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Is bankruptcy a valid option for me

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  • 10-04-2006, 10:50 PM
    unequalscales
    Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    Hey Law Guys,

    Just getting my ducks in a row. I have several defaulted CC accounts.
    I am in FL and my accounts have been inactive since 2001-02. I have
    not had any judgements against me dispite a hundred or so letters I
    have since destroyed. I do not return phone calls. Its been only recently
    that I have any money to speak of and I dont know how best to render
    a solution to my mess. I have had many adjustments in my life as a
    result of these bad choices and I want to face this the right way.
    Its hard, I have a committed GF in my life I love and looking at her
    and knowing all my money is subject to 'poof' gone is tough. I have
    about a year's salary in the bank, also if I sell my car that has about
    6-7K value. Probably about 25-30K to speak of. I live with a friend,
    I have very little bills. I pay my car ins, cell phone, rent and my monthly
    expenses with cash. I have 10K in one account, 15K in my savings and
    checking combined and about 6-8K in assets I can sell. My credit
    report has a bunch of numbers that make no sense and I dont even
    know what I owe anymore. I can make no sense of it based on knowing
    my original balances and the names of the entities that I owe based
    on my report. Somehow my credit report on myfico is in the mid 630s.
    I dont think thats so great, but with all my bad debt and delinquencies,
    I would think it would be worse. Being in FL and most of my accounts
    been inactive since late 2002, where do I stand on this and what would
    be a course of action to begin facing this issue in my life? Any help
    would be much appreciated.

    In the dark and wanting to come to the light,

    unequalscales
  • 10-05-2006, 08:51 AM
    aaron
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    How much do you owe?
  • 10-05-2006, 10:49 AM
    unequalscales
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    well, if I were to put the total were the collectors like it: 55,253 is what
    myfico.com says is what is on my equifax. the amounts are unfamiliar to
    me as the original notes have expanded quite a bit.

    what I originally did:

    AMEX: 1200
    AMEX: 2500
    NEXTCARD: 5000
    CITI: 8000
    CHASE: 3500
    CHASE: 5000
    FIDELITY: 3500
    DELL: 2000
    ROOMS TO GO: 2500

    all defaulted. dont ask, I really dropped the ball. this was 4-5 years ago
    now and I just want to know the best way to proceed. my credit report
    does not reflect the original notes as the new holders of the debts are
    on there too, as well as the old notes, I dont know what goes where
    or what is duplicated, I have not communicated to anyone without having
    a plan because I have been off the grid if you know what I mean. I have
    only recently begun making any consistent income in the last 2 years.
    I've had some rough times. I am sure you hear this alot. Thanks for
    reading.
  • 10-05-2006, 10:54 AM
    Mr. Knowitall
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    With the type of liquidity you describe, and the age of the debts you indicate, my personal approach would be to try to negotiate payoffs with the creditors. Your credit is already in the toilet, but bankruptcy will put it deeper down the drain (and might not do that much to improve your situation, as most of your cash would likely still end up being applied to the debt).

    There are some people who float through here who have a pretty good grounding on how to deal with creditors and collection agencies, so ideally one of them will chime in with ideas.
  • 10-05-2006, 11:07 AM
    unequalscales
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    Thanks for the note, I am just trying to formulate a strategy with this. no matter what this is going to be on my credit report. myfico.com says equifax has me rated in the 630s. I havent done anything with credit in 4-5 years, ironically myfico.com set me up with a bill me later account for the yearly subscription. When that happened it went from 611 to 630ish. HAHA.

    Like I said I appreciate your thoughts and am in the process of acessing
    a real world view on how to deal with these people. Especially since I havent
    spoken to them in years, not to mention I am nearing the statutory time
    where they cant really enforce the debts with me. Again I live in FL and most
    of these notes are greater than 4 years since the last activity on the account.
  • 10-05-2006, 11:26 AM
    aaron
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    You can sometimes negotiate for the negative entry to be removed from the account - although you should obtain written confirmation of any such agreement before sending the payoff amount. If you're not particularly worried about your credit score, the "let sleeping dogs lie" option remains available - but don't accidentally throw away notice of a lawsuit, as a default judgment will remain on your credit report for a very long time.
  • 10-05-2006, 11:56 AM
    unequalscales
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    thanks for that healthy warning, I have thrown so many things away I dont even know. I have been threatened before, but nothing came from it as of
    yet. I do not have any judgements on my report. What do you mean by let sleeping dogs lie? What does that look like as a part of a strategy to
    categorically approach all these creditors? Do I start with the oldest one
    first?
  • 10-05-2006, 12:01 PM
    aaron
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    Sometimes when you negotiate with creditors they realize, "Hey - this guy has some money", or they ask for proof of your assets, and you end up inspiring them to try to collect everything you owe rather than negotiating a discount. Once the statute of limitations has run, although the debt doesn't drop off of your credit report, the debt is no longer enforceable in court.

    So... You could end up with new judgment debts which will remain on your credit report for a very long time. You could end up with a bankruptcy which will remain on your credit report for a very long time. Or it could be that most of these debts expire, leaving you a relative few to resolve in the event of litigation, resulting in a minimum of payouts and the fastest recovery for your credit. It's all somewhat speculative - we can't predict the future.
  • 10-05-2006, 12:29 PM
    unequalscales
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    all my debts last activities run from 10/00 through 12/02 with one
    stand out in 01/03. does the SOL defense apply to me in this case,
    its not like I planned it this way. what is a good strategy I can adopt
    to start taking one on at a time? how should I initially contact them
    as to resolve these old debts? should I hire a lawyer?

    any ideas will be much appreciated...
  • 10-05-2006, 02:49 PM
    aaron
    Re: Is bankruptcy a valid option for me
    I would estimate that the five year statute of limitations for written contracts may apply, although it is always appropriate to verify limitations periods with a local lawyer who is familiar with both those periods and exceptions to them, and who can apply them to the full facts of the case. Sometimes a different statute than expected applies, or the creditor has grounds to ask that the court find that the limitations period was "tolled" such that a later suit can be brought. There are some who suggest that a four year limitations period would apply for Florida credit card debt; but I haven't seen that backed up by anything other than lay opinion, so until there is verification it makes sense to assume that the longer period applies.
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