FRANKLIN—If you’ve ever dealt with a debt collection agency, it is typically cold and distant, often not even based in this country.

Tiffany Warren, of Warren Investments Group in Franklin, understands this perception and works to emphasize the human element.

“We are local. Debtors can come in and actually meet me. You are not dealing with 15 to 20 people,” Warren said. “The taboo of collection agencies is that they call a debtor and they attack, but I like to get to know the debtor and what is going on in their life, sit down and meet with them face-to-face and figure out a plan to help them solve their debt and get their credit back on track.”

An example on a debt she had taken involved an older gentleman who was on a breathing machine and had a fixed income. She met with him and got to understand his situation.

“What happened was that he had a credit card years ago when he was in better health and employed, but as time went on his health got worse and he was no longer able to work,” Warren said. “I don’t think of debtors as bad people because we all have bills, and we all fall on hard times.”

She was able to settle with that man for less than what he owed because it was a debt that she owned.

Warren and her husband, Antwuan, who is active duty air force, got the idea when they noticed that no one was collecting locally.

“There are a lot of businesses in Franklin that were just letting that money go unclaimed,” she said. “They are really busy with their day-to-day jobs and don’t have time to track this money down.”

Today, the couple works with Cars and Credit along with other individuals in collecting debt, and they are hoping for growth.

“My hope for the future is to bring employment to the area,” Warren said, adding that in 2014 she hopes to hire some people locally to help in collecting debt.

Warren Investment Group operates in the business incubator on Mechanic Street.

“I liked what I saw when I visited it,” Warren said. “I liked that they had smaller offices, but that I could move into a bigger office when I hire more people.”