Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania

I received an offer from a credit card company with whom I have a charged off account. My charged off account balance was $444.00. The offer allows me to transfer that balance to a NEW credit card with this same company and begin to pay down my balance with small payments, while freeing up available credit as I pay it down. My question is, will this help or hurt my credit? I'm trying to build my credit score after bankruptcty,etc. I'm afraid that if it appears that I have a 'maxed out' credit card again, that my credit score will suffer further. Can you advise?


Asked on 12/28/12, 6:47 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Rachel Hunter

Do not take this offer.

First, charge off means nothing. It is just an accounting term. What matters is whether you have a legal duty to pay this debt. If the statute of limitations has expired, then transferring the balance will revive the statute.

This will not help your credit if you have only one card and the limits are close to $500. By transferring the balance you will be using up virtually all of your credit.

There are better ways to improve your credit. If you want to pay your debts, its admirable. Start by pulling your credit and working on resolving the charge-offs. Then you can focus on rebuilding credit.

You can get information about credit scores and reports at www.myfico.com. I have written some articles at my website which talk about revival of the statute of limitations - www.rachelhunterlaw.com. You should read these and other sources before you end up making a mistake.

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Answered on 12/28/12, 11:24 am


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