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Debt Settlement Breeds the Un-dead

If you are new to the blog, click HERE to start at the beginning of my story.
POST #25
It was Monday 12/28.
Like so many days during the past 2 weeks, I woke up and said to myself, “This is the day!!!!”
I hit the phone, called the rep and was ready to cut a deal. I had prepared for this day in a zillion different ways – not the least of which was borrowing money from my retirement account.
Everyone says to NEVER EVER touch your retirement account. Between taxes and early withdrawal fees, you can get killed. This is true. But in my case, a killer settlement on $100K would far out weigh the downside of pulling from retirement. It was a good decision both financially and psychologically. This may not be true for most people, but I knew it to be true for me.
Back to the phone call……
I dialed the number and sure enough, got the rep on the phone…..soooooo close.
Thankfully, he remembered me and my case.

Simulated view of a black hole in front of the...
Image via Wikipedia

Unfortunately, my account was still in the collections black hole I call:
DEBT SETTLEMENT PURGATORY.
I really did feel like one of the undead. My CRN coach had prepared me in so many ways.

  • Be patient.

  • Stay focused.

  • Keep consistent.

But never did she mention that I would be the caretaker for a zombie account roaming the debt world in search of a home. At this point, hell, bankruptcy, seemed like it would be a relief. At least I would know where I was!
I just wanted these accounts to be killed. I actually had empathy for the zombies from those cult films.

A participant of a
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The rep told me to call back the next day.

December 29, 2009

………..Still a zombie.
….and the next day…..still no luck. In fact, I was told my account was frozen. It would definitely not be released to the Recovery Department until January 1st or 2nd of 2010.

Somebody kill me!!!!!!!!!

It was December 30, 2009. If I was to benefit from the timing of the last day of the last month of the year…..I had one more day to do it.
I prayed to the zombies of purgatory to take pity on me. Delivery me from this fire!
Just like a good horror film, we’ll leave this post on a cliff-hanger.
Stay tuned. Stay afloat. Wealth and freedom are in your future.
Jonathan

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Debt Settlement Weapon of Choice – Consumer Recovery Network

If you are new to the blog, click HERE to start at the beginning of my story.
POST #21
I have shared with you, again and again, that debt settlement is a process. It forced me to do a lot of research, tested my patience and resolve and challenged my brain. But I want to make one thing clear, I am not an expert. I am a FIRC (former irresponsible recovering consumer) who successfully followed the coaching and guidelines of the Consumer Recovery Network DIY program.
Several times I have looked back on this experience and wondered if I could have done it all on my own without the help of a DIY program.  There is a lot of free info on the internet. Heck, this blog itself shows you many of the techniques used to navigate the process.  After careful review, I have concluded that you CAN do it without the help of a company…..but I don’t recommend it.
Here are a few pitfalls of going solo:

Ozzfest 2007: Zakk's Solo 3
Image by LuvataciousSkull via Flickr

  • Every situation and bank negotiation is different. You will have to improvise along the way. A wrong choice can kill the deal.

  • Timing is everything. Not all banks process the collections in the same time line. You will be doing some guessing.

  • The reps will lie to you. How will you sift through the BS?

I followed CRN’s DIY program. I listened to the CDs, read the workbook and had about 30 hours of phone calls with my CRN coach. Guess which was the most indispensable aspect?

The advice from my coach.

There were a zillion forks in the road during my debt settlement. All of the solutions came from discussions with my coach. I have shared many of these solutions already, but I want to add one last thing.
I knew was getting close to a settlement on these 2 big line of credit accounts. It would take a bit of fancy footwork, negotiating and quick thinking. There was critical phone call I had to make and decided to add an extra safety measure. This technique, appropriately called the Debt Settlement Weapon of Choice, can only be done when you have a coach. Hang on, this is a good one!
I called my CRN coach, put her on mute, then conferenced in the bank.  While I was talking with the bank, my CRN coach was listening in and emailing me questions to ask the bank rep. GENIUS!
We only did this once, during a critical call. It was a great help because, despite all of my preparedness, the flow of this particular conversation was beyond my expertise. I couldn’t distill the truth from the BS, nor could I determine the best questions to ask.
In short, you can do a full on “free” DIY by using info on the internet.  But for me, I concluded it was best to have an expert coach offering advice and counsel specific to my situation.  Especially when that advice was in real time during the conversation, via email!!!
Stay tuned. Stay afloat. Wealth and freedom are in your future.
Jonathan

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