Page 52 - Judgment Enforcement Course 1

Judgment Enforcement – The Step-by-Step Course

3. How much was the judgment for?
At some point you’ll need to decide on the minimum judgment amount you will take. I
suggest $3-10,000 to start, but you decide on your own number. Smaller judgments are
sometimes easier to collect, so they are a good place to start your business to learn it

thoroughly.

Peter Story: I was recently offered a judgment for only $232 where the
debtor had a home that I could lien. Did I take the judgment? No. My
return would be about $125, and I would have had to pay about $50 total
to put the lien down and spend the time doing it. It wasn’t worth it to me, obviously. So I
told the Judgment Creditor (the JC) how to do it herself. Why not?

But don’t be afraid to take on a $10,000 judgment or more. After people see how well you
can enforce judgments, you’ll be offered much larger ones. And in many cases the work on

a $5K judgment is the same as a $100K judgment. For example, whether it’s 5K or 100K,
if there’s a home, you simply put a lien down. Same action either way.

4. How old is the Judgment?

When Judgment Creditors (the JC’s) first get a judgment, they are very optimistic. But
after 6 months or more, they become discouraged because they don’t know how to
collect it. When starting your business, look for older judgments. I personally have
gone back as far as 9 years. If the debtor was broke during the time of the judgment,
after 9 years he or she may have gotten a good job, bought a house, etc. But generally, I

look for judgments older than 6 months. And remember, all this time the judgment has
been collecting interest!

5. Is a “Satisfaction of Judgment” filed?

A “satisfaction of judgment” is a form the creditor is supposed to file with the court after
the debtor pays. If it’s there, it is usually close to the beginning of the file because it was
the last piece of paper filed. If you see a Satisfaction of Judgment, move on to the next case

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