Tax and debt relief commercials

C

caroln

Senior Member
Location
Kentucky
Someone says, "I owed $50,000 in back taxes and after I called XYZ, I only owed $52.00!" Or, "I was working 3 jobs to pay off my huge debts, but after calling XYZ I'm totally debt free!" What's the deal with this? My whole life I've had to pay my taxes and pay off my loans and these people get off scott free? Why are any of us paying our taxes when we can just call XYZ and get our taxes forgiven??? Is this legit?
 

Thanks Matrix, that was close. The old adage is if one has a debt then how are they going to repay the loan with what they are already bringing in? These debt relief companies don't clear their clients debts for free. Figure it out.
 
Like it or not, bankruptcy is part of the system. The bankruptcy trustees do make money.

The bankrupt don't get off entirely free. Their income and assets are scrutinized, and they might have to pay something, according to a formula. Also, their credit rating goes to zero.
 
caroln said:
Why are any of us paying our taxes when we can just call XYZ and get our taxes forgiven??? Is this legit?
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It's all misleading, to say the least. Regarding the tax ads, for a fee they will supposedly help you negotiate with the IRS. The IRS will make a deal to recover some money, as merely sending you to prison is a money loser. You can negotiate with the IRS directly, but if you owe them massive amounts of money it's likely you've committed some criminal offenses, in which case you better have a lawyer talking to the IRS.

About the debt relief commercials: the credit industry wants to keep the debtor on the hook, if they can dupe you into using one of the credit "relief" companies then they can have you re-affirm your debt, and make it harder for you to declare bankruptcy later on, when you come to your senses. Divorce and unexpected medical bills can lead you into financial hardship, but in general the best way to be tax and debt free is to pay-your-bills.
 
Nathan said:
It's all misleading, to say the least. Regarding the tax ads, for a fee they will supposedly help you negotiate with the IRS. The IRS will make a deal to recover some money, as merely sending you to prison is a money loser. You can negotiate with the IRS directly, but if you owe them massive amounts of money it's likely you've committed some criminal offenses, in which case you better have a lawyer talking to the IRS.

About the debt relief commercials: the credit industry wants to keep the debtor on the hook, if they can dupe you into using one of the credit "relief" companies then they can have you re-affirm your debt, and make it harder for you to declare bankruptcy later on, when you come to your senses. Divorce and unexpected medical bills can lead you into financial hardship, but in general the best way to be tax and debt free is to pay-your-bills.
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You've brought about another 'irk' point: some of the ads say something like 'if you haven't filed your taxes for the last ten years,' or something like that, which never fails to leave me gasping.. not only because people would neglect this responsibility, but also because companies like that are so eager to help them but people who've had legitimate hardships beyond their control and owe much much less can't get any help at all.
 
JaniceM said:
....companies like that are so eager to help
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The "debt relief" programs are part of the credit industry's efforts to collect on un-secured debt(credit cards). If they can convince a debtor to continue paying towards a debt that's already been handed over to collection agencies, rather than declaring bankruptcy, they get a fee for their efforts, and the debtor really gets....nothing. Once a credit account is charged off, the debtor's credit rating takes a hit, and will affect credit for seven years. A bankruptcy will stay reported for 10 years, but the debt is discharged, and credit card companies will be offering credit with months of the discharge...of course at much higher interest rates.
 
Nathan said:
The "debt relief" programs are part of the credit industry's efforts to collect on un-secured debt(credit cards). If they can convince a debtor to continue paying towards a debt that's already been handed over to collection agencies, rather than declaring bankruptcy, they get a fee for their efforts, and the debtor really gets....nothing. Once a credit account is charged off, the debtor's credit rating takes a hit, and will affect credit for seven years. A bankruptcy will stay reported for 10 years, but the debt is discharged, and credit card companies will be offering credit with months of the discharge...of course at much higher interest rates.
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That sucks- taking advantage of people!!!
 
We had a man in our air group that owed the IRS almost $20,000. He called one of those debt relief companies that deal with the IRS. After finagling back and forth with him for a few months, it ended up with him paying $3000 down and then signing an agreement to have 15% of his paycheck sent directly to the IRS. For cooperating and agreeing to do that, the IRS agreed to cut his debt from $20,000 to $14,000. He got a $6000 discount and no added interest or penalties. It was his wife who had the problem. She had a part time job for years and every year she received a 1099-Misc. She didn’t know what that was nor did she bother finding out. She just thought it was from her part time employer for his tax purposes. S doesn’t have the job anymore.

So when they say they owed $20,000, but only paid $3000, they aren’t being truthful. They aren’t telling you that they have to send the IRS ‘x’ amount of dollars from every paycheck through direct deposit every payday.
 
Been There said:
We had a man in our air group that owed the IRS almost $20,000. He called one of those debt relief companies that deal with the IRS. After finagling back and forth with him for a few months, it ended up with him paying $3000 down and then signing an agreement to have 15% of his paycheck sent directly to the IRS. For cooperating and agreeing to do that, the IRS agreed to cut his debt from $20,000 to $14,000. He got a $6000 discount and no added interest or penalties. It was his wife who had the problem. She had a part time job for years and every year she received a 1099-Misc. She didn’t know what that was nor did she bother finding out. She just thought it was from her part time employer for his tax purposes. S doesn’t have the job anymore.

So when they say they owed $20,000, but only paid $3000, they aren’t being truthful. They aren’t telling you that they have to send the IRS ‘x’ amount of dollars from every paycheck through direct deposit every payday.
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That reminds me of a bankruptcy lawyer in this area.. tells people he can help them as soon as they pay him $1500.
Seems to me if somebody could afford that, they wouldn't need to declare bankruptcy.
 
Now, our local TV channels are loaded with these "Camp Legeune" water contamination lawsuit commercials. I can just imagine the millions of dollars the lawyers will be putting in their pockets, while routing a pittance to those affected.
 
Don M. said:
Now, our local TV channels are loaded with these "Camp Legeune" water contamination lawsuit commercials. I can just imagine the millions of dollars the lawyers will be putting in their pockets, while routing a pittance to those affected.
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That is awful.
My brother was at Camp Lejeune, I don't know if he was affected by contaminated water or not.
But that guy who does a lot of different class-action lawsuits does seem like a money-grubbing little creep. (Andrew van Arsdale)
 

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