Hi...I'd greatly appreciate any feedback / assistance...during dot com mania, I invested in some dot coms name on margin...stocks crashed...as a result I owe over 20K to E-trade (debit balance)...they left me alone for over a year...in the meantime I've been unemployed...have no hard assets, since whatever I had I lost in the market...to make matters worse, it is a joint account, myself being primary holder and I also put my mother there...today, I received a letter from them asking me to remit the funds immediately or face collection procedure...I did not want to declare bankruptcy, since that's not who I am, and also it would be much more difficult to get a job...my credit is still very good...what should I do?...did anyone experienced similar situation...or know of anyone who went through similar situation...can I negotiate with this B/D?...perhaps offer them a fraction of what is being owed to settle the case?...can I dispute the claim, and blame it on their margin dept (slight chance)?...I greatly appreciate any help...thank you...
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Collection of Debt by B/D - Novice Investor
- Thread starter avenida
- Start date
You opened the margin account, you screwed it up and lost money. Etrade was then nice enough to give you an entire year to get your shit in order, and now you want to screw them over for the money that YOU LOST? During this entire year that, after they had to cover your loss, did you contact them at all and say something like, You know, I have this debt to you guys, things are hard right now, but Id like to work it out?
branonf
Yes i did, told them I was looking for job and will start paying them once I got one...however, I did not find one up to now...also, i forgot to mention that they made on me over 100K in commissions and margin over the course of 2 years...that's why they were "nice" to me...I definetely wants to repay this debt...but wonder if theyu could write off a portion of it...and if anyone can give me a good advice in how to handle this from here, thanks
Yes i did, told them I was looking for job and will start paying them once I got one...however, I did not find one up to now...also, i forgot to mention that they made on me over 100K in commissions and margin over the course of 2 years...that's why they were "nice" to me...I definetely wants to repay this debt...but wonder if theyu could write off a portion of it...and if anyone can give me a good advice in how to handle this from here, thanks
You can probably write some of it off on your taxes over the next few years.
<b>also, i forgot to mention that they made on me over 100K in commissions and margin over the course of 2 years... </b>
So? Why does that matter at all? You paid them 100K in commissions, they have a 15% profit margin..then they had to eat a 20K loss you generated. They are now down 5K for having had the "privledge" of providing you with brokerage services.
Call them up and make some offer of payment, and work with them to get a repayment plan in place, otherwise they will screw your credit over.
Good luck,
Brandon
<b>also, i forgot to mention that they made on me over 100K in commissions and margin over the course of 2 years... </b>
So? Why does that matter at all? You paid them 100K in commissions, they have a 15% profit margin..then they had to eat a 20K loss you generated. They are now down 5K for having had the "privledge" of providing you with brokerage services.
Call them up and make some offer of payment, and work with them to get a repayment plan in place, otherwise they will screw your credit over.
Good luck,
Brandon
Brandon
Thanks...I'm definetely going to do that...but before talking to them, do you think I should consult a lawyer...see if there is a loophole or way to pay lesser amount...since I do not have any income...before consulting lawyer, I wanted to consult with Elitetrader...anyhow, appreciate your assesment, with which I definetely agree...
Thanks...I'm definetely going to do that...but before talking to them, do you think I should consult a lawyer...see if there is a loophole or way to pay lesser amount...since I do not have any income...before consulting lawyer, I wanted to consult with Elitetrader...anyhow, appreciate your assesment, with which I definetely agree...
avenida, I can help you.
My real job is working as a financial consultant with the main emphasis of working for small to medium sized companies with cash flow problems. We routinely settle debts with their creditors at 20 cents on the dollar, sometimes less. I have recently brought on a bankruptcy and consumer attorney who does the same things for individuals.
If this interests you, call me at 941-360-2999.
Scott Iverson
My real job is working as a financial consultant with the main emphasis of working for small to medium sized companies with cash flow problems. We routinely settle debts with their creditors at 20 cents on the dollar, sometimes less. I have recently brought on a bankruptcy and consumer attorney who does the same things for individuals.
If this interests you, call me at 941-360-2999.
Scott Iverson
avenida..
once etrade knows you hired a lawyer, they probably wont talk to you at all.. the best thing for you to do is what brandon recommended.. call them up.. ask to speak to supervisor.. and tell them that you simply dont have the money.. offer to work something out with them and say that you feel they should make some allowance for you since you paid so much in commissions.. see what they say.. offer to make small payments.. 50 or 100 a month.. then if you cant work something out, talk to an attorney.. heck, they let you slide for a year.. that doesnt sound like an unreasonable company to me.. btw, you couldnt find work for a year? a whole year? that is what doesnt seem reasonable to me.. but good luck..
-qwik
once etrade knows you hired a lawyer, they probably wont talk to you at all.. the best thing for you to do is what brandon recommended.. call them up.. ask to speak to supervisor.. and tell them that you simply dont have the money.. offer to work something out with them and say that you feel they should make some allowance for you since you paid so much in commissions.. see what they say.. offer to make small payments.. 50 or 100 a month.. then if you cant work something out, talk to an attorney.. heck, they let you slide for a year.. that doesnt sound like an unreasonable company to me.. btw, you couldnt find work for a year? a whole year? that is what doesnt seem reasonable to me.. but good luck..
-qwik