Posted on 07/29/2014 9:25:40 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
A study released by the Urban Institute on Tuesday found that more than 35 percent of Americans have unpaid bills and debt that has been reported to collection agencies.
The debts surveyed include everything from gym memberships to auto loans. The study, which looked at records from September 2013, found that 35.1 percent of people with credit records had been reported to collection agencies. The average debt was $5,178.
The Associated Press notes that while America has decreased its credit card debt, the percentage of Americans in collections has remained roughly the same. In 2004, a Federal Reserve study found that 36.5 percent of Americans were in collections.
Also of note is the fact that unpaid debts are concentrated in Southern and Western states, with Texas in the lead. Five Texas cities — Dallas, El Paso, Houston, McAllen, and San Antonio — have more than 40 percent of their populations reported to collection agencies. In addition, nearly half of Las Vegas residents have debts that are in collections. -
See also here:
Over One-third of Americans are drowning in debt
Not me. I don’t have much but what I have is mine (aside from the property the government forces me to pay for)
I have found this website to be a very useful source of information on the economy, gold, and silver.
http://goldismoney.info/forums/
Same story discussed here...
http://www.goldismoney2.com/showthread.php?68115-35-percent-in-US-facing-debt-collectors
As someone who has had the great misfortune to have had a very sick son and a pair of twins in NICU for a month each, a personal hospital stay of 10 days, eight months of drug therapy, a wife who has had four children and breast cancer, combined with a stint of Obama economy unemployment ALL within the last five years. I can honestly say that I will never pay the medical bills I have racked up, even with insurance.
I simply tell medical professionals up front that they will only receive reimbursement from the insurance company and to bill accordingly.
That being said, I have a credit score of 798 and owe no credit except for a house payment. This is the only reason we haven't been bankrupted.
I think the number may be high. One of my kids got a credit downgrade over a dispute about whether his college insurance was going to pay or something that came up in the last week or two of coverage. I don’t think that really counts, but it would show up in this type of a survey.
Perhaps why Texas ranks high is because debt collectors cannot garnish wages for collection of consumer debt.
student loans
Back taxes
“How many are from consumer debt and how many are strictly medical debt?”
I would like to see a breakdown on: medical debt, student loans, and “other.”
Prolly eye opening.
Reminds me of a conversation I once heard in the ER(paraphrased):
When my child is sick, I will do anything to get them well.
Would you pay for their treatment?
Hell, no. I got too many other bills to pay.
That is my exact question.
People have dings on their credit report for collections from places like Bally’s Gym. They took a free month and then didn’t write a letter to withdraw and Bally’s is trying to collect nine years worth of dues. Or they have an ER visit. Pay the deductible, but the doctor has a billing company that continues to bill for the entire amount. Even though they are not entitled to it.
Most, even the medical bill are complete BS. Even with insurance, a couple years of illness or more than one family member with injury and few if any could pay their total end of the medical bills. Believe me. It is simply not possible.
Credit issuers don’t even consider these for most forms of consumer credit. I have never been turned down for credit, even though I have a number of scumbag collectors, real bottom feeders, trying to collect supposed tens of thousands of dollars. Much of it for our son who died four years ago.
I just give him the address and plot number of the Cemetery and tell them to try to collect directly.
Well, I paid out close to $120,000 in my own money. Insurance simply doesn’t cover everything. Our insurance company has paid close to five million for our families great good fortune over the last five years. For some people that may be nothing. For us it was everything we had saved since I was in high School. No More.
It is not a matter of willingness to pay. In most instances you simply can not. They are also not as willing as people might believe to a payment plan. Even if they where, some of their pricing is ridiculous.
These collection companies are a cult and industry until themselves. I get calls on my cell phone from the same number 3 times a day, and I am NOT the debtor, the message they leave is for some guy whose name I cannot pronounce.
>>>> I don’t have much but what I have is mine .....
Somehow ‘savers’ will be punished because they unfairly took advantage over others who are more unfortunate.
“You didn’t build that”, so you didn’t build your savings either.
ex-wife
Once the debt is written off. The original debtor is out of the picture. These companies threaten, but can do nothing. They can not sue, get a judgment, lean on real property or garnish wages. They just try to bully.
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