06/21/2019
CREDIT TIP OF THE WEEK:
How do you deal with collections?
Did you forget about paying a bill and have it go into collections? Unfortunatley this will probably be reporting to the credit bureau and affecting your score negitively. It's pretty easy to forget about a bill. Move, lose mail, forget a password or have an e-mail go into your spam folder are just a few ways this can happen.
If this has already been reported as a collection than the damage has been done. The great thing about this? Damage is repairable and all your have to do is pay the debt!
How is this a tip you ask? Well here is the tip. Collection agencys buy your debt for pennies on the dollar from the origional creditor which means they are making a healthy profit if you pay back 100% of what you owe. Don't want to pay 100% of the debt back but still want to clear it off your credit bureau? Collection companies will settle with you especially if there is a threat of bankruptcy. I personally have negotiated down nearly 50% of my past debts in rebuilding my own credit from mistakes of the past.
Make sure you have money to pay the debt. Call the collection company not the origonal creditor, ask them how much they would take to settle this debt in full today. They will usually give you a small break in payment to start. This is where you come in with a low ball offer. I usually start off with 35-40% of the origional debt. You will want to end with a win win negotation making the collection company happy with the amount you have paid and make yourself happy with how much you saved! A strong negotiator will save the most money!
Want to learn how to negotiate? Check out the book "Never split the difference" by Chris Voss ( one of the FBI’s lead international kidnapping negotiator)
Find it here -
A University of California professor and co-author of Gorilla Society draws on myriad sciences and disciplines to examine how the evolution of the human species has been shaped by the environment cultural diversity and population density in different world regions