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Thank you. My husband has no info whatsoever so we would need this for ourselves anyway. I know their stance would be "you owe, write a check for x amount immediately" in the hopes that that would actually work. But we'll ask for documentation and then likely consult an attorney. That's why I want to make sure I know exactly what they are required to provide.
Is it possible for someone to get a court judgement without us receiving any kind of notice? Some things I read said that if they sue and you don't show up they win by default even if the statute of limitations has run out. I want to make sure that can't happen. We've only had 2 different addresses over the last 8 years. Like I've said we are not hard to find.
In Australia, proceedings CANNOT be continued until the debtor is served in person by a sherriff.
Either way the age of the debt makes it HIGHLY UNLIKELY that it can be recovered. Do you even know if the college is still even running?
It was probably written off years ago and you are worrying over nothing. To be sure, contact your state authorities and find out what the law is for old debt. There is probably a statue of limitations.
Thank you again. I hope I'm being ridiculous. We're definitely worriers. I'm not working now and our budget is as bare as it can comfortably get. I would worry less if we could actually pay anyone. I'd be complaining about the original person defaulting for sure, but at least I would know where the money was going to come from. The thought of words like "garnishment" and "lien" entering our world makes it hard for me to even breathe. I'll find out specific details of the limitations in the state. I should also find out if the school is still there (although my husband probably doesn't even know the name or where it was lol) and find out what kinds of loans are offered for that type of thing.
My husband handles stress poorly and hasn't had great dealings with his extended family. But we thought that kind of thing was behind us.
What often happens is that companies sell their debt to debt collecting agents.
The agents then try to make a profit by recovering the money.
They usually do this with a mixture of fear, intimidation, harrassment and lying...90% of the time they are trying to trick you into paying them. It's a source of constant amazement to me that it almost always works...people become so fearful they pay, just because someone told them they "had" to. Often people don't actually know what they're even paying.
There is an old saying..."a fool and his money are soon parted". Don't become that fool! Hang on, don't panic, someone is trying to trick you.
If they do manage to speak to you, ask them to prove the debt...they need paperwork, original contracts, proof of attempts of recovery, proof of you avoiding...this isn't the case here.
They also use "legal looking" stationary...but if you read things properly, you will see they are just trying to scare you.
1. The statute of limitations probably starts when the loan defaulted, not when it was incurred. So your husband cosigned 10 years ago, maybe the loan was deferred for a year while she was in school, then she paid on it for a few years, and defaulted a few years ago. That might still be within the statute of limitations. Just a thought.
and
2. If I were your husband, I would pull a copy of my credit report from annualcreditreport.com immediately, from all three reporting agencies and see if this has impacted his credit in any way, or even if the debt is showing up there or not.
What often happens is that companies sell their debt to debt collecting agents.
The agents then try to make a profit by recovering the money.
They usually do this with a mixture of fear, intimidation, harrassment and lying...90% of the time they are trying to trick you into paying them. It's a source of constant amazement to me that it almost always works...people become so fearful they pay, just because someone told them they "had" to. Often people don't actually know what they're even paying.
There is an old saying..."a fool and his money are soon parted". Don't become that fool! Hang on, don't panic, someone is trying to trick you.
If they do manage to speak to you, ask them to prove the debt...they need paperwork, original contracts, proof of attempts of recovery, proof of you avoiding...this isn't the case here.
They also use "legal looking" stationary...but if you read things properly, you will see they are just trying to scare you.
Thank you - it helps to know exactly what I can expect to receive. And I agree - it's amazing that people just pay bills without question for money they might not even owe.
I do know that uncollected debts are often sold. It's just strange to me that the original lender made no attempt to collect. Which makes this all the more suspicious to me.
Lacerta - I did read that it starts on the default date. I don't think there is any chance at all that she made payments for a few years. She would either have paid it all at the time (unlikely) or completely ignored it. But we would have to check that in the paperwork if it comes to that. And I do check each of our credit reports throughout the year. Thank you very much for pointing all of this out.
I would have them prove the debt first. If that's proven, check the statue of limitation. If the statue of limitation hasn't expired which I think it should have by now, ask them to settle the debt and tell them you want the settled amount in writing before you send any money.
Once they sent you the letter, any payments you make should be money order or a cashier check. Don't give them any access to any of your personal accounts EVER. If this fails and they still harass you, call your Attorney General and the Attorney General in their state. Most Attorney General's offices have a online form you can submit regarding complaints of debt collectors.
You have no idea what kinds of activity has taken place on this loan between your niece and the lender. There might have been debt collection activity last month, for all you know.
Without knowing that, you do not know anything about your standing. However, the onus is on the lender to produce evidence of all relevant circumstances of the debt, and until they prove there is a legitimate and legal debt, you are not responsible for paying anything.
Never cosign...my father did that for my sisters college loans, and she defaulted. He is now retired and having to pay off her loan debts.
This is not related to the OP's situation, but I have an exception to that. I did co-sign for my daughter's school loans (beyond her normal federal loans) because it's cheaper to borrow college loan money that way. The federal Parents Plus loan program for college is 8.5%. My daughter borrowed a private loan through the credit union for which I co-signed and the interest rate is 5.89%. Of course the difference between my scenario and your father's is that I already KNOW I will be the one paying it off.
Thank you again. I hope I'm being ridiculous. We're definitely worriers. I'm not working now and our budget is as bare as it can comfortably get. I would worry less if we could actually pay anyone. I'd be complaining about the original person defaulting for sure, but at least I would know where the money was going to come from. The thought of words like "garnishment" and "lien" entering our world makes it hard for me to even breathe. I'll find out specific details of the limitations in the state. I should also find out if the school is still there (although my husband probably doesn't even know the name or where it was lol) and find out what kinds of loans are offered for that type of thing.
My husband handles stress poorly and hasn't had great dealings with his extended family. But we thought that kind of thing was behind us.
What usually happens is that the loan was with "A" company. Niece deadbeats and they try to collect half heartedly.... the SOL (Statute of Limitations) comes into effect and the loan is dead. BUT "A" still wants something.... so they sell it to a collection agency "B". "B" tries for a while and they get nowhere and they sell it to "C" and it goes down the line....
If this loan has been written off and sold into the secondary market, it's dead dead dead and should NOT see the light of day again..... and if it were going to wreck your husband's credit, it already would have, so you don't have to worry about that.
But keep in mind ANY PROMISE TO PAY or ANY PAYMENT can start the clock on the loan all over, like it's day one. Which is how these people handle their business -- they scare people into a payment, and it's like a brand new loan with another SOL.
SO -- find out your state's SOL on collecting loans, and if someone calls, before you hang up tell them to stop calling or you'll get a lawyer.
If the SOL has passed, they're SOL (sh*t outta luck!).
Wanted to add -- NJ the SOL seems to be 6 years and beauty school debt doesn't seem to be the nondischargeable education debt kind....
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