I just received a letter in the mail that their a default judgment against me in the state of Pennsylvania, and I have 20 days to respond to the letter.
I was recently laid off in January, and although I have been looking I am still unemployed. I have a 1993 Jeep, which was used for collateral on a personal loan. The loan is being paid by the unemployment insurance I took out on the loan. I have no money in savings, nor do I have an IRA of any kind. My townhouse I rent, where I have lived for the last 13 years. The debt is for $1,300 and I don't know what to do. I live in Pennsylvania, and have two daughters, but cannot ask them. My one daughter is getting married in October and my ex-husband is paying for the wedding. My other daughter is working 2 jobs and has two kids. I know I owe this money but have no way to pay, and cannot afford attorney. My furniture is very old and torn up from the kids and pets over the years. Even my computer is old. Is there anything I can do, besides wait for my world to cave in?

You owe a lot less then most people, wishbear. I don't think an attorney would do you much good in this case because it is just a debt collection. How old is the debt? You may be protected by the statute of limitations (this is the limit to when a debt can be collected legally) in your state; it varies from state to state.

Tick

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Originally Posted by tickle

You owe a lot less then most people, wishbear. I dont think an attorney would do you much good in this case because it is just a debt collection. How old is the debt? You may be protected by the statute of limitations (this is the limit to when a debt can be collected legally) in your state; it varies from state to state.

tick

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Unfortunately there is already a judment against me, and they say they will advise the collection agency to go ahead with a writ of execution. I am sure they think I own my own home (which I don't), that I may have savings or an IRA, but I have none of these. I know the amount is small, but I have never had anything like this happen to me before. My divorce was in 1997, and my ex husband left me with all the debt. When I got back on my feet I got a credit card, which I thought would help build my credit (BIG MISTAKE). I sent the payment in a couple of days late and they immediately closed the account, and told me to pay in full. This was probably about 4 years ago. I unfortunately did not have the money to pay up front, which at the time was a lot less, but with interest, we are now at $1,300. Or at least that is what the judgment is for. I guess I am up a creek, and I put myself there.

So they get a judgement against you, they can't do much at this point, so you don't worry about it, and arrange payment latter when you get back to work.

Agree with Father Chuck, so they are trying to collect, and they have to advise you of it which is why they sent the letter. You don't sound as if you have any assets, and your credit isn't too great, so a judgement, while embarrassing, won't affexct you a whole lot. It could affect your future employment, depending on what sorts of jobs you are looking to obtain. The average American in debt owes $124,000 which is over a hundred times what your debt is. But can you contact them and try to make any kind of arrangement, pay a small amount to show good faith etc.

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Originally Posted by GeorgeLeigh50

. But can you contact them and try to make any kind of arrangement, pay a small amount to show good faith etc.

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If they contact the collection people doesn't that start the statute of limitations all over again, which will eventually save them in the first place. It is my experience, and of others that trying to negotiate with them this is a lost cause. Basically you are dealing with really cut-throat people. They don't appreciate a payment here and a payment there. They want it all so they can move on to the next unfortunate soul they can victimize. And victimize is exactly what is is.

I have been there and done that because my husband reneged, I was caught in the middle, I fought them off and I won. They will threaten anything to get their unfortunate client worried. And most times what they threaten they can't produce because it is beyond their power to do so.

Gosh, don't get me going with these guys !

Ms tick

Thank you so much all of you! For the last few days I have not slept because of worry that they would come into my home and have a sheriff's sale, which is one of the things they threatened me with.

My savings at this time has $5 in it, and I am living off unemployment and an allotment from the U.S. Army, which just pays my rent.

Times are tough for everyone, and trying to get a job is near to impossible. But at least maybe now I will be able to get some much needed sleep, in a bed that I will be able to keep.

Again thank you all, you have been answers to my prayers!

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Originally Posted by wishbear17013

I just received a letter in the mail that their a default judgment against me in the state of Pennsylvania, and I have 20 days to respond to the letter.

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This doesn't make sense. If a default judgement has ALREADY been entered against you then there is no need to respond. So I'm wondering if this isn't just a scare tactic.

Were you ever notified that you were being sued over that debt? Did the letter include a court and docket number?

Lets check the validity of the claim that a judgmemt has been issued before we go any further. Since your car has a lien on it they can't touch that. And they are unlikely to try and sell your possessions over an unsecured debt.

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Originally Posted by ScottGem

This doesn't make sense. If a default judgement has ALREADY been entered against you then there is no need to respond. So I'm wondering if this isn't just a scare tactic.

Were you ever notified that you were being sued over that debt? Did the letter include a court and docket number?

