Renegotiate Credit Card Debt

What would be the best thing for me to do in my situation?
I owe about 50,000 in credit card debt to several different cc companies.
I have always made the min. payment and and up to date but due to losing my job I can no longer make these huge payments each month and the interest rates are 27% now.
Do I call and try to renegotiate rates and payments?
Do I have to be behind in payments before they will renegotiate?
I am willing to pay them but cant afford the amount they want each month.
Will they cut my payments in half if I ask them?

Stop making payments.... use the money you saved to hire a good bankruptcy lawyer and do a chapter 7 bankruptcy.

At 50K in credit card debt and no job.... you need to do a bankruptcy.
But don't try to do it on your own... get a lawyer.

Don't bother letting them know that you are filing bankruptcy.
Let your lawyer handle it so that they can't sue you in court and get judgement against you before you are able to get the bankruptcy filing started.

2009-03-08 11:15:35 by jomedeiros

Lawyer Isabel Ramirez Guardia on The Truther Girls Radio americanfreedomradio.com Disclaimer this is not legal advice, it's lawful advice.

what is the best approach to get the credit card companies to renegotiate the terms:

to lower interest rate, or
to lower principal, or
to defer payment, or
any other ways to lower monthly payments?

Thank you

In the current economy, you will be hard pressed to get any concession from the credit card company. You can ask for lower rates. Asking them to match an offer you got from another credit card use to be effective. It may not work so well now.

You may be able to get payments deferred or reduced on a temporary basis if you have some short term financial problem. But not all credit card companies will do this.

You won't be able to get the credit card company to forgive part of the principal unless you have some permanent financial change, like a disability. Then you would have to make a settlement offer. The account would show on your credit report as a charge off/paid -- a negative. And you would probably get a 1099 for the forgiven portion to add to your income tax return.

You might check into credit counseling. Check here for a NFCC member near your: http://www.nfcc.org/. These are legit, non-profit companies that offer debt management programs for a nominal fee. They don't settle the debt. The negotiate lower interest and payments so you can pay off the debt.

2008-12-22 12:14:30 by emailittoz

I have a credit card debt of $995,called the collectors & asked them if i could make a monthly payment but the associate i talked with offered to give me $780 to settle the debt,so of course i jump at the offer,but i told her that it'll have to be on my next paycheck since i don't have the money right away i gave them a check with my routing & checking account # ,so then comes the day, that they were suppose 2 take it out of my checking account,i waited past the days,2 to 3 days,then a week & a half.so by that time i needed the money to pay my rent,food,& 4 my toddler.so i used it & then a few days went by, a message from my bank informed me that a returned check was made due to insufficient fund(of course it was insufficient i used it since the collection agency didn't take it off my bank, i needed the money), i called the agency & spoke with the same woman & she wasn't really nice & didn't want to renegotiate wants me to pay it as we agreed.
i wanted to pay it but she's not giving me a way to pay it off.And she's like saying that if i don't pay it, she'll have it sent for litigation.it's not like i'm running away from my debt.I was thinking of trying to talk with a diffrent person who'll be willing to negotiate with me and understand where my situation is.Pls. help what should i do?! I don't want this on court when i know i can pay it off!T_T

Sounds like you need to sign up for financial education classes. Are you one of those people who thinks they must have money in the bank because they still have checks? C'mon! You made an agreement and then didn't stick with it. And you wonder why the collector/associate was upset? Especially when you act as if it's their mistake?

Now, on a different note, even if you reneged on an appropriate offer of settlement, with your debt of $995, most of that is probably interest and fees. I will bet that most "good" collectors will still work out a reduction or an acceptable installment payment plan with you. What you need to do, is talk to another collector or supervisor. Explain "respectfully" what happened last time and that you overstepped your capabilities. Then negotiate a plan that you can actually handle or live up to. They are not truly interested in litigating a small debt like this if they don't have to. If they do, you will incur substantially more fees and costs and inability to pay is NOT a defense. So do your best to work out another deal with this collector or his/her supervisor.

2007-12-06 06:46:47 by rizell2004

If your minmum payment for your credit card is $100.00 & if you can't make the minimum and you ask to pay lower than that or if you just send in a lower amount will this go against your credit score? My son is having trouble making the minimum payments and I was wondering if you would just send in an amount lower than the minimum or renegotiate the minumum if would mess up his credit. He wants to pay off his debt and will but needs some time to get financialy situated to do so.
Thanks for any guidance or help.

Renegotiating will not hurt his score. Only making partial payments will hurt his score. He could get zapped with charges for not making a full payment. You would think that the credit card companies would be happy to get anything you can send. They could raise his APR again or still assess late fees. If his account is closed, reopen it and wait 30 days to renegotiate. If the account is closed he has no bargaining power. Also, don't take the first offer! INSIST ON TALKING TO NO LESS THAN FOUR "SUPERVISORS" !! The further up the ladder you go, the more "authority" the representative has to help. Good Luck!!!

2006-09-13 11:37:43 by Ray W

I have approx 70K in credit card debt (9 cards) with interest rates from 0% to 9.9% (on a debt management program). I have 18K in a 403b which would be approx 12.5K when cashed. My house is underwater financially and the bills are overwhelming. I've renegotiated my mortgage payment and aside from bankruptcy or a new job with stellar income I don’t see that any other options are much good. Should I cash out and get my debt down a bit for some relief? Any better suggestions?

Hi, I am sorry to hear about the financial stress you are going through. I would suggest the Dave Ramsey book, "The Total Money Makeover". It has helped my husband and I manage our debt and it has also taught us how to handle our money for the REST of our lives. We will never be in debt again after we are done paying everything off.

The book will teach you tools for life. It is an easy read. REALISTIC!! My husband absolutely HATES reading money books and this book he truly enjoyed and was encouraged to change our lifestyle to live within our means and pay off our debt.

Good Luck to you and Best Wishes!!

2009-08-04 11:12:13 by p