Is there any real benefit to a !!!!!!?

shayshay

Currently going through Payplan with current debts, however from time to time I am offered a !!!!!! from a few creditors of around 80-90% off. I am not close to a mortgage at the moment however would like to be closer in the next 5-10 years.

Am I right in thinking that a !!!!!! will look worse to a possible lender than having paid it in full? I totally understand !!!!!! would take the weight of a debt away however if at any stage in the future I aim for a mortgage could I be shooting myself in the foot by doing so.

FireWyrm

I'm not sure why the presence of F&F settlements would be a black mark, you already have black marks because the debts are outstanding. These debts will drop off the credit file 6 years from last action, so a F&F would simply show that the debt was settled, end of story. I would have thought that was much more valuable than live and outstanding debts for all that you are 'addressing' them via a DMP.

sourcrates

If there offering you 80-90% off then there is clearly some issue here with regard to either enforceability of they may be statute barred, they never offer such Hugh discounts unless there are some issues with the debt, I would suggest you look further into this, maybe make a CCA request for the accounts that are making you this "incredible offer", i`m guessing these may be quiet old debts ?

Stuh

I also asked this question on another thread recently as i am looking for a mortgage at the end of this year and one comment back to me was that it would hurt me as i am not repaying the debt's in full, this has concerned me as i was of the opinion that a PS on my file when it was closed was not going to affect a deal...btw i would be looking for 50% maximum if the debts are with a DCA as i am also with payplan which i will be leaving soon to self manage... thanks

shayshay

@firewyrm, having them cleared is great however looking for confirmation that they dont show as being settled by means of a 80-90% discount as that will still scream out to a lender.

Maybe the difference is when looking for a mortgage. Stuh if yours is the end of the year then maybe it will still be on the file as such where as Firewyrm may be thinking further than six yours down the line...crossed wires perhaps.

AngryDog

I think alot depends on when the defaults will drop off your record. As far as I have been told, if you do a P/S and then wait for the defaults to drop off your file, then this shouldnt have any real negative affect on you. The defaults are going to hurt you regardless of whether you pay them partially or fully.

sourcrates

AngryDog wrote: »

I think alot depends on when the defaults will drop off your record. As far as I have been told, if you do a P/S and then wait for the defaults to drop off your file, then this shouldnt have any real negative affect on you. The defaults are going to hurt you regardless of whether you pay them partially or fully.

Whether fully settled or partially settled the original default will still be on your file for 6 years regardless, the only benefit to partially settled is it costs you less money, lenders all have there own methods for credit scoring so doesn't make a whole lot of difference to your file really.

AngryDog

sourcrates wrote: »

Whether fully settled or partially settled the original default will still be on your file for 6 years regardless, the only benefit to partially settled is it costs you less money, lenders all have there own methods for credit scoring so doesn't make a whole lot of difference to your file really.

Which is what I said.

fatbelly

If you're on a long term payment plan and someone offers to settle at 10-20% then it's a bit of a no-brainer unless the debt is clearly unenforceable for some reason (if so, why is it in your payment plan in the first place?).

There is a school of thought that says your plan should be at a level that allows some 'saving on the side' for this strategy. If you're on a basic wage with irregular overtime or bonuses then this works quite logically.

I agree with the above posters on the credit file effect.

[Deleted User]

fatbelly wrote: »

If you're on a long term payment plan and someone offers to settle at 10-20% then it's a bit of a no-brainer unless the debt is clearly unenforceable for some reason (if so, why is it in your payment plan in the first place?).

.

Ermm...if it's a debt owed why shouldn't it be on the payment plan?