How long after stopping CC payments before they take action?

[ssmdem]

My last payment to either card was in May. I have a $27k balance with Chase and a $25K balance with Citibank.

Citibank calls pretty much about 8-10 times a day. Sometimes we answer, sometimes we don't. So far, they've been polite with no issues.

Chase hasn't called in almost 3 weeks. That makes me nervous - though when I look online, the account still shows open and active - just with no available balance. So, I'm guessing it hasn't been charged off yet ????

We hoped to file bankrupcty in August or September, but now it's going to be December -- which is a definite. Can we make it until December without getting sued? Even better, can we make it until December without them selling it to a collection agency?

My attorney actually told me yesterday to quit answering the calls. Even suggested changing my number. Said it's not going to make a difference one way or the other. However, I don't want them to start bothering friends and family. I don't mind answering occasionally - not a big deal - hoping by getting a response from me occasionally that they will let it slide longer - who knows. I just use my standard line - lost job, trying to keep mortgage paid, and until that's current will not be able to pay anything towards credit cards.

So anyone have an experience with either of these two companies or these balances?

[blockhead]

Yep, in my case I got sued by Citi for 50K 6 mths after non payment. I own a property - so I guess they figured they could get a lien on it. All it did was force me into filing. What they will do in your case, who knows. There are people who have never been sued with high balances and people who have been sued for a few thousand. If you get a letter from a law firm in your home state, that's usually the prelude for them to sue, if they do anything that is.

[ssmdem]

So, do you think I'm safe? My last payment was May 10th. Our filing date is December 8th, as that is the absolute earliest we can file. Can I ride this out? Or should I bring the payments current again right now - right now I only owe two payments on each and a $39 late fee on both. Both accounts still have the original interest rates on them at the moment and haven't been jacked up.

[SMinGA]

No direct experience - but have heard that the smaller balances are often more likely to file suit. Something about how its less expensive to file small claims?

I can understand wanting to keep those calls from going to family & friends. It probably would not hurt to occasionally talk to them and just say you're trying to work things out, but may ultimately have to file bankruptcy. My standard: I'm x months behind on my mortgage, first priorities are putting food on the table and keeping a roof over my head. No one EVER has tried to collect after that. They generally apologize!

That lets them know 2 things: there is no money to be had from you, and nothing to be gained by way of property. (Filing against you costs money, they're only likely to do that if they think it will benefit them in the form of payment or attaching to property. But with how most are upside down these days - the latter is not a great gamble anymore.)

Nothing wrong with making it obvious: there is nothing to be gained from you...

[ssmdem]

No direct experience - but have heard that the smaller balances are often more likely to file suit. Something about how its less expensive to file small claims?

I can understand wanting to keep those calls going to family & friends. It probably would not hurt to occasionally talk to them and just say you'll ultimately be filing bankruptcy. My standard: I'm x months behind on my mortgage, first priorities are putting food on the table and keeping a roof over my head. No one EVER has tried to collect after that. They generally apologize!

That lets them know 2 things: there is no money to be had from you, and nothing to be gained by way of property. (Filing against you costs money, they're only likely to do that if they think it will benefit them in the form of payment or attaching to property. But with how most are upside down these days - the latter is not a great gamble anymore.)

You think it's okay to let them know bankruptcy is in the future? Don't want them to rush us into having to file sooner. We just can't possibly do it before that date. If we do, we stand a good chance of being forced into a 13, and I don't want to miss a 7 by just a matter of a couple of months. If paying those two payments now guarantees we aren't forced to file sooner, it's worth it in the long run. Of course, don't want to be throwing money out the window either. It's about $2000 and certainly don't have it to blow right now.

[SMinGA]

Filing against you just because you're going to file bankruptcy? Its counter-productive. From the time they file - it would probably take at least 2-3 months before they could get a judgment and collect a dime from you thru a garnishment or bank levy. And when you file BK - it stops them in their tracks. Any money they have paid (filing fees, atty costs, etc.) is lost. These are businesses we are talking about - they know how to assess risk and don't like tossing money out the window.

I'd even go so far as to tell them WHY you're behind. Its a simple math equation right - income dropped. Expenses increased. Show that you don't have anything worth going after.

Since you're not even 3-6 months past due right now, the odds of anything happening against you is pretty negligible at the moment. Worst case scenario: if they file against you, use your time wisely. There will be a date for you to answer, probably within 30 days, at the last possible minute, file an answer. That should get a court hearing scheduled out 3-6 weeks later. (If you file an answer right away, the court hearing would probably happen sooner.) That alone should buy you ~2 to 2 1/2 months.

You think it's okay to let them know bankruptcy is in the future? Don't want them to rush us into having to file sooner. We just can't possibly do it before that date. If we do, we stand a good chance of being forced into a 13, and I don't want to miss a 7 by just a matter of a couple of months. If paying those two payments now guarantees we aren't forced to file sooner, it's worth it in the long run. Of course, don't want to be throwing money out the window either. It's about $2000 and certainly don't have it to blow right now.

[blockhead]

You think it's okay to let them know bankruptcy is in the future? Don't want them to rush us into having to file sooner. We just can't possibly do it before that date. If we do, we stand a good chance of being forced into a 13, and I don't want to miss a 7 by just a matter of a couple of months. If paying those two payments now guarantees we aren't forced to file sooner, it's worth it in the long run. Of course, don't want to be throwing money out the window either. It's about $2000 and certainly don't have it to blow right now.

This gets asked a lot, sure you can ride it out for a few months. Even if they served you tomorrow (hardly likely), you them have 2-3 weeks to file an answer, then you get a court date maybe 2 mths after that. If you have an attorney (hope so) he or she can help further.

