Comments on: this is a serious question about bankruptcy or trying to avoid creditors?

By: zinga l

zinga l — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 19:47:52 +0000

Don’t avoid them. Call a counselor who will consolidate your debts. If you want to know more read the following articles. It should help you:

What is credit-counseling service?

Debt Consolidation – Get Out Of Debt

How to Hire a Debt Counselor?

By: craiger75@verizon.net

craiger75@verizon.net — Sat, 20 Jun 2009 02:51:12 +0000

Take some of these answers with a grain-of-salt. They’re coming from current or ex-debt collectors (hitmen). The quick answer is with persistence and perseverance, you can start negotiating settling ur debt at 25% of the principle and go from there.

Keep in mind two things when feeling overly altruistic towards ur creditors:

1. Ur original creditor has charged you off and taken a tax deduction for it, while ur eating soup out of a can according to some of this advice.

2. The debt collector bought ur debt at a fraction of what the principle is (1-2% if it’s over a year old). Deal with them in writing, hold firm, do not be afraid to threaten, cajole or mail out cease and desist orders to particularly belligerent third party callers, if they do find you.

By: john d

john d — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 22:35:24 +0000

I found some good info here.

By: terryg_timberman

terryg_timberman — Mon, 15 Jun 2009 16:19:39 +0000

see a credit help center this way you can get them to work with the credit card companys and reduce your payments don’t try hiding from them this will just make your credit report look worse and chances are if it has been two years all ready they have probaly already wrote it off as a bad debt. and can sell it to a collection agency to collect if they want it is also illegal for them to call you at work just have a supervisior take the call and tell them that they don’t want them to call you at work it is also against the law for them to contact you before 9:00am or after 9:00pm for more info contact the federal trade commision they can tell you how to repair credit and all tell you all the rule that collection agengys have to follow and if they keep calling your work turn them into comptroller of the currency if the bank has the word national in the name at 18008426929 and if the bank doesn’t contain the name federal or national in it contact the federal reserve system at 12024523693 if the bank has federal in the name contact office of the thrift supervision at 18008426929 or credit unions in name contact the national credit union administration at 17035194600 hope this helps you very much.

By: Studly

Studly — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 05:11:29 +0000

First, go back and read trb1967′s response.

I’m going to bet that you have already thought all of these things through already.

The was I figure it, you can try to negotiate with the credit card companies. They won’t offer you much more then 20-25% cut in your balance. Assuming you inform them you are seriously considering bankruptcy, they may go a bit more.

But here’s the problem. You say you can possibly afford $250 a month toward these debts? It’s going to take you a minimum of 7 years to pay them all off. The credit card companies are not very likely to accept such a long payment plan. And this assumes you don’t have any other disasters happen to you that will cause you to miss more payments.

The info you were given on bankruptcy is wrong. Everything depends on your income. If you make too much, you will not qualify for a Chapter 7, and be forced to file for Chapter 13. The trustee will look at your “disposable” income, and that is the amount you will pay back to the creditors. It will be set for a 5 year plan, and I can pretty much guarantee it will be far less then $250.00 with your income. If you don’t own a home you could probably qualify for Chapter 7.

The payments you give to the trustee are used to pay off your credit card debt (after other “secured” debts are paid).

Read the link below. It goes into some of the basics of the new law. Contact an attorney who will look over your finances and tell you if you qualify.

The advantages are that you no longer have to run from your creditors. Trust me, if you owe them enough they will find you.

Bankruptcies destroy your credit rating, but I’m going to bet it’s already been destroyed with several collection reports on it. So I really don’t see a downside to filing Bankruptcy, do you?

By: trb1967

trb1967 — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 18:49:17 +0000

The answer to your question is “no”. Don’t avoid them. The problem will just get worse, but I have a few questions . . .

Are you single? If you are, you may consider getting a second job to help pay towards the debt. If you’re not, how does your partner contribute?

What have you done with your credit cards? The answer should be, “I cut them up.” If you can’t pay for something with cash, you can’t afford it.

Have you talked to your creditors? Many will, if you truly make a good faith effort and can prove you have been out of a job for 6 months, work with you to reduce your debt.

What is your interest rate on your cards and how many are you paying? If you can find someone to help you with this, consolidate your debts. It’s better to pay 10% on one consolidation loan than it is to pay 5% on 4 separate credit card bills.

You say you’ve cut out luxuries . . . really? Take a hard look at what you are spending. Entertainment (cable/satellite, Internet, going to the movies or buying rather than making food) can cut into your budget hugely. Try shopping for groceries at a club store (Sam’s Club, Costco, etc.). The price for your first month of groceries will seem shocking, but the next month, I guarantee, you will pay half. You may be eating the same type of foods alot, but you will eat and the extra money on hand can go toward your debt or pay for something you need.

None of this stuff I’ve listed is coming from the top of my head . . . I spent many years being in debt. Filing bankruptcy was only the start. I lost my house, as well, but 5 years ago my husband and I changed our outlook on debt completely and we are now completely debt free. Create a list of bills (including all extras) and compare it against your paycheck. See where you can really cut away the fat. It’ll be difficult and you may have 2 dollars at the end of the month, but it’ll get better as time goes by . . . and getting rid of the stress of going to the mailbox or answering the phone will start to go away and you’ll feel better. My heart goes out to you, but I know with perseverence and dedication and lots of self-control, you can get out of this cycle. Good luck to you, dear.

By: moops4783

moops4783 — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 04:29:17 +0000

I have the same problem. I used to have perfect credit. I paid my bills on top and more than the minimum required payment. After I started getting verbally abusive debt collection calls and they threatened to take me to court, I went to see a credit counselor. You can still do the bankruptcy, but if there are other ways around it, I would reccomend that. There are several different ways of finding out more. Look up credit counselors online, as well as bankruptcy attorneys. Good luck.

By: prince charming69

prince charming69 — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 13:41:41 +0000

SEE A CREDIT CONSOLE

By: misterpoopoomouth

misterpoopoomouth — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:53:36 +0000

God damn it boy, it sucks to be you. Have you ever heard of investing in a handgun and a bullet, and just ending your misery now? The world won’t miss you. As a matter of fact, the world will try to suck all of the man juice out of your balls until you are inverted.

By: chuckie411

chuckie411 — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:24:18 +0000

What happens is that now you are required to receive credit counseling from a specific counseling agency before you file for bankruptcy. However, since the law has gone into effect, the number of bankruptcies hasn’t decreased all that much, because of situations just like yours. Counseling probably isn’t going to help because you can’t afford to pay back the money. You are probably a good candidate for bankruptcy.