My Morgan Drexen Experience

Getting Acquainted with Morgan Drexen Intergrated Systems (MDIS)

2012-03-02T11:04:00.000-08:00

I’ve been on the program almost two months now and for the most the most part everything has been smooth and good. Enrolling was easy as I previously mentioned, my payments come out on convenient dates for me and always without a hassle as they are auto-debts from my checking account and the client services department has been helpful in explaining the program to me and helping me get settled.

Recently however I received some more paperwork to fill out that requires some extensive details and also documentation of things like income, rental payment, insurance, car payment, etc. The documentation is for those who wish to or may have to file for bankruptcy however I won’t. I reached out to my knowledgeable client coordinator who assists my attorney in corresponding with me and obtaining my information. I’m awaiting a response on if filling out this time consuming packet is required if I’m not filing for bankruptcy and if it delays the progression of my non-formal debt resolution.

I have received a few phone calls from creditors regarding when they will be receiving they payments on the balances. Fortunately, none have been very harassing and I have easily directed them to my attorney’s creditor-relations number where they will correspond directly with my creditors on my behalf. It is nice having that off my plate as with a very busy life, having my attorney and the support team from Morgan Drexen taking something off my plate gives me peace of mind in this matter.

The program also allows for electronic statements, which can be opted into via an online software program called Morgan Drexen Integrated Systems (MDIS), which allows my attorney to manage my file on his side and for me to view updated statements on my side. I can easily see what debts are in the program, payments made and settlements achieved as they come through all with the convenience of the web and from anywhere in the world.

Intro Call Process Complete

2012-02-10T10:18:00.000-08:00

This week I had my intro call with the Client Services team supporting Howard Law, the firm handling my non-formal debt resolution program. In a previous blog I mentioned how I received a recorded call from my Client Coordinator welcoming me to the program. I received it about many times before I realized that I needed to call back in order for the call to stop. This was unclear in the message and should be clarified for clients who enroll in the program in the future.

Once I called back, I was easily transferred to my Client Coordinator’s team of assistants and received an informative and friendly introduction to the program from one of the representatives. More often than not when calling back an 800 number or calling for customer service to a large company, such as my cable or electric company, the process of actually getting to a live person and not a recording can be tedious and frustrating. Often times there are many number commands to go through or worse yet a voice activated system that doesn’t understand what you are saying and thus directs you to the wrong department.

Thankfully my experience calling the Morgan Drexen Client Services department supporting Howard Law was highly efficient. While I was transferred from one live person to another twice, I was never on hold for more than thirty seconds.

The Morgan Drexen call center, which routes client calls to the 66 law firms across the country that utilize the integrated support systems, receives more than 60,000 calls a week according to the Operations Manager. Morgan Drexen paraprofessionals help busy attorneys set client appointments, gather basic information, and answer clients’ non-legal questions thus enabling attorneys to devote more legal attention to each case.

Now that my intro call has been completed the paraprofessionals can assist my attorney in communicating with my creditors and helping me reach settlements on my unsecured debt. Ultimately, the attorneys at Howard Law will facilitate my case and advocate for me, however the Morgan Drexen paraprofessionals supporting the firm were helpful answering my basic questions and informing me of how the program would commence. Each client coordinator has a team of paraprofessionals that can be reached directly through a unique phone number.

It’s good to know that when I have questions or concerns, I will be able to call in and speak with a live person or receive a prompt call back in a timely manner, considering this is an important financial matter.

Program in Motion

2012-02-02T17:14:00.000-08:00

My first payment has been made to the program and I just returned my Welcome Kit to my Morgan Drexen Client Coordinator. The program is in motion.

The first payment came out no problem. As the LIS associated with Howard Law worked with me to split my payments into two for the month. One for each payday and I was worried that something might have gone wrong and the full amount come out at one time but it went as she promised me. I didn’t have to worry about anything or follow-up to see if there was an issue. That is always nice when your money is involved. Payment came out, was credited to my trust account and that was that.

I was notified by Morgan Drexen that I would be receiving a Welcome Kit in the mail via a recording left from my Client Coordinator. The recording was left on my voicemail of the number I registered with the program. It was a pleasant recording and good to have the Client Coordinator’s name and phone number in case of any issues, however over the course of three days I received the same recording about six times as I wasn’t aware I needed to call my Client Coordinator back. I spoke with him and he was very sorry that that wasn’t clear and took me off the dialer list.

I asked him about the Welcome Kit and he said it should be arriving soon and they would need that in order to start communicating with my creditors. I was anxious to get that filled out as soon as possible so he understood and emailed me the kit so I wouldn’t’ have to wait for the mail. The mailed kit came the day after I got the email so it was a fast delivery however I am local. It also came with a pre-paid addressed envelope to return it in which is good, as it would cost more than normal postage to mail it back.

To my surprise the kit was very extensive. It included about 40 pages of information to read and fill out. I understood why all that information was required but couldn’t help but feel burned out trying to fill it all in in a timely and accurate manner after a long day of work. I did it over the course of two evenings at home. Fortunately for me I understand the process from an Morgan Drexen insider’s perspective but I hope that outside attorney-clients can easily receive support on filing out the Welcome Kit from their Client Coordinator. It was worth the time set aside to fill in the forms knowing that I am on my way to getting these debts resolved.

