It is no secret that the vast majority of money judgments in this country are never collected. It’s also no secret the attorneys coach their clients in strategies they can use to avoid paying. But judgment creditors do have a secret weapon: collection agencies that specialize in finding judgment debtors and their property.
Getting a leg up on debtors trying their hardest to hide themselves and their stuff is no easy task. That is why most collection agencies don’t handle judgments. But among those that do, the best of the best know how to find deadbeats. They know how to find assets those deadbeats are trying to hide.
Are you a judgment debtor who recently found out that a collection agency is after you? Are you scratching your head as to how they could have found you and your property? I will not give you all the details, but I will explain the basic tricks of the trade. One of the discovery methods below could be the key to your being found out.
Property Records Are Public Records
One of the first places collection agencies go for information is public property records. Whenever a piece of property is bought or sold, records are generated. Those records are entered by the county clerk, making them public records. Anyone can search a county clerk’s database to learn who is buying and selling property.
Judgment Collectors, a specialized collection agency based in Salt Lake City, uses property records all the time. They tell of one particular case in which a debtor asserted he had no valuable assets. A search of property records told a different story. Judgment Collectors was able to locate a valuable piece of property in another county. Needless to say, the debtor paid up.
Arrest and Court Records
Collection agencies will scour arrest records in hopes of finding a dead beat who is trying to hide. Arrest records are also public and easily obtained. But why stop there? Smart judgment collectors do not. They look at all sorts of court records for little bits of valuable information.
Probate records can reveal an unreported inheritance. Records from divorce court could reveal a judgment debtor’s true income. The list goes on and on. Arrest and court records are a treasure trove of valuable information.
Proprietary Databases
I am guessing you are familiar with the idea of companies collecting data on you and then selling it to other companies who use it for marketing. A smart marketing firm can put together a complete profile on you just by analyzing your online habits. Well, it turns out that the same information can be purchased by collection agencies.
All that information Google is collecting on you when you use your phone and computer is sold to third parties. That is how Google makes its money. You can bet that some of the customers buying that data are collection agencies.
Social Media Is Low Hanging Fruit
Collection agencies love social media because it represents low hanging fruit. What do I mean by this? I mean most people are very careless about what they post on social media. Even a judgment debtor trying to hide himself and his assets can let valuable information slip on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and the rest. Judgment Collectors says they find a lot of valuable information on social media.
Granted, a collection agency’s job was a lot harder decades ago. These days, digital technologies give them more resources and better tools for leveraging those resources. That’s how they found you and your property. Don’t you think you are better off paying what you owe?
