Comments on: Suze Orman will have a heart attack

by: glennrwordman

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 15:19:31 +0100

Nope, the guy’s real; whether he’s using that name so people remember it or not… http://www.bendover.com/default.asp

by: Matt, Viceroy of Spare Ribs and Pez

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 14:54:25 +0100

“by Benjamin F. Dover”

You have GOT to be kidding.

by: Andrea

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 13:32:18 +0100

Re: Nasty Bill Collectors: Those people have “purchased” your debt but legally, you do not have to deal with them. You send them a “Cease & Desist” letter (boilerplate language available on the web) tell them you will only deal with the original lender and after 2 or 3 of those the original lender knows they are dealing with someone who has armed themselves with concrete knowledge about how the law works. Between caller ID and Cease & Desist letters, debt collectors don’t have a chance, just DO NOT engage with them. 2 VERY helpful books are: “Back Off” and “Life After Debt” by Benjamin F. Dover.

by: history_mom

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 12:13:10 +0100

John Kelly: I had the exact same reaction. I thought “Gee, this sounds like the Bush administration’s economic policy.”

by: Hysterical Woman

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 11:48:22 +0100

On top of my student loans, I’m going to have to pay a penalty for not repaying my student loan while I was on a year long break from college. It’s probably my fault, but it still pisses me off.

by: pablo

Sun, 12 Aug 2007 01:54:36 +0100

Paula Poundstone has a very similiar routine. She talks about owing over a million dollars, and once you hit the million mark and know that there is no possible way of ever paying it off; you stop worrying about it. When the kids say that they want to go to Disneyland you think: “I don’t see why not.”

by: ummeli

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 22:45:36 +0100

I found my number six months after graduating from Michigan Law School. Fat lawyer salary my ass, that debt is NEVER going to be paid.

By me anyway.

by: Kyso K

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 22:13:11 +0100

I’m not waiting out any clocks, don’t worry. I just wanted to point out that it’s not as simple as getting caller ID and just ignoring the bill collectors for seven years. They’re getting unscrupulous and the rules are very complicated. Chances are, by that time, you’re no longer dealing with some indifferent collections agent of the company you owe, you’re dealing with a really involved collections agent who makes his or her living by buying old debts cheap and then breaking some balls to collect the full amount. Yum, almost pure profit.

The seven year thing works as long as you don’t get sued in small claims court and have a judgment entered against you, as I understand it.

Something like that, and if you drop off the face of the planet thoroughly enough that you’ve nearly reached the nyah-nyah can’t touch me deadline, chances are you’ve given them the excuse they need why they couldn’t notify you about the courtdate, or the judgment against you. They don’t have to go out of their way to let you know you’ve been sued, they just have to follow the letter of the law. And this is just what I read before the bankruptcy reform, I have no idea how much the deck has been restacked against the debtor.

by: delagar

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 21:46:46 +0100

What is your word worth, Mohjho? That’s very funny when we’re dealing with bandits. Have you seen what credit card companies can do these days? The late fees and jacking up rates over nonsense and playing games that would make a loan shark blush?

I had one credit card charge me late fees for *their* mistake, charge me interest on that late fee –because when I called in, their clerk didn’t make a note in their computer, or so they claim — and when I sent the follow-up letter, I sent it to the wrong address: did you know credit card companies have four different addresses, and you have to send billing complaints to a specific address or the letter gets tossed? Yes! It does! — so they’re charging me interest on my late fee, and then ANOTHER late fee, because that one didn’t get paid, because I had been told it was being cancelled, along with the card…

Don’t get me started on credit card companies. That little wrangle only cost me 65 dollars (they had the bill up to 149, but I fought them down to 65 — but notice it was 65 dollars for NOTHING — they got 65 dollars out of me for NOT ONE THING). These people are pirates.

by: Av0gadro

Sat, 11 Aug 2007 19:02:53 +0100

Susie and Kyso K, be careful with that. It actually varies by state, so make sure you know your own statute of limitations before playing the waiting game.

It’s also useful to research how long something stays on your credit report. If you wait seven years after most delinquencies, as far as a new lender knows, it doesn’t exist. That doesn’t apply to bankruptcies and court judgments.