Credit Repair Tips : 

Getting credit after a bankruptcy - having a bankruptcy on your credit isnt the end of the world – especially if you are already affected by charge offs, collection accounts or levies.

How to pay a debt collector the right way - there’s a right way and a wrong way to pay a debt collector. Know the best methods for dealing with collection accounts.

Tips for best credit services online - finding credit services over the internet and cutting through the junk.

FCRA Rights (Fair credit reporting act) - understanding the FCRA and how it protects your credit report rights.

Expanding on our article last week where Asset Acceptance was fined 2.5 million for FDCPA & FCRA violations by the FTC, they’ve also agreed to some strict terms going forward.

Specifically, they will advise debtors when debts are time barred and therefore will not sue them. This is a huge victory for consumers given the majority of junk debt buyers purchase really old paper. Much of it 2-12 years old.

From about.com;

Asset Acceptance agreed not to sue debtors over debts that have passed the statute of limitations and to inform debtors when their debt debt may be “too old to be legally enforceable that it will not sue to collect on that debt.”

In a statement to Business Week, an Asset Acceptance representative says they’ll use the phrasing, “Given the age of the debt we will not sue you.” If it’s used correctly, the new phrasing will eliminate many questions over whether the statute of limitations on a debt has expired.

Asset Acceptance’s settlement is the second-largest FTC settlement with a debt collector since a settlement with West Asset Management for $2.8 million in March 2011. West Asset Management was accused of repeatedly calling consumers even about debts that weren’t theirs, informing third-parties of debts, ignoring written requests to stop communication about debts, withdrawing money from consumer accounts without permission, and falsely claiming consumers would be sued over the debts.

Consumers already have protection from harassment under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, but a new stricter law that specifically bars collection activity on expired debts seems to be lacking. Especially one that protects people from being sued on old debts.

Of course, if you owe money you should pay it, but time barred debts often go much deeper than bad people just skipping out. Many are result of identity theft, divorce post bankrupt balances or other issues that have caused the debt to go uncollected or be sold repeatedly to junk debt buyers. When this cycle begins its almost impossible to stop. People end up with a debt being sold three to four times and each entry lands on their credit reports as well as the cycle of calls and letters that never seems to end.

With a law requiring all collection agencies to note the date of the original debt and whether they plan to sue would cut a lot of confusion. Of course, for them, it would also radically cut their profits. This settlement with Asset Acceptance may lead us in the right direction for clearer terms when it comes to collection agencies and old debts.

A law that outlines specifics in respect to expired debts would also reduce the number of lawsuits that clog the courts. People who are sued on old debts often have to spend valuable time and money fighting it and proving to the court that the debt is indeed expired and legally barred from lawsuit.

A law that specifically states that collection agencies must reveal time barred debts in their collection notices would be appropriate. It shouldn’t take 2.5 million dollar fines or repeated action from the FTC. A universal rule on expired debts would do that.

Related Resources to this story;

• Check the statute of limitations for an old debt for each state.
• What is the SOL (statute of limitation and how does it protect me?)
• How to appropriately deal with collection agencies & bill collectors

Student Loan Debt Burden 
From: Top Colleges Online; About this Student Loan Infograph

At Top Colleges Online, we believe that education is important but that the cost of education and the large amounts of debt that most students take on are major problems. To highlight the problem we designed an infographic titled The Walking Debt, to emphasize that students today are caught in a catch-22: either become slaves to debt, or forego an education and limit your possibilities.

In this infographic we took student surveys about student loan debt to learn more about how debt affects students psychologically. 79% of young people surveyed believe that obtaining a college education now is more important than when their parents were growing up. But experts are mixed on whether college pays off, especially since a college degree no longer guarantees employment and over 9% of recent graduates (2010 recent graduates faced the highest unemployment rate for young college graduates in recent history).

76% of young people surveyed believe it has gotten harder to afford college in the last five years. Only 21% of young people surveyed believe students graduate with a manageable amount of college loan debt. The average student debt of new college graduates in 2010 was $22,900 as compared to only $7,000 in 2000. In other words, the average student debt in 2010 is 47% more than in 2000, even when adjusted for inflation.

Nearly 9 in 10 young people support increasing financial aid and making student loans more affordable. But some people believe that government help has actually been instrumental in creating the college debt bubble. To reduce the U.S. deficit, some politicians propose 2012 fiscal cuts that would affect the Pell Grant. 75% of young people do not want to see Pell Grants cut as a way to reduce the deficit.

What’s worse than preying on people with bad credit? Probably preying on our service members. Some companies try to lure in military service members for what they claim are special rates or loans, but in truth, it’s really preying on their needs or belief of special offers because of their military status.

For military service members, a promise of special rates, low mortgage fees or suspended car payments doesn’t often come off as scams as obvious as an offer to someone with bad credit. Military are often the recipients of special terms so it’s important to raise awareness so military families can protect themselves.

The Military Lending Act (MLA) is a good place to start for military service members and their families to understand their financial rights. Offers of easy money loans are often a web leading to high cost loans with a lot of hidden fees.

With serving their country — our country, military members do not need to be burdened with debt they cant pay back.

A particular troubling offer one needs to stay clear of are high interest payday loans. These loans appear affordable on the surface but deep in the terms can be fees and interest amounting to more than a service member can afford. These types of offers leave their families with the added stress of trying to pay the debts while the military member is off serving our country.

Whether its a payday advance loan, vehicle title loan, line of credit or tax anticipation loan, military family members need to be careful and educate themselves with the MLA to protect their finances.

You can learn more about military financial protection and the Military Lending Act here as well as discover legitimate loan offers for military personal.