I don't think you want to talk to Citi/Chase at all

[LadyInTheRed]

So, do you think I'm safe? My last payment was May 10th. Our filing date is December 8th, as that is the absolute earliest we can file. Can I ride this out? Or should I bring the payments current again right now - right now I only owe two payments on each and a $39 late fee on both. Both accounts still have the original interest rates on them at the moment and haven't been jacked up.

Don't pay them since you know you will be filing. You'll be throwing your money away.

If they sue you, you can draw it out by answering the suit. Chances are they won't sue AND get a judgment before you file. Worse case scenario: They sue you, you draw it out as long as you can and it looks like they will have a judgment before December 8th. You drain your accounts and live on cash and/or pre-paid debit cards. You are unemployed, right? No wages to garnish. While having a judgment will create a little more paperwork after your discharge, it's not the end of the world.

[ssmdem]

Thanks for your responses. My absolute biggest fear right now is not being able to file a chapter 7. The attorney yesterday when looking at all the numbers says we're close. She said she may could work it out right now, but it would be close, and if we'll just wait, we should have no problems in December. She also works with debt collections type of situations and says if we do get sued, the first thing we need to do is make them prove we owe it, which will probably buy us enough time right there. I hope so -- all of this is just making me a nervous wreck. I don't want to deal with the additional headache of a law suit.

LadyintheRed, I am employed but make less than $1000 a month. The attorney yesterday said that my husband's wages could not be garnished as head of the household - didn't know that ?? -- so worst case scenario I guess I lose a few paychecks - UGH!

[LadyInTheRed]

Thanks for your responses. My absolute biggest fear right now is not being able to file a chapter 7. The attorney yesterday when looking at all the numbers says we're close. She said she may could work it out right now, but it would be close, and if we'll just wait, we should have no problems in December. She also works with debt collections type of situations and says if we do get sued, the first thing we need to do is make them prove we owe it, which will probably buy us enough time right there. I hope so -- all of this is just making me a nervous wreck. I don't want to deal with the additional headache of a law suit.

LadyintheRed, I am employed but make less than $1000 a month. The attorney yesterday said that my husband's wages could not be garnished as head of the household - didn't know that ?? -- so worst case scenario I guess I lose a few paychecks - UGH!

It sounds like you are in good hands with your attorney. Take her advice. Don't worry so much about your creditors suing you. It's not worth putting a lot of energy into worrying about something that may never happen. Your attorney will help you deal with a law suit if it happens. You pay her to be your headache reliever.

[kartoons19]

I have both Chase and Citi with about 12K on each. I stopped paying in March. Outside of a few letters from Citi, I haven't received one call from them. Chase was a frequent caller up until I told them I retained an attorney and gave them her information. The calls stopped and now all I get are "nice" letters offering settlements. I will be filing the end of this month. So in over four months, nothing has happened except the calls and letters, all have been cordial. I don't believe any of the accounts have been sold off as I haven't heard from any other collection agencies. Good luck to you.

[ssmdem]

I have both Chase and Citi with about 12K on each. I stopped paying in March. Outside of a few letters from Citi, I haven't received one call from them. Chase was a frequent caller up until I told them I retained an attorney and gave them her information. The calls stopped and now all I get are "nice" letters offering settlements. I will be filing the end of this month. So in over four months, nothing has happened except the calls and letters, all have been cordial. I don't believe any of the accounts have been sold off as I haven't heard from any other collection agencies. Good luck to you.

How funny that we've had just the opposite response from the same two companies. Chase was calling non-stop, just like Citibank, until my husband called the collections department himself (not just answered the phone when it rang). He explained our situation to them, and we haven't heard from Chase since. Citibank - though they were nice - said "thanks for calling, but unfortunately, you're still going to get the phone calls," and they weren't kidding.

Now, we also have our mortgage through Chase - and they are calling frequently. Who knows what brings you up on the radar and what causes you to get ignored. ????

[pepperoncini]

We stopped paying Chase (~$16K balance over tow accts for DH and ~$9K balance over two accts for me) entirely 10 months ago.

We had been called a LOT. We made token payments for three months prior to completely stopping payment. The accts have been charged off - the CA has called but we sent DV letters and informed them by phone that we intend to file BK. The atty is paid and we could file in a short time but we're stalling as long as possible. (Long story...)

You'll be fine if you intend to file in December.

[bluemartini]

It sounds like you are in good hands with your attorney. Take her advice. Don't worry so much about your creditors suing you. It's not worth putting a lot of energy into worrying about something that may never happen.

Been there done that... after I was forced to default on my credit cards in September '08 to pay for emergency medical care, I tortured myself for months with the fear that I would be sued or have my pay garnished. I literally drove myself nuts worrying about it.

Two years later not one lawsuit, other than the foreclosure on my home.

For what it's worth, I had two Cap One cards with balances of about $7,000 and $6,000; and two Washington Mutual Cards of about $2,000 and $3,000... plus a Macy's charge card with a balance of about $1,000.

OP, the chances of you getting sued so early on are very slim. Try not to stew about it so much ... I know it's hard though if you've never been in this situation.

[poormama]

Now, we also have our mortgage through Chase - and they are calling frequently. Who knows what brings you up on the radar and what causes you to get ignored. ????

We have a mortgage with Chase, they bought from our original company. They are disgusting with their tactics. I have been screamed at, told I'm basically worthless, "DON'T YOU WANT TO KEEP A ROOF OVER YOUR KID'S HEADS!", I had one supervisor tell me to authorize a payment on the 16th even though we didn't get paid til the 18th, she swore it wouldn't come out til the 18th, well - it came out the 16th and I had $80 of overdraft charges, it's disgusting. I just don't answer my phone when I see them calling.