Judgmet from 2003

[buffy]

My son got a letter today offering a settlement for a judgement from 2003. The judgement is for less than 2000 but the letter states over 7000 is owed and they will settle for 3600. He is sending a letter asking for debt verification especially the amount. This is crazy.

[AngelinaCat]

My son got a letter today offering a settlement for a judgement from 2003. The judgement is for less than 2000 but the letter states over 7000 is owed and they will settle for 3600. He is sending a letter asking for debt verification especially the amount. This is crazy.

Buffy, if your son has an active judgment against him, then he has some problems.

Please give more information about this judgment and how it came about. Did he get a notice from the court and simply ignore it? You cannot do that. The creditor then will get a judgment by default.

Thanks, and you will find this response and your original post moved to a new thread so that it can be seen and responded to more easily/

[GoingDown]

Also, check the statute of limitations for judgments in your state. And check to see whether this judgment has been renewed or not.

In Arizona, for example, judgments are only good for 5 years from the date of judgment. If the judgment is not renewed before it expires, then the judgment becomes worthless.

Also, depending upon the state you're in, post judgment interest is often set at a lower amount than pre-judgent interest. In Arizona, for example, post judgment interest is limited to 10%. It would seem that this debt collector is charging more interest than they would be allowed. Your son should contact the attorney general's office in your state and file a complaint about this matter. It might get the debt collector to back off on some of that interest.

If he does end up settling the judgment, make sure you get the settlement offer in writing, and make sure that they explicitly put in writing their agreement to not sell the remaining balance to anyone else, and that this is "settled in full". Your son will get a 1099-C for any amount over $600 that is forgiven, and it may be taxable if he is not insolvent (according to the I.R.S. rules) at the time of the settlement.

[catleg]

I would suggest counter-offering $1000 as payment in full. For a judgment that old, they should have pretty low expectations. Perhaps even start at 500 and negotiate it to 1000.