We have not used them – but used RMCN.com Which is Repair My Credit Now. They are based in Texas. They work on getting things off your credit report and then making a final settlement on the ones you do owe. I think they are alittle over rated. It cost like $1500.00 then $99.00 for 6 months. We still are not done with them and the $1500. was their fee – we will still have to come up with money to pay the creditors off. My husband gets so blind-sighted talking to people like this and I would have rather put the 1500 towards our creditors! Good luck -
What you need to know about debt settlement firms:
Your credit card companies are not going to offer you settlements like 50%, for example, if you are current (not behind) on your payments. If credit card companies offered settlements to people who are current on their payments, then everyone would be calling them up and asking for 50% settlements. Basically, the only way you can get into a position to negotiate settlements is to deliberately let your accounts go into default. This is exactly what debt settlement firms do….They take a monthly amount from you and use that to build a “settlement” account, which will go towards paying the “settlement” at a later date.
If you are current on your accounts, this process will ruin your credit rating as your accounts will all go into default. Your creditors are under no obligation whatsoever to accept settlements from any debt settlement firm you hire. Their response might be to serve you papers and take you to court.
Some people have had success using debt settlement firms. The main issue is that you can never predict how any one creditor is going to respond to this tactic of deliberately defaulting on debt to get settlements. Some creditors may not like this very much and might immediately take you to court. Debt settlement firms have no power whatsoever to stop creditors from taking this action and they have no power to force creditors to accept settlements. If you are willing to live with this risk, then maybe using a debt settlement firm might be worth considering.
Honestly, if you’re to go this route, you might as well do it yourself. You don’t have to pay anyone to ruin your credit rating/default on your cards…you can do this yourself for free by stop paying on your bills and propose a 50% settlement after 4-5 months of non-payment. Expect a lot of “nice” phone calls from debt collectors. The same risk of being sued exists regardless of whether you do it yourself or if you hire a debt settlement firm.
****If you have already defaulted on your cards….make your own settlement offers…you can do this on your own and it puts you in control. If you do…get all settlement terms IN WRITING PRIOR to paying them.
Before you use a debt settlement company make sure you get some unbiased info. DEBT SETTLEMENT IS NOT FOR EVERYONE, BUT GREAT FOR SOME.
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September 1st, 2009 at 11:41 am
Take control of your finances and pay them yourself. These companies are rip-offs.