smokenjoe Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 Hello Everyone!OK, here's the deal. I'm about to pay a judgment in full and have a few questions.I'm in California-the judgment has not been brought to California and I haveno indication that it will be brought here, but I want this ordeal behind me-so, I'm ready to pay it off in full.The judgment is in Florida and only shows on my Experian credit report.I want to pay it in full to the court that awarded the judgment because thecreditor apparently has gone out of business.Question: When I pay the judgment will the payment continue to appear on my credit report for another 7 years after payment in full has been made?Experian has told me that the judgment will appear on my credit report for only 7 years whether it is paid or not. Is this true? The judgment is scheduled to come off my credit report in November 2007 even if I don't pay.Question: Should I have a lawyer help me in this transaction of payment?(I plan to pay the judgment off in one payment) Any other advice is appreciated.Smokenjoe:roll: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unusualsuspect Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 Hello Everyone!OK, here's the deal. I'm about to pay a judgment in full and have a few questions.I'm in California-the judgment has not been brought to California and I haveno indication that it will be brought here, but I want this ordeal behind me-so, I'm ready to pay it off in full.The judgment is in Florida and only shows on my Experian credit report.I want to pay it in full to the court that awarded the judgment because thecreditor apparently has gone out of business.Question: When I pay the judgment will the payment continue to appear on my credit report for another 7 years after payment in full has been made?Experian has told me that the judgment will appear on my credit report for only 7 years whether it is paid or not. Is this true? The judgment is scheduled to come off my credit report in November 2007 even if I don't pay.Question: Should I have a lawyer help me in this transaction of payment?(I plan to pay the judgment off in one payment) Any other advice is appreciated.Smokenjoe:roll:If the company went out of business, then it's highly unlikely that they will pursue it. I would just wait until Nov 2007 and let it fall off your credit report. If the judgment is not paid then the creditor will need to apply to have it renewed. If you still feel compelled to pay it, then get a lawyer to negotiate a settlement for less than what is owed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mj11 Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 I am paying off a judgment today. I am settling it for 70%, but the one stipulation was that they vacate the judgment...they are and I am happy. Don't know if that is an option in your case or not. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Strawberry Bird Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 I agree with unusualsuspect.. If there is nothing pressing I would wait until November and let it fall off.. Judgements typically need to be renewed if they are not paid, otherwise they are basically null. The other option if it IS pressing that you pay it for some reason.. ie you're buying a house right now and can't wait a few months.. then negotiate a settlement. START Really LOW.. say 10% of the amount.. (if judgement is $5000 then offer $500 and of course they vacate the judgement). The older a judgement, the more likely they will negotiate a better settlement. And you mentioned that the company that got the judgement against you is out of business so it is not likely they will renew. Just my 2 cents.. SB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
unusualsuspect Posted March 30, 2007 Report Share Posted March 30, 2007 Seriously, if the company is out of business and it's about to fall of the CR, then let sleeping dogs lie. If you do want to pay it, start even lower like 5 cents on the dollar. But get an attorney to handle the negotiations.I have a 6 figure judgment against me and I'm not too worried about it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smokenjoe Posted March 31, 2007 Author Report Share Posted March 31, 2007 Thank you for all the replies.You have got me rethinking my strategy. I am interested in purchasing real estate soon-and that is my main motivator in paying the judgment. I didsend an e-mail to an attorney in Florida today to hopefully get assistance innegotiating a settlement.The company that sued me is out of business, but another company claims to have bought the judgment from the company that originally sued me and thecompany that now claims to own the judgment is willing to settle, but for90% of the amount due (original amount plus interest). I'll ask the lawyer if vacating the judgment is a possibility. 90% is too high (in my opinion). Ibet the original judgment creditor didn't pay 90% to purchase the original debt.As mentioned earlier, the judgment is in Florida and will come off my credit report in November 2007. There is no indication that the current judgment creditor is pursuing legal action here in California. So, I probably should not rush to over settlement.My understanding is that judgments can be bought and sold.I wonder if it is legally possible to purchase the judgment which is against me?Could I, in fact, be the judgment debtor and become the judgment creditor?If not, then perhaps a friend could purchase the judgment for me. This way,the judgment creditor gets some money without there showing a payment or settlement on my credit report.One more question: I've seen on several websites that the SOL for a judgment in Florida is 20 years. Other websites claim that the SOL is 7 years renewable. Does anyone know the Florida State statute that mentions that judgments are good for 7 years and are renewable? I can't find the state statute.Thanks againSmokenjoe:roll: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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