I stopped paying my Chase card.

[FlyingSquirrel]

Actually, I stopped paying most of my credit cards and bills. I still have only paid half the rent this month (I owe $625 more).

I got a nice letter from Chase, offering to help "get me back on track". I hate Chase with a passion and am considering just defaulting completely (especially since I really can't do much else right now) - but just thought I'd re-post the info I got from them for anyone else who might be in the same boat but not quite as bad off.

ASSIST is a short-term program designed to help you get your credit card account back on track.

Lower APR. ASSIST reduces your interest rate from its current APR. You can save money on interest so you may have an easier time making payments.

Lower payments. ASSIS can provide you a fixed monthly payment amount that you can manage.

Late fees and finanace charges waived. As long as you remain in the program and make your payments on time, your late fees will be waived and your finance charges will be reduced. So more of your monthly payment will go toward reducing your balance.

(The number is 1-866-478-7814)

[Merlot]

1. These programs ruin your credit rating AND you still pay the debt

If you're going to ruin your credit rating, why pay for it too?

BTW, "Credit Counseling" companies are owned by the credit card companies.

[marybourg]

7. Non profit credit counseling services are most certainly not

owned by credit card companies. and non-profit counseling services are the only kind anybody should use.

[Hannah Bell]

18. just because they're "non-profit" doesn't mean shit.

nor does it mean they're not owned by credit card corps, directly or indirectly.

[truedelphi]

8. You bring up two very good points. n/t

[roguevalley]

10. remember, if you negotiate to pay just a part of the balance, you owe

capital gains taxes on the part they excuse. they get you both ways.

[Hannah Bell]

16. or by someone who's bought the debt for peanuts & wants to rope you into paying

as much of it off as possible to pump up their profit on the deal.

They buy it for 25% & "generously" cut a deal to get you to pay 90% of it.

[melm00se]

17. as a former credit counselor

(and former collections department VP) I can tell you that the not-for-profit consumer credit counseling services are NOT "owned" by banks (an example of one: http://www.cccsbuffalo.org/)

the way that this rumor got started is the fact that participating lenders in the CCCS system provide a significant amount of the CCCS funding by paying CCCS a 5% fee of the total amount sent to the lender (but the lender has agreed to credit the CCCS client for 100% of the payments).

So the bank I worked for, the last year I worked there, paid the local CCCS branch about $150K (I remember it clearly as it was one of the few checks that I wasn't the sole signer, I signed and then had to get the division president to sign it and then it went to the CFO for sign off - it took less than 2 days as everyone was waiting for this annual event).

As for not-for-profit credit counselors: I would be EXTREMELY leery of them. CAll your local United Way or charitable referral service, they'll steer you to a good, honest and respected service

[MajorChode]

28. That's not always the best option

If it were that easy, bankruptcy lawyers would be out of business.

Unpaid debt can follow you around for years. They can garnish your wages and put liens on your property. If the debt is relatively small, chances are they won't, but they most certainly can.

[tabatha]

2. My heart goes out to you.

[TK421]

3. Hmmmm...you think other companies offer this program?

I have two cards that I will have trouble paying off ( I've been unemployed since June ). I wonder how this affects your credit rating?

[ingac70]

5. On your credit report....

it will be treated no differently than a Chap. 13 bankruptcy.

[BR_Parkway]

11. Not sure credit reports are going to matter all that much once we finally

pull out of this - very few will have what used to be considered 'decent' scores

[Trekologer]

12. The credit reporting agencies report what your creditors tell them

Just about every time, creditors would rather receive payment. If you negotiate a settlement, also include that the credit card company will report to the credit reporting agencies that you paid the bill off in full, on time, as agreed, and get it in writing.

[Liquorice]

4. In my experience, avoiding them makes it worse. Try to work with them. Good luck. nt

[sandnsea]

6. Eventually they'll offer you a 10% payoff

Might be best to hold out for that.

[truedelphi]

9. After four years of non-payments, you will not legally be held to owe them

Anything if you live in California. Once you decide not to pay - do NOT relent - as if you do, the four years starts from the last payment.