Lets check the validity of the claim that a judgmemt has been issued before we go any further. Since your car has a lien on it they can't touch that. And they are unlikely to try and sell your possessions over an unsecured debt.

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No, there is a judgment. I received the judgment papers from the District Justice that a judgment has been given to them. The funny thing is I never knew about this until I received the papers that the judgment had been awarded. It also said I had 30 days to appeal the judgment. Then within a few days I received this letter from their attorney (who is a real attorney, who deals with collecting money for collection agencies), which stated the judment has been given for $1,300 and that I had 20 days to respond before a writ of execution could be suggested to their client. If this happens the letter states they can sale off my possessions through a sheriff's sale, garnish wages (I'm unemployed), or whatever else they need to do to get this money.

I understand I owe this debt, but right now I cannot afford to pay. I'm just trying to survive. Seems like when your down, there's no where to go but further down.

First, file an immediate appeal to vacate the judgment on the grounds of improper service. They had to notify you of the suit and give you the opportunity to respond. If the notice of judgment was the first you knew of the suit then they fudged service.

Once you have gotten the judgment vacated they will serve you properly. Form there you can require that they verify the debt and their right to collect it. While that's happening you can try to get a settlement.

A friend of mine her stepfather is a corporate attorney, and she is going to contact him. I am also going to try going through Free Legal Services here in Pennsylvania. My biggest fear though is that they are going to take what little I have left, which is not much. Every time I think about this my stomach goes into knots. Reading about a Writ of Execution on the Internet has only made it worse. I guess I will contact the attorney for the collection agency and see what I can work out if nothing else works.

Sometimes life just kicks you when your down, and there is no way back up no matter how hard you try.

Thank you for your help.

Do not contact them until you have filed your motion to vacate. They apparently did not properly notify you of the suit. That indicates they are a shady operator. If you are going to deal with them, deal from a position of relative strength.

Since you don't have a salary to garnish or bank account to attach there is little they can do to you. It is extremely rare that they will get permission to sell off your possession.

I wanted to give an update on what happened this morning concerning the judgment.

I went to the DJ's office to find out if this was a new judgment or when the hearing was that I missed because I was not notified, and was told there was no hearing, because they did not sent me any paperwork last week. There was just this one judgment which was placed against me in 2009.

So my next place was to go to the prothonotory here in Pennsylvania, where I found out that the paperwork I received last week was the same judgment with the fee the attorney paid to start the writ of execution.

I then talked to an attorney and he basically said there was nothing I could do, that they were in the driver's seat. The sheriff would come to my home to see if anything I had was of value that could be used in a Sheriff's Sale. They can literally take all your possessions, or whatever they feel will help pay the debt. They will take TV's, washer and dryer, anything.

OK last thing was to call the collection attorney, which I did. I talked to a Para Legal who was very nice, and after explaining my situation, she first told me to calm down, that they are not like other Collection Attorney's, they will work with their clients, because they know everyone is going through hard times, and you can't get blood from a stone. So she asked how much I could pay and I said $10 and she said that would be fine. She said when would I like to make my first payment, and I said Sept. 1, and she said that would be fine too.

So ladies and gentlemen, although I will be paying on this for quite awhile, because interest will still be added. They were willing to work with me.

A letter will be sent out in the next few days explaining where I am to make my payments, and if for any reason I cannot make my payment or have to miss a payment because things do happen, I just need to call them so they can put a note on my account and it won't go delinquent.

And the Writ of Execution has been terminated.

So all I can say is my guardian angel whoever it may be was really looking out for me this time and I thank them.

I also wish to thank all of you who took the time to respond and offer ideas.

In the end I did the one thing the Para Legal said she wished more people did. I picked up the phone and all called them. If I had ignored the letter or not called It would have been much worse.

I have always advocated keeping in contact with creditors. As long as you don't dodge them they are usually more willing to work with you.

Make sure, though that you get everything in writing.

And I have to point out that $10 a month will not even cover the interest. Which means your balance will keep going up, not down (one of the reasons they were willing to do this) You need to see what the interest is and try to pay enough so the principal is reduced.

I know, but right now it's all I can afford. I will pay more down the road when I get back on my feet.

Also, they are sending out all the information within the next few days, and although the interest will be still tacked on the rate is not super high, and they were willing to work with me.

For right now, it's a God Send!

Yes ScottGem has it right. If they notified this collection agency that you owed them without your knowledge of a suit, that is your out. In Pennsylvania they may not reveal to anyone that you owe a debt, it's considered an unfair or unconscionable collection practice. Suggest you contact Tom Corbett's office.