is a bill that has already been paid!!..karen