Why We Love Debt Negotiation (And You Should, Too!)
We love assisting consumers every day and educating them on how they can save money, impact their scores in a positive way, and take action for themselves! Debt negotiation is something most consumers think they could never do! You may be surprised to know that many creditors/collectors will allow a consumer to negotiate with them on bills such as medical debts.
Job loss, medical emergencies, or unexpected expenses can make it hard to make ends meet! If you find yourself in a tight spot financially, and still have unpaid debt piling up it may seem like a nightmare to continue to get calls from those debt collectors. Although sometimes difficult, it is possible to negotiate on your own with collectors. To stay organized and run through the process as quickly as possible, these few steps are important.
Locate Documentation–
Locate your current statements and payments you are making. Make sure your payment history and late payment notices are documented. Determine payment arrangements-Look over your finances, bills and money coming in. Come up with a manageable amount that you know you could make. This will help you when you speak with a representative. Knowing what you will hear prior to the phone call will allow you to avoid them pressuring you into payments you cannot handle. The representative is not aware of your other financial obligations so be very honest and outright about what you can handle. Explain to the representative the current situation that you are in isn’t working and try to come to an agreement that you can afford. They may be able to lower the interest rate or accept a lump sum for less than originally documented. If for some reason they are giving you a hard time and you cannot get them to budge, call back and speak to a new rep.
Gather information-
You will want to make sure you are taking notes and keeping names of the people you speak to as well as the date and time the call took place. Anything at this point needs to be documented and kept in writing. If at any point an agreement is made, ask to have it documented in an email or written. This is the most important piece of the puzzle. Agreeing to a payment that hasn’t been documented could mean they do not correctly remove it from a credit report or the information is misplaced, and you are stuck in payments you did not commit to. You will want an outline of the payments you agreed to.
What can I do if I don’t want to negotiate for myself?
In an effort to save time and resources, another option would be to hire a credit repair or credit counseling service. The primary concern would be to learn what kind of work they will do for you upfront and what you will be paying for during the process. At Credit Law Center we use the law as leverage to gain deletions from the credit report. Ideally, this process is one that consumers want to get done quickly whether it is due to wanting to buy a new home, get a new car etc. At Credit Law Center you only pay for the items that we successfully remove so you can expect we want to make sure we are removing items as quick as we can. We go after all of the items on the entire report and our consumers know what they could end up paying in the end. Should you go through credit repair or credit counseling, it is a good idea to continue to monitor your credit report.
Debt Negotiation Options – Another great option is try to negotiate to pay a smaller amount on the debt owed. If you are uncomfortable or the task seems to difficult, we suggest hiring an attorney for this step!
As a law firm we have the ability and power to negotiate judgments, repossessions, charge off, or any sort of debt that is still reporting on a report. We use the power of the law and our attorneys to negotiate these items in a way that’s favorable to you. While not Debt Consolidation or Bankruptcy, we do have significant tools available to us that help negotiate these debts and save you significant amounts of money! We have four attorneys in house that you can lean on for advice and guidance while working on negotiation. Their extensive negotiating experience with banks, collection companies, and collection attorneys has helped our clients save thousands. Our goal is to negotiate the debt as low as possible out of court and get your case dismissed.
If you are in the process of trying to negotiate and come to an agreement with a creditor and have any further questions, our Credit Advisors would be happy to help you. Should you need the expertise and legal advice of on of our attorney’s, please call and they would be happy to answer any questions!
For more information about your credit score, please give Credit Law Center a call at 1-800-994-3070.
A note from the author: The opinions you read here come from our editorial team. Our content is accurate to the best of our knowledge when we initially post it.
Article by Breana Washington
