jjaaam Posted January 23, 2007 Report Share Posted January 23, 2007 The man has pulled it off again! I had an account with National City that was sent to Weltman, Weinberg, and Reis for collection. They actually did file suit and we were to go to court in the January/February timeframe. Sifxpert not only got the account recalled from Weltman (i.e. dismissal of the lawsuit), but he negotiated a 37% settlement on top of that!! In a year's time he has settled two major accounts for me: MBNA: $29,800 original balance, settled for $7,450 (25%) National City: $13,650 original balance, settled for $5,000 (37%) So far the man has saved me $31,000. Yes, there are fees and tax consequences, but even after you add all of that in I have come out WAY ahead!! Here's a toast to you, Sif. Now...the rest of you doubters can go pound sand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raysway Posted January 23, 2007 Report Share Posted January 23, 2007 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted January 24, 2007 Report Share Posted January 24, 2007 No doubt about it, the man can help...in some instances.Could you fill us in on some of the details? Honestly, I just want to make sure that both sides of this question understand what happens. He did good for you, but the same plan might not work for others.1. Does the $12,450 you paid out include his fees? If not, what did he charge...10% of the "savings"...$3,100?2. If they wrote of $31,000, I put your taxes on the extra income at what $4,500 to $8,600...right? Will you get the 1099c this year?3. How did the agree to report this on your CRs?4. Were these the only debt you had? If not, what will be done about the rest? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
divemedic Posted January 24, 2007 Report Share Posted January 24, 2007 I find it humorous that people do not post "Asset really helped me! They agreed to settle the debt for half off!"Sif is a debt collector. I for one don't care what he does. As long as he doesn't do it here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elyse449 Posted January 25, 2007 Report Share Posted January 25, 2007 Why do I feel like I just watched an infomercial? Where's Cher? Dionne? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I was just looking at my taxes for this year...I've got a couple 1099's to deal with (contract work)...and in looking over the IRS rules, it would appear that even if you don't receive a 1099 from a creditor, you should report the "savings" as income and pay taxes. This holds true even if you the amount forgiven was only $600. The implication I was reading was that if you don't report in the year in which it was forgiven, and the IRS finds out about it later (like maybe the creditor issues the 1099 in a couple of years), you'll wind up paying penalty and interest.The only way you wouldn't pay taxes is if you were insolvent at the time. Now, since one of sif's supposed methods of getting settlements in the first place is to claim that you're insolvent, I wonder if that holds water with the IRS? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sr28b Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Why do I feel like I just watched an infomercial? Where's Cher? Dionne?Exactly, but I was thinking more like Ron Popeil.Admin, IP check please! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 Admin, IP check please!Do you suspect someone of being less than forthright? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elyse449 Posted January 26, 2007 Report Share Posted January 26, 2007 I was just looking at my taxes for this year...I've got a couple 1099's to deal with (contract work)...and in looking over the IRS rules, it would appear that even if you don't receive a 1099 from a creditor, you should report the "savings" as income and pay taxes. This holds true even if you the amount forgiven was only $600. The implication I was reading was that if you don't report in the year in which it was forgiven, and the IRS finds out about it later (like maybe the creditor issues the 1099 in a couple of years), you'll wind up paying penalty and interest.The only way you wouldn't pay taxes is if you were insolvent at the time. Now, since one of sif's supposed methods of getting settlements in the first place is to claim that you're insolvent, I wonder if that holds water with the IRS?Yes, that's exactly right. I had a creditor "forgive" one of my debts and I didn't know it and it caught up with me and I had pay it last year (600.00). I *was* insolvent at the time, but lacked the paperwork to prove it. That coupled with the fact that I was ill informed. When I received notice that I allegedly owed these monies I should've gone DIRECTLY to my tax person at H&R Block (who has handled our taxes for 4 yrs now) and asked her what to do. Big mistake and now I'm out 600.00....believe me folks, IT IS WORTH IT to look into it first. And yes, it does hold water with the IRS if you can prove it and in my case I'd filed a BK to boot...Elyse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
willingtocope Posted January 28, 2007 Report Share Posted January 28, 2007 Alrighty then, because a dead horse is the only kind I will beat...my calculations say.... 33,450 - Original Debt- 12,450 - Settlement--------------------= 21,000 - "Savings"- 2,100 - Sif's fee (10% of "savings") - 7,000 - Taxes ---------------------$11,900 = Money you didn't have to pay....right? That's not bad......plus you get the benefit of "settled for less than the full amount" on your credit reports, and, the possibly that the original creditor will sell the balance to a JDB.Did you have to pay the creditors and Sif in one lump sum? How will you handle the taxes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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