Negotiate a Debt Settlement

Is it possible to negotiate with your credit card companies on your own for debt settlement?

I've been researching debt settlement programs and they sound like a good option. Has anyone been able to negotiate with CC companies on their own to avoid the several thousand dollar fees?

Public Comments

1. Sure you can. Most likely they wont even talk until you are 2 or 3 months behind in payments. By then they will have sold your loan to a collections agency. Same as with a settlement agency.
2. Sure you can. I did it several years ago and they all settled for approx. 50% of what I owed them. Just make sure that you get it in writing and that they agree to list your account as paid with 0 balance and not settled for less than full balance.
3. Of course it very possible. I settled with several credit card companies and they forgave a large portion of my debt. This is on cards that i hadnt paid at all in over a year or so. One thing you do need to keep in mind is that the entry will stay on your credit reports for 7 years. Also, its important to save any documents from collection agencies just in case they try to come back to you at a later time and ask for the money. One more thing...i had to pay taxes to IRS on the amount that they forgave. When you get a settlement letter, it says at the bottom that "any write off amount of $600 or more will be reported to IRS." So, I settled and now I am completely debt free just patiently waiting to get my credit score up. - Good Luck !