Debt collectors are losing interest for now.

[jacko]

Its been three years since I walked away from my debt. Thus far this month, I received one collection letter, a monthly statement from citi and two credit card solicitations.

Citi is now sending me normal monthly statements like nothing has happened except for the unpaid balance of $9000 three years ago and is now nearly $16000.

[mountanddo]

You are lucky that you haven't been sued yet. It only took Capital One a year before they sent a summons.

[lillymarlene]

Both Bank of America and Capital One were suing me after a year of non-payment. These were two of my smallest credit card debts, both under $4K. I was afraid they were running "test cases" to see what would happen, before they attempted to take me to court for my much larger balances.

[CCM620]

I just received my first lawsuit after over a year of non payment from Bank Of America, and it was the second smallest. I have a total of 7 credit cards I owe whom I stopped paying. I think Discover Card will be the next to sue as the same law firm that haddles BOA is handling them. I wonder too what the others will do when they see the first one or two are not able to collect anything.

[bladerunner]

re: Jacko...three years for me too. Citi did sue me and the judge dismissed it for now. I'm working part-time so my income is still below the garnishment tables...I have noticed a new batch of 877 numbers on my home phone, nothing in the mail yet. This is funny...I mean our house was foreclosed on, we owe the IRS, I have no bank account, no savings, no assets....let's see owed 15k on 3 cards 3 years ago. Wells Fargo 6k, Discover 7k and Citi 2k and Citi is the one who sued me, go figure...

[jacko]

Actually I have been sued. Crap One is the only CC issuer that sued me. The Judgment past the two year mark.

You are lucky that you haven't been sued yet. It only took Capital One a year before they sent a summons.

[jacko]

I had about 10 issuers which included the defunct Circuit City card, MensWearhouse and Dell. Crap One was the only one that sued. The balance is under $10,000 including interest and fees. I to owe the IRS. A BK at this point would not help me. I also, have a foreclosure as well.

re: Jacko...three years for me too. Citi did sue me and the judge dismissed it for now. I'm working part-time so my income is still below the garnishment tables...I have noticed a new batch of 877 numbers on my home phone, nothing in the mail yet. This is funny...I mean our house was foreclosed on, we owe the IRS, I have no bank account, no savings, no assets....let's see owed 15k on 3 cards 3 years ago. Wells Fargo 6k, Discover 7k and Citi 2k and Citi is the one who sued me, go figure...

[mountanddo]

How would a BK not help you?

[Bell30656]

Each state has a different Statute of Limitations (SoL). They range from very short as in AK, DE, DC, MD, NH, NC and SC that have 3 year SoL. Then there are those on the long end like OH and KY with 15. Further some states allow for garnishment of wages where there are four states that do not; NC, PA, SC and TX. Each person's situation is different. The state that he/she lives in makes a lot of difference. If you were to be living in NC for example, filing of bankruptcy on debts three years old would be a waste of money. Further the type of debts a person has makes a difference. Are they credit card or written contracts. The SoL varies from state to state for different types of debts.

[mountanddo]

Each state has a different Statute of Limitations (SoL). They range from very short as in AK, DE, DC, MD, NH, NC and SC that have 3 year SoL. Then there are those on the long end like OH and KY with 15. Further some states allow for garnishment of wages where there are four states that do not; NC, PA, SC and TX. Each person's situation is different. The state that he/she lives in makes a lot of difference. If you were to be living in NC for example, filing of bankruptcy on debts three years old would be a waste of money. Further the type of debts a person has makes a difference. Are they credit card or written contracts. The SoL varies from state to state for different types of debts.

This is why I said you can't just make a sweeping statement like "18k is too low to file BK" Each sitution is different.

[MSbklawyer]

True. The amount of debt is but one factor in the calculus. 18k in debt for a person making $20K is a lot more compelling than a person making $200K. The type of debt (secured/unsecured/priority/non-nondischargeable/taxes/support) also makes a difference.

[jacko]

I still earn to little, have no health insurance, deferred student loans and supposedly owe back state income taxes.

How would a BK not help you?

[shark66]

I still earn to little, have no health insurance, deferred student loans and supposedly owe back state income taxes.

Any single one of these would pretty much be a good enough reason not to file in its own right, let alone combined...hope the times get better for you and not for your creditors.

Good luck to us all.

[OHBOY]

re: Jacko...three years for me too. Citi did sue me and the judge dismissed it for now. I'm working part-time so my income is still below the garnishment tables...I have noticed a new batch of 877 numbers on my home phone, nothing in the mail yet. This is funny...I mean our house was foreclosed on, we owe the IRS, I have no bank account, no savings, no assets....let's see owed 15k on 3 cards 3 years ago. Wells Fargo 6k, Discover 7k and Citi 2k and Citi is the one who sued me, go figure...

bladerunner: would love to hear details about why judge dismissed your Citi lawsuit. I am curious as I too have been sued by Citi and have a hearing coming up in January...just wondering how I could possibly 'wiggle' myself out of this and have 'my' judge dismiss the case....Your input would be highly appreciated.

[GoingDown]

Any single one of these would pretty much be a good enough reason not to file in its own right, let alone combined...hope the times get better for you and not for your creditors.

Good luck to us all.

Yes, I agree with this.

The lack of health insurance is reason enough not file bk right now, in case you end up racking medical bills which you will need to have discharged later on. Look for a health care clinic in your community which offers a "sliding scale" for how much it charges people based on their income. Around here in Maricopa County it is the Maricopa County Medical Center which offers this option for uninsured people. It is not free, but it is reasonable.

As for the student loan, look into the Federal direct consolidation loan program from the U.S. Dept. of Education. They have an income contingent repayment plan which could reduce your monthly loan payment down to zero dollars per month and still be in good standing and in repayment, rather than being in deferment. Any amount left unpaid after 25 years gets forgiven.

As for back taxes, find out about the statute of limitations for these. I know of a person who owed the state of Arizona back taxes, but after a certain amount of time, they timed out and he was able to get them to release their lien by simply sending them a letter requesting it, and didn't pay them anything.