When it comes to the subject of debt collecting, there are a lot of misconceptions and misinformation. Here are some tools of the trade that you can use if a debt collector ever calls you. When the collection agent calls, the first thing you want to do is determine if this is a third party collector or an in house collector. Third party collectors are hired by creditors on contingency, while in house collectors are the creditors.

Ask the collection agent “Are you calling as a creditor or a third party collector?” Not only will this give the debt collector the impression that you are competent, but it is important to know, because third party debt collectors must abide by strict regulations enacted under The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Keep in mind that most debt collectors are third party ones.

The debt collector will deliver what is known as a “mini Miranda.” What this means is that your phone call is being recorded and anything you say can be utilized by the company to collect debt. After this they will ask you about the debt that they are calling about. Instead of replying in any way that would acknowledge that you owe money, politely request some initial information from the collection agent before the conversation continues. By law, a third party collection agent is required to give you the name of the agency, their address, fax and phone number, and the name of the original creditor. Ask for all of this, the debt collector’s name, and their specific phone number.

After you have obtained this specific information, tell the bill collector you are tied up at the moment and will contact them back in an hour. Bear in mind that collection agents will always try to achieve a sense of urgency and may insinuate that you must or should talk to them now, but you do not have to. Now, after hanging up, you are in control because the ball is in your court.

Take this time to try to remember if you know what debt the collection agent might have been asking you about. If you remember legitimately acquiring the debt, and the amount of the debt is correct, call back the debt collector and ask them if there is some type of repayment plan you could work out with them. It’s important to pay off this debt before the debt collector marks your credit score negatively, or even recommends that the creditor file suit against you.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on credit collection agencies. Check here for free reprint licence: The First Thing You Should Do If A Bill Collector Calls.

In the past couple of years, more Americans in a financial bind due to lack of income have made the choice to prioritize credit card payments over mortgage payments. With the close of 2009 statistics illustrated that twice as many debtors were delinquent when it came to paying their mortgage while paying credit card payments rather than paying their mortgages off first and then credit card bills.

Some of this new trend could be chalked off to the credit crunch and lower balances on cards in general, but it is even more likely for people that are seeing the real estate market fail to lose faith in the value in their homes and simply give up. For many of homeowners, walking away from their homes with mortgages that they just can’t afford seems like the only decision to make.

A common reason that most homeowners give for walking out on mortgage payments is that the only punishment is a bad credit score, which seems inevitable in this economy anyway, which leaves them little reason to keep paying mortgage while not building equity. Although Americans like to take pride in the fact that we are a “civilized and industrial” country, many Americans struggle to obtain the bare necessities: food, water and shelter.

In times of need, when there is no money on hand to feed families, credit cards become the usual financing strategy. Understandably, there is a set of reasoning that comes with prioritizing the bills this way. If a credit card is removed, someone loses the opportunity to ensure that they will have food to eat and clean water to drink and bathe in, heat in the winter, or a car to take them to work and back.

Still, experts advise debtors in this situation to try their hardest to put their mortgage higher on their priority list. A mortgage is a secured debt, which means that the bank that has your mortgage has the capacity to take it away if you do not pay because your house is collateral. Even still, some people have no problem leaving a house whose value has decreased dramatically, choosing to rent instead. But in a situation like this, playing the waiting game might be the best choice. Eventually the real estate market will come around, and it will pay to own a home at that time.

Mallory works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on commercial collection agencies Unique version for reprint here: Many Americans Forced Into Making The Decision Between Bare Necessities And Shelter.

Student loan debt is maybe the most tiresome, grueling type of debt that you can owe. For you to go to school, Uncle Sam has given out money, and he fully expects to get that cash back. Unlike most other loans, federal student loans are extremely hard to discharge in bankruptcy. A man that drove to Vegas and gambled himself into foreclosure has a much higher chance of being able to walk away from the situation than a student who borrowed money to go to school. Additionally, federal student loans have no statute of limitations and can be collected even from debtors’ Social Security Payments after they retire.

So what do you do if you are a student fresh out of school struggling to make ends meet? Get educated, again. A Collections manual, 2009 PCA Practices, was temporarily published on a public section of the Department of Education’s website. A guide for the private collection agencies that work with the Department of Education, this manual can prove to be a valuable resource for former students who are attempting to learn more about paying back their student loan.

This article is founded on what I have learned from the manual, and it hones in on the rare circumstances under which collection activity may be suspended on a student loan account. It also goes into how you would go about ceasing collection activity on your student loan if you really wanted to. According to the manual, collection agencies must immediately suspend collection activity on an account if the borrower disputes the amount that is being owed, for example, claiming that the debt was paid off, was never owed, or should have been canceled.

Collection activity should immediately be suspended if the borrower raises a legal defense against repayment. These might include a closed school, an ability to benefit, or circumstances under which the Department of Education might not be allowed to pursue collection. If the borrower gets a 65 Day Notice of Federal Offset, or 30 day Administrative Wage Garnishment notice, and asks for a written review or hearing in response, the collection agency must suspend collection activity. Finally, if the borrower files a written or verbal complaint against the collection agency, collection activity has to be suspended.

Unlike suspension of collection activity, which is temporary, ceasing collection activity is permanent. If you want your student loan debt collector to stop contacting you, you must request in writing that the collection agency stop all communications with you. In these cases the collection agency is allowed to contact you one final time to let you know how they plan to proceed. Keep in mind that requesting that collection activity on your student loan be stopped is not a very good idea, as after the section on ceasing collection activity comes a section that informs the collection agency that the Department of Education expects the collection agency to evaluate the accounts with these requests for litigation. So even though you may experience a period of peace, that one final phone call you receive very well might be to inform you that you are being sued for all of the money you owe.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on commercial collection agencies. Also published at Directly From The Department Of Ed’s Manual- Suspending And Stopping Student Loan Collection Activities.