Build vs. Buy Debt Collection Software: What the Data Actually Shows

Roughly 70% of custom software projects fail to deliver as planned, running over budget, missing deadlines, or getting cut down in scope before launch. One major auto manufacturer spent two years and $5 million trying to build a single module of a new collections system before scrapping the build entirely and switching to a preconfigured platform instead.

Debt collection is a deceptively complex domain. It covers payment splits, interest accrual, NSF handling, bankruptcy and hardship workflows, third-party placement and commissions. Teams that try to build or customize their way into this usually underestimate what it actually takes, and so do most CRM vendors pitching a "good enough" fit.

This brief breaks down why buying a purpose-built, preconfigured debt collection platform consistently beats building or customizing one, and what it's cost (and saved) real collections teams who've made that call.