Los Angeles Collector

U.S. Consumers Paid Down Debt in 2011

admin — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 18:52:07 +0000

According to an Equifax’s December National Credit Trends Report, U.S. consumers were much more diligent about paying their debts in 2011, resulting in significant declines in delinquency rates among the majority of tracked lending sectors.

Not only did U.S. consumers do a better job of paying their bills on time in 2011, but total consumer debt declined to $11.1 trillion. This represents a nearly 11 percent decline in debt from its peak of $12.4 trillion in October 2008.

Read the entire article here.

Polo Club Founder Adopts Girlfriend Amid Civil Suit Over DUI Death

admin — Thu, 02 Feb 2012 18:12:14 +0000

A wealthy Florida polo club founder has adopted his longtime adult girlfriend in what attorneys believe may be a legal maneuver to protect his financial assets–which he estimates as “several hundred million dollars”–as he faces a trial for a drunk driving incident that killed a 23-year-old.

John Goodman, 48, formally adopted Heather Laruso Hutchins, 42, in October 2011. The couple started dating in 2009. Goodman is the founder of the International Polo Club Palm Beach in Wellington, Fla.

West Palm Beach Judge Glenn Kelley wrote in a court order that the twists in the case “border on the surreal and take the Court into a legal twilight zone.”

Read the entire article here.

Commercial Bankruptcy Filings Are Predicted to Increase in 2012

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:57:17 +0000

Poll suggests business bankruptcy filings will increase by more than 10 percent in 2012.

According to a report released by the American Bankruptcy Institute on Jan. 19, 2012, the results of an ABI Quick Poll show that a majority of respondents believe that business bankruptcy filings will increase by more than 10 percent in 2012. Sixty-eight percent of respondents agree that business filings will increase by more than 10 percent while 25 percent of respondents disagree that filings will increase by 10 percent in 2012. Five percent did not know or had no opinion on the subject.

For calendar year 2011, the total commercial filings fell to 74,142, representing a 19 percent decline from the 92,070 business filings recorded in 2010. However, the fallout from the recent recession continues to take a toll on U.S. businesses as access to credit remains tight and debt levels are elevated.

Judge Orders Former NBA Star Allen Iverson’s Wages Garnished

admin — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 04:49:07 +0000

A Georgia judge commandeered the bank account of former NBA star Allen Iverson in order to pay out a substantial debt for an unpaid jewelry bill in a summary judgement on Monday.

The judge will garnish Iverson’s earnings to allow Aydin and Company Jewelers to collect $859, 896.46 for the jewelry bill, court costs, interest and attorney fees, according to a TMZ.com report.

Read the entire article here.

Consumer Confidence Continues to Improve

admin — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:46:49 +0000

The Conference Board Consumer Confidence Index, which had improved in November, increased further in December. The index now stands at 64.5 (1985=100), up from 55.2 in November. The Present Situation Index increased to 46.7 from 38.3. The Expectations Index rose to 76.4 from 66.4.

“After two months of considerable gains, the Consumer Confidence Index is now back to levels seen last spring (April 2011, 66.0),” said Lynn Franco, director of The Conference Board Consumer Research Center. “Consumers’ assessment of current business and labor market conditions improved again. Looking ahead, consumers are more optimistic that business conditions, employment prospects and their financial situations will continue to get better. While consumers are ending the year in a somewhat more upbeat mood, it is too soon to tell if this is a rebound from earlier declines or a sustainable shift in attitudes.”

Read the entire article here.

National Default Rates Increased in November

admin — Tue, 03 Jan 2012 19:46:04 +0000

First mortgage and bank card default rates rose to 2.17 percent and 4.91 percent in November, from 2.08 percent and 4.85 percent in October, respectively, according to the latest S&P/Experian Consumer Credit Default Indices. Second mortgage and auto loan default rates decreased slightly. Second mortgages moved down from 1.29 percent in October to 1.26 percent in November, and auto loans from 1.22 percent to 1.17 percent. The increases in first mortgage and bank card rates, however, caused the national composite to rise from 2.15 percent to 2.22 percent.

Read the entire article here.

Credit Card Charge-Offs Jump as Delinquencies Near Record Lows

admin — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 19:58:09 +0000

Lending institutions in the United States reported a 16 percent increase in their credit card chargeoff rates in the third quarter of 2011, according to data released last week by the Federal Reserve.

The Fed said that its member banks reported a seasonally adjusted, annualized credit card charge-off rate that averaged 5.81 percent in the third quarter, up from 5 percent in the second quarter. The average writedown rate was, however, drastically lower than the 8.71 percent rate reported in the year-ago period.

Read the entire article here.

U.S. Adds 80,000 Jobs in October; Unemployment Rate Drops to 9 percent

admin — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 17:54:26 +0000

The United States economy added 80,000 jobs in October, the Labor Department said Friday. The unemployment rate ticked down to 9 percent from 9.1 percent in September on the strength of larger-than-expected revisions to jobs growth in the preceding months.

Read the entire article here.

Bel-Air Man Gets Nearly Six Years for Concealing Assets and Threatening Process Server

admin — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 14:38:04 +0000

A Bel-Air man who declared bankruptcy, then hid his assets and threatened a process server with a golf club, was sentenced today to almost six years behind bars.

Milton Lee Vandevort, 50, was convicted in July 2010 of money laundering, concealing assets in a bankruptcy case, and making a false oath and a false declaration in a bankruptcy case.

Read the entire article here.

House Is Gone but Debt Lives On

admin — Sat, 01 Oct 2011 16:46:44 +0000

LEHIGH ACRES, Fla.—Joseph Reilly lost his vacation home here last year when he was out of work and stopped paying his mortgage. The bank took the house and sold it. Mr. Reilly thought that was the end of it.

In June, he learned otherwise. A phone call informed him of a court judgment against him for $192,576.71.

It turned out that at a foreclosure sale, his former house fetched less than a quarter of what Mr. Reilly owed on it. His bank sued him for the rest.

Read the entire article here.