How will a judgement against me really affect my credit affect my credit?

Question

A judgement for $2800.00 will be going against my credit soon. I am only 23 years old, and I have good credit now, never been late or over the limit, and I have built up accounts for years in good standings, credit cards, cars, loans etc.... Is this going to be really bad for me? Should I just say screw it and ruin the rest of my credit now? Why pay on time now if this is going to damage it anyways?

I was making monthly payments to the lawyers BEFORE they filled the court papers to sue me, I tried to clear it up but they weren't working with me, I have even sent them payments AFTER I was served but they still say they want payment in full, and I just don't have the money, they tiold me I can continue to make payments but that will not stop the legal process.

Answer 1

Yes it will show up on your reports under public records and will have a very derogatory affect on your score.

I would save up as much as possible and offer a settlement with the factthat they will remove it from your credit.

Also keep in mind you can offset the negative by adding more positive credit.


Here are a few articles you should read to educate yourself:

http://www.expert-credit-advice.com/learn_about_judgements.htm

http://www.expert-credit-advice.com/credit_score.htm

Answer 2

I do not agree with fukinluckyfuker's advice. I would have appreciated some source of his info.

For starters, simply paying off a judgment (no matter how quickly) will NOT remove the public record. Only the judge can do that, and it's not likely they will.

Therefore, the Credit Reporting Agency will eventually pick up on this record and put it into your file. Disputing it won't do much good because it's easy for them to verify.

How bad does it hurt? Very. Next to a bankruptcy it's a severe hit. When a potential lender sees it, they are reluctant because they know a lien can easily be placed on any property you are buying.

Now, what I want to know is how they managed to get their judgement. You claim you were making payments prior to the lawsuit.....that constitutes a "volation" of the contract and the judge should not have granted a judgement since you were making payments on the loan (and they were accepting them).

It may be difficult to get this overturned without an a lawyer, and it's not worth the expense for such a small lawsuit.

Answer 3

In most cases, a civil judgment will only show up on your credit report if it remains unpaid for a certain amount of time. The clerk of court for your judgment can tell you what this timeframe is, I'm pretty sure it's 30 days though. Pay it off (and GET THE SATISFACTION OF JUDGMENT THE DAY YOU PAY IT OFF!!!), and get the satisfaction recorded with the county in time, and it will not adversely impact your credit rating.

Just getting sued doesn't mean your credit should be bad, anyone can get sued for whatever reason. It's when you don't pay up promptly that it can become a credit issue.

Answer 4

Yes, a judgment is going to have a major negative impact on your credit scores that will last for a minimum of 10 years. It will affect your ability to get a decent rate of interest on future extensions of credit and may impact the rate of interest you have on current credit cards. In addition, you will be unable to purchase property until such time as the judgment and all accrued interest on it are paid in full.

As to why you should pay your bills on time, well, you borrowed the money or accrued the debt in good faith. They didn't make you wait to extend it to you did they? You have both a legal and moral obligation here. How you handle it is the truest reflection of your character.

Cal the potential judgment creditor now and make arrangements to pay the bill over time to avoid the judgment.

Don't ruin your future over something as small as $2800.00.

Answer 5

You need to fix it ASAP. Yes, it will mess things up but dont think of it as an excuse to royally screw up on purpose! That will just make matters worse. If you pay it, it will show on your credit as paid, 0 due. The sooner you fix it, the sooner you will recover. If you continue to go deeper, than it will show that you have 4 things in collections instead of 1 that has been paid.

Answer 6

A judgement is worse than most collection accounts. It can be enforced through garnishment, and can be renewed when it approaches expiration.

Here is some additional info. Hope this helps.

Answer 7

If you're in good standings there shouldn't really be anything to worry about. I'm no expert myself, but think about it. Everone has their ups and downs, and they have to understand that "c'est la vie" that's life. As long as you go along and pay what you can and don't let them down, everything should be good. There are so many ways you can get around your credit score. They don't care as much about your score, they care more about your money.