After speaking with the Operations Manager I found out that over 300 kits are sent out a week to attorney-clients. When they are received back from the attorney-clients they are scanned in and uploaded to the integrated systems for input into the relevant client’s file.

The kit aside, things are going smoothly for the time being. I haven’t received any creditor calls that I need to direct to the attorney and I know my next auto-payment is scheduled and will be deducted as promised. I’ve turned in my Welcome Kit and am looking forward to hearing more from the team supporting me on how my accounts are doing in the program.

Officially Engaged in the Morgan Drexen Supported Program

2012-01-26T12:10:00.000-08:00

I’m officially engaged in the non-formal debt resolution program with Howard Law, supported by Morgan Drexen. I feel relieved to know that I have a highly skilled team here at Morgan Drexen and veteran attorney Vincent Howard of Howard Law representing me to my creditors.

Signing up was easy. The Legal Intake Specialist (LIS) attached to Howard Law who enrolled me in the program was very helpful and answered all my questions in a timely manner. On the first consultation I gave her my personal information, including my social security number and she was able to pull up my credit report and my credit accounts to get an accurate picture of where I was.

She then sat down with me, however for most this takes place via phone and email, and talked about my payment options and a timeline for the program based on my debt-to-income ratio. I was happy to learn I could pay affordable payments and be out of debt in less than two years. We then worked on my budget and set up my automatic payment to come out around my paydays for added convenience.

I was able to sign the contract electronically and the rest was taken care of by the LIS.

I’m hopeful that the attorney and Morgan Drexen can help resolve my outstanding debt and finally help me become debt free. About a year ago I engaged my debt in another program through an accredited Consumer Credit Counseling agency. This agency, which operates under the function of a non-profit organization offers consumers like myself enrollment in a Debt Management Program (DMP) to help pay off unsecured debt.

At first going the non-profit route is appealing, no legal fees, nationally accredited, no risk of wage garnishment, or creditor harassment, however the downside is that you will be paying back every penny plus a lot more to regain control of your finances. As an adult I do take responsibility for my actions and choices, however, paying $400 a month on the DMP plan and seeing some of the larger top five creditor accounts like Capital One and Chase, not budge due to interest was extremely disheartening.

Consumers on a DMP pay money to the organization and the organization in turn pays the creditors a specific amount each month. They claim they are able to lower interest rates in most cases, however none of my were ever lowered, I just received peace of mind knowing each of my creditors would be paid on time and not take legal action against me.

Consumer Credit Counseling organizations advocate for and educate consumers on making healthy personal financial choices, however, I just couldn’t continue to pay $400 month for probably another two years at least and not see my balances decrease and I’m sure I’m not alone. I would be paying more than triple on my debt in the long run.

As a young American starting my life with someone, continuing to develop my career and with hopes of buying a home one day, I wanted to resolve my debt as soon as possible and not break the bank doing so over many years while sacrificing my dreams. I’m truly hoping that the non-formal program supported by Morgan Drexen brings me great relief sooner rather than later and I look forward to seeing the progressing of the program towards that dream.

Welcome to My Morgan Drexen Experience

2012-01-18T16:39:00.000-08:00

When I began working at Morgan Drexen in early 2010 I quickly began taking notice and talking to my colleagues about the good the company does for consumers struggling with debt. I knew the company had a complex business model; they faced regulatory watchdogs in 2010 yet met regulations and emerged as the premier legal support services company in the country.

Currently, the Costa Mesa-based company supports 66 law firms across the country that offer non-formal debt resolution services to Americans struggling with unsecured debt. Like many young Americans graduating college at the start of the ‘Great Recession’, I fell victim to credit cards and other forms of unsecured debt, including mounting medicals bills due to my lack of insurance once I turned 25.

Unlike my parents generation whom graduated from college and in most cases were able to find gainful employment in there career area, Summer of 2007 found many recent graduates working two or three part-time jobs to get by and dreading the day when they would have to start paying back student loans on limited incomes.

I was one of those young graduates, first making an attempt at graduate school at a top university then deciding the $100,000 or more of debt wouldn’t be worth the degree in the down economy and deciding to enter the work force full time.

Working two part time jobs at reputable companies but with far less reputable income, and freelance writing on the side, I started falling back on my credit cards that I had maintained for many years prior for living expenses. From everything from food and gas to root canals and lab work, my lines of credit were filling up quickly and the interest was killing me.

Of course I had extensive help from my supportive parents at the time, and thus my debt is near $10,000 and not five times that today, but as an independent, competitive and proud woman I wanted to do as much as I could on my own.

Today, I’m not accumulating any additional debt as I have been working full-time regularly for the past 4 years in a steady career path, however those balances are still following me around.

Getting a good job, having health insurance, and living, as an independent adult doesn’t mean that the debt from the past is paid off easily. As the cost of living in this country has steadily increased, many Americans are making minimum payments on past bills and hoping one day to be able to put more income towards their debt profile. For some that day doesn’t come, and that’s when engaging in an attorney-based non-formal debt resolution program may be in ones best interest for finally becoming debt free.

This blog will document my journey, an employee of Morgan Drexen and an average consumer with average debt that engaged in the attorney-based program to finally get on the road to a debt free life. And at the same provide a first hand account of how Morgan Drexen and the attorney network have helped 3,168 consumers resolve more than $323 million in debt to date.

I will stay true to my ethics as a writer in documenting my entire experience with Morgan Drexen in the hope of helping not only myself but others thinking about using an attorney to reduce debt.