What to do?

[InTooDeep]

I make about $16000/year, child support of $3000/year will end in January. I owe $17000 on CC, have had a few late/missed payments. Owe about $7000 on medical bills for my daughter from 4/04. Her dad's insurance hasn't paid because they said they need to "coordinate benefits" with Medicaid. Medicaid says because it's been over a year, they do not have to pay (I'm not even sure if they received the claims). I'm receiving collection notices from medical bills and just received a certified letter from Municipal Court but haven't picked it up yet. Probably suing me???

I owe $6300 on an unhinhabital house (winter storm got my water pipes, house is too crappy to be worth fixing). Currently staying at parents' next door.

My original plan was too pay off house by spring 2006 (have been making extra payments),tear it down, and get another loan from same bank to replace with a manufactured home. With all this debt, that's not gonna happen!

Can I wipe out only CC and medical bills with bankruptcy? If so, and I pay off house by spring, will I be able to get another loan from the same bank? Also, since I have been paying extra on house, will they say that I should have been paying on other debt instead?

[edwards2]

I don't know if they will say you should have been paying on other debts or not. Someone of the legal persuasion would be better able to answer that question. We have discovered that just because you reaffirm a debt does not mean that financial institution will loan you more money and in most cases, they won't. It isnt because you dont pay well - obviously you do - it is the simple fact you filed BK and your credit score will dropped considerably. That is to be expected when you take such a drastic step as filing BK. We paid several credit cards like clockwork - one was a gas card and they still cancelled our card. Their statement to me was we dont do BK. Same with our cars. We paid them ontime; we are keeping them but I am positive the Credit Union will not loan us a dime. That is part of the painful process. You should be able to file on medical bills - we did and we had cc debt too. You should first consult an attorney. He/she can advise you. Typically, the consultation is free. Good luck!

[InTooDeep]

just because you reaffirm a debt does not mean that financial institution will loan you more money and in most cases, they won't. It isnt because you dont pay well - obviously you do - it is the simple fact you filed BK and your credit score will dropped considerably.

The bank that I have my current mortgage with says on their website:

"Credit Concerns? We do not use credit scoring. Our credit standards are available to you upon request."

Does this mean they do income/expense ratio or something like that? I will be going there next weekend with my brother because he is going to apply for a home loan, so maybe I can find out more then.

Thanks for your reply! I'm feeling like I'm swimming up a waterfall right now between financial and medical issues, as well as a string of bad luck in general. It helps just to talk about it and get different viewpoints.

[FloridaGirl]

You said you have a certified letter from Municipal Court waiting for you? Well, if one of your creditors sued you, the law-suit couldn't go on unless you were served a summons. They would have to do that personally I believe. But even if what is waiting for you at the post office is a summons, a law-suit can't go forward if you weren't properly notified. I would not pick up that certified letter, if I were you. If you didn't get it, you didn't get it...get it? And I would file BK as soon as possible. If you feel creditors are trying to sue you, it is time to take action. All it takes is one summons being served to you, and that creditor can win a default judgment which means they can garnish your wages and your bank accounts, without your even knowing about it until the money is gone. File BK before it gets to that point.

[edwards2]

I tend to agree about the certified letter. I think you already suspect it is from a company who is probably suing you over medical bills. Once you sign it - you have acknowledged receipt of same and it will be sent back to the sender with your signature. I also agree you need to act quickly whatever you decide to do before they do garnish your wages and that is like a runaway train. A friend of mine had she and her husband's garnished and it was a nightmare. They finally had to hire a lawyer to put the brakes on the company. They have managed to work out a repayment plan but that was after the company literally wiped out everything they had. Do not let this happen to you. Get your free consultation asap.

[InTooDeep]

I'm assuming that the letter is from the medical bills. I got one about a month ago from an attorney's office re: the bills. I'm not even sure what it said. Between being depressed over that stuff and bad luck in general, I guess I've had the attitude "ignore the problem and it will go away". I know I should have tried working things out sooner and I'm kicking myself for that now.
As far as garnishment, is there a limit to what they can take? I don't make very much to begin with. That's why my credit card has charges for gas and groceries. I have no savings account at all. The only thing that I own is a 10 year old car and my house that I owe $6300 on. The house is in such bad shape that I can't live in it right now and the county auditor's??? appraised the house itself at $42800 (before the winter storm damage) and the land at $37800.
I really hate the thought of BK, but things have gotten way out of control. The thing that concerns me is how/when will I ever get a loan again? I really want to put a doublewide (because that's all I can afford) on my land next year. If I don't file BK and have to make payments, I can't afford to do that. I'm barely keeping my head above water right now with the mortgage, utilities, and the credit card payment...let alone groceries and gas. I feel like I'm just existing not living right now.

[Minnymouth]

Hmmmmmmmmmm,
Do I understand you right?? You have a peice of propery worth $37,800 and a house worth $42,800 and only owe $6300??????
If so why have you not done a equity loan to consolidate everything into one payment??

Also property/home you only owe $6300 on is an ASSET the Trustee will go after.....unlivable or not...

You need to see a lawyer BEFORE YOU THINK ABOUT FILING.

They took my home for an "unperfected title" - so I don't think they would hesitate taking yours with approx $72,000 worth of equity in it........

Trustee is "not interested" in your future plans......just CASH or items he can turn into cash for the creditors.

If you have all that equity - I don't think BK is going to work for you...just my opinion. I would be afraid the Trustee would take it all for the equity in it.

Good luck,

Let us know what you decide...