Got My Judgement!!!!........now WHAT??

Question

Was wondering if anyone knows how to collect/enforce a judgment. I had to evict one of my tenants and was awarded an judgment against them. That was the easy part. The not so easy part is getting them to pay. Has anyone had a similar experience? I need to know how do I go about getting them to pay the judgement.

Joel Owens · Answer

You need to know the judgment laws of your state.

Is the tenant CURRENTLY collectible?? Meaning they make a good income or have good credit to lose etc. If you have the judgment make sure you have recorded a FIFA against them.

Collection companies don't do squat but ding the credit. If the tenant doesn't care about that then simply they will throw collectors mail in the trash. A lot of collectors call and the people just send a cease and desist letter against them. Some of these people with judgments will move to an under the table cash job where you can't attach.

All attorneys do is send letters to collect and charge you lot's of money. IF the tenant is collectible a judgment company might buy your judgment out right for about 15 cents on the dollar. Another option they do is pay for costs on your behalf and you split the proceeds 50/50. It might take years to gain traction. The person owing the judgment might eventually want to improve their credit and pay it off or they could also file BK and wipe out the judgment. If the judgment person moves out of state from where the judgment originated that can also create a host of problems with enforcing.

You can try for wage garnishment, bank levy etc. but what others have not mentioned is to do these things your former tenant has to be above certain federal income guidelines. If they are not you can't collect anything. Even if they are above that amount you are capped at taking only a certain amount of income with each check and if other judgment holders are garnishing at the same time then the amount you can take each time is further reduced.

If their income is from retirement pension, social security, etc. those are protected funds in most cases.

Bottom line is you can collect in some cases but what is your time worth?? Most telling is to call a local judgment company and get their take on your file. They do hundreds to thousands of these a year so will tell you like it is. If they do not want to take it on to split 50/50 or buy it outright then it is a tough road to go down. You can sit on the judgment to see if one day they want to settle but I wouldn't drop a lot of time into it.

No legal advice given.

Matt Sicignano · Answer

First, ignore all the negative nellys saying you'll never get paid. That's not what you asked. Linda, Matt and Wilson are on the right track.  I can add that you need to make sure it's filed as a judgment  and hopefully you have work information as part of your records to attempt a garnishment. I have been paid as long as three years after the judgement by someone who needed it off the credit report, and I once collected the full amount from the employer who failed to answer a garnishment order. Don't give up!

David Avetisyan · Answer

My suggestion:

Go to wishing well everyday, either before or after work; drop a penny, and hope they pay.

Obviously, I'm being sarcastic, trying to humor you.

Realistically, you probably aren't recovering anything.  Consider showing it as a loss in your taxes. Also, as suggested, you can turn it over to a collection agency, and forget about it hoping a check comes one day.

Good luck!

Jon Holdman · Answer

The reality is you're very unlikely to ever get paid.  Simplest thing is to turn it over to a collection agency and forget about it.  If a check arrives in the mail sometime in the future, and it could be many years, celebrate.

Ray Fisher · Answer

my experiences has been the only person who got paid was my lawyer!!

Good luck here

Franklin Romine · Answer

@Bridget Smith-Osbourne

I Hope you collect you judgement.

We had a judgement and did a "till tap".  Till Tap is done on the individual if they are self employed. Sheriff went in and checked the register for cash. That was a interesting experience.

Frank

Nicole A. · Answer

Yes, get a money judgement so you can next file to garnish wages or similar. However, their income has to be from a job. You can't garnish money from things like SS/disability/etc.

Matt Holmer · Answer

If you know where they work or bank, a garnishment would be the first step. However, collections are always very difficult  I'd suggest trying to cone up with some type of settlement agreement and have that entered with the court .

Depending on the state and the related laws, you could put a lien on any real property that they currently own.

I am not sure about New York, but my jurisdiction has a debtor's exam and / or citation discover assets where the debtor has to come in and answer questions under oath regarding their assets and liabilities. most of the time, if you get to this point they likelky have no non-exempt assets

Getting a judgment is always the easiest part, enforcing the judgment is difficult. I guess this is why tenant screening is such an important part of the process.

Linda Weygant · Answer

If you know where they work, you can file a garnishment on their wages.  You can also garnish their bank account if you know where they bank.

If you don't know either of these pieces of information, you can serve them with Interrogatories.  This is a set of questions about where they work and bank.  If they don't answer the Interrogatories, you can ask the judge to find them in contempt of court until they answer.  This will involve more court costs, filing fees and process server fees.

Many people will switch jobs and banks right after filling out the Interrogatories, so it can be a bit of a waste of time, but could pay off if they've got a decent enough job that they want to keep.

Wilson Churchill · Answer

1. Garnish wages

2. Garnish state tax return (if applicable)

3. Garnish bank accounts

4. Send a court officer to seize personal property (including cash)

Got My Judgement!!!!........now WHAT??

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