Which would I be better off doing?

[Creditdreamer]

Citi is my large collection at 7500 right now. I want to do PFD but haven't heard of any successes with Citi and dont particularly want to risk being sued. The CA is offering 2500 settlement. Would I be better off paying the settlement amount and then taking the extra 5k and putting it on a couple secured cards with high limits and just letting Citi (after being paid) age for a while? Or should I PIF and then GW them like crazy?

[rckstrscott]

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@Creditdreamer wrote:
Citi is my large collection at 7500 right now. I want to do PFD but haven't heard of any successes with Citi and dont particularly want to risk being sued. The CA is offering 2500 settlement. Would I be better off paying the settlement amount and then taking the extra 5k and putting it on a couple secured cards with high limits and just letting Citi (after being paid) age for a while? Or should I PIF and then GW them like crazy?

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Wow.. that is rock and a hard place if I have ever seen it..

Ultimately, when you are talking money as large as this, I think priority should not be your credit report or score, but the debt itself and the chance you could get sued. If they sue you for $7500, it will be a lot more than $7500 when they start factoring in legal fees, interest, ect..

The credit score is just a number. It makes your life more challenging with a lower number, but no credit score wil put you in legal trouble.

Getting $5000 off your bill, to legally settle is, is not a bad deal. If I were you, I would seriously considering taking it and just let that account age for a while, then tackle goodwill. Just because you settled doesn't mean you cannot try. You might find a sympathetic ear after its been in the rearview a little while....

-Scott

[rckstrscott]

FYI, I have a 744 score right now with a paid 5k collection that is pushing 4 years since DOFD. So you can get moderately good scores even if they still report, given adequate aging.

-scott

edited for typos galore

[Creditdreamer]

Thanks for the info. You make good points and have reaffirmed what I was thinking in the back of my mind. If I go ahead and accept the 2500 then that also takes away the waiting part of it, which is where I was worried the suing would come in. And especially because it's such a high amount I didn't want to risk it. Unfortunately 2000 of the 7500 is interest and fees but I still think that 2500 is a good settlement.