[sweeps]

Any legal advice you get from a web board should be taken with a grain of salt. Few people on here are lawyers, and even then, we don't know your whole situation. That being said....

This question has been coming up a lot recently, and I've been doing some reading.

I see you're from Ohio. Unfortunately Ohio has a very long statute of limitations on written contracts: 15 years! This means that even though these 7-year debts should start disappearing from your credit report, you will still be liable for another 8 years and could be sued for collection. You can try letting these debts go, cross your fingers and likely be fine, but there is a risk that a creditor could successfully sue you to garnish wages, repossess property, etc.

If you choose to settle your debts, I recommend going to the original creditor first. Explain your situation and ask them if they'd be willing to negotiate a settlement. A lot of creditors will be happy to if it means they're at least getting something, especially for old debts. Document all your conversations, and most importantly, make sure you get your settlement IN WRITING before paying a dime.

A few tips: You may want to use the unpaid interest and late fees as terms of the negotiation. For example, if your original debt was $1000 and interest and late fees added another $1000, you may want to offer to pay the original debt if they'll waive the interest and late fees. Also, don't seem desperate and immediately take the first offer they give you. Tell them you hit hard times, you have a lot of debts to pay off, and you're trying to do the right thing by settling. Because of the age of these debts, they should be willing to make a good deal with you.