What happens is they will eventually taper of in requesting your payments. Then they will start offering you as much as 40% less than your balance (Sounds like a great deal, but remember that at elast 40 per cent of what a person owes cann be due to late fees, penalties imposed for being over your limit, etc.)

Also, it is a good deal to CANCEL the card regardless about paying it or not. If you cancel, you still owe the balance you owe but they cannot ding you for some of the various penalties.

Four years goes by very quickly, especially if the reason for not paying the bills is related tobeing out of work or to medical expenses. If medically related - you are still having all that fun with the insurance claims people. If out of work, you will have all those intersting job interviews and resume workshops.

[ipaint]

20. Statute of limitations by state

Credit cards are open ended accounts.
http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/statuteLimitations.shtml

[truedelphi]

23. Great refernce chart there - thanks, ipaint. n/t

[Wednesdays]

13. Cueing the "Personal Responsibility Brigade" in 3...2...1...

Shame on you for refusing to help out those poor bankers! :spank:

[seabeyond]

14. oh, are you fuckin serious. like it has nothing to do with the whole either

just paying those mean ole banks. not like it doesnt come round and bite me on the ass. how fuckin selfish of me.

geeeezus

[Hannah Bell]

15. I'd be careful. Many of those programs = scams.

The fraud of debt settlement

Another relatively new player in the collection field is the “debt settlement” specialist. This scam is, if possible, even more parasitic and vicious. The service is widely sold to the most desperate individuals. Marketing themselves as customer advocates who will sympathetically assist the debtor and negotiate his liabilities down, these firms are profit-making entities that take charge of a family’s entire finances.

With “debt settlement,” the payments go to the settlement firm, not to the client’s debt—a point often not mentioned to clients. Usually there is an up-front premium.

Monthly payments are sent to the firm to be aggregated until a sufficient amount can be used to negotiate a payoff. Meanwhile, a worker’s credit score will continue to deteriorate. The firms count on the fact that most people drop out before the payoff. Even should he successfully complete the program, the individual is liable for taxes on the reduction! Victims of these schemes have few ways to retrieve their money.

In many states, once a creditor obtains a judgment, it can immediately restrain a bank account. As a result, workers are unable to pay rent, utilities or other expenses. Such policies are deliberately used to bully people into turning over large sums of money. A common complaint of consumers is that, having authorized a debt collector to make a single, specific withdrawal from their bank account, they find that all the funds are withdrawn or multiple withdrawals are made.

Accounts Receivable Management is an industry that was reinvented and became a major economic player as the American working class sank under a growing burden of debt in recent decades. It was established under the protection of the Supreme Court and shielded by links with government officials. Today, despite the systematic and well known nature of abuse, it remains well protected politically and highly profitable, poised to take full advantage of the growing misery of millions of Americans.


http://www.wsws.org/articles/2009/oct2009/debt-o14.shtml

[vadawg]

19. why are you not paying the rent, plus theres not enough info in the story

to say whether you are broke or an anarchist or just not prepared to pay your debts for some other reason...

[WillieW]

21. Did you get that idea from the woman who took on Bank of America?

she is on facebook talking about it. She is urging everyone with outrageous interest rates to do the same. Her interest rate went up from 12.50% to 30% for no reason. She paid on time. So, she just stopped paying alltogether.

[datasuspect]

22. businesses do not attach morality to their dischargeable debt or what gets written off

why should individuals?

that is the funniest thing to me: businesses default all the time on debt; there is no finger wag for them, no morality is attached.

but for an individual person, people will try to make you feel like a horrible human being. but you aren't. you have to eat, pay rent and utilities, and have something left over for yourself.

end of story.

fuck creditors. vigorously.

now if you owe a friend or another individual person money--definitely honor that. those are the only debts that matter.

[TK421]

24. Before I became unemployed, I accepted and handled my responsibilities

with both of my cards...when I got laid off in June ( due to the shit economy and such ) that changed everything.

So...am I worse off if I just stop paying on these cards or keep paying and barely eating right?

man, I just don't know :shrug:

[datasuspect]

25. eat right

your creditors can get in line.

[TK421]

26. You're right....thanks

:thumbsup:

[catzies]

27. Replying as a self-bookmark. Thank you for posting this. It's news I need. n/t