Completely lost.. Advice needed.

[pookieny]

I was really shocked at my work when I had mentioned to some co-workers that I was going to file and they replied "oh, I've filed too, and so has so and so over in accounting and so and so over in operations, and so and so etc." You would be surpirsed who else you know who has filed. Nope, no one will have a Scarlett B over the chest like you would think.

And as my lawyer says, if your friends or family have a problem with you filing, then tell them to pay your bills.

[debtmonster]

With only $17,000 in debt, if you wanted my opinion, I would recommend not filing for bankruptcy. You want to use this as your very last option.

My cousin REAMED me out big time after I went bankrupt. He told me that he was in foreclosure and had $150,000 in debts and eventually paid it all back. Well, good for him. That was not me, plus I don't make the money he makes, but still, some of the stuff he told me made some sense.

But taking part of his advice, for $17,000, I would try making settlements with the people and do partial payments. As you can see in my signature, my debts were very significant. When I showed many of my friends and relatives the totals on my bankruptcy, their eyes popped out and their jaws dropped open.

I didn't do it, but my cousin told me that he was able to get many of his creditors to settle for 30 to 50 cents on the dollar.

While bankruptcy may not make things impossible, it does make them difficult. I've been talking to numerous car dealers giving them my scenario and many of them say there could not be a chance I could ever finance a car any time soon, even with a large down payment.

I've talked to some property management companies who told me that they would not rent to me because I went bankrupt and told me that I would have to rent from a "private person", which to me will be a hassle. I would much rather rent from a nice apartment complex with a management company because when things break, they are usually very good at fixing it. When you rent from a private person, they could be having financial difficulties just as you are. So when the appliances go out or the A/C dies on you, it could be a long time, if ever, for that private person to fix anything. We're renting with family in a 3 bedroom house and the landlord won't lift a finger or spend a dime. The water heater went out and he refuses to fix it. I had to buy some electric heater that goes on the shower head just to take luke-warm water showers. But because of the bankruptcy, I will have to keep renting from slumlords like this guy for a very long time until I get my credit straightening up over time.

Bankruptcy is not the end of the world, but I would only recommend it for people who have high debts. My mom went bankrupt in 1992 or 1993 with only $20,000 in credit card debts. On a positive note, she was able to buy a much nicer house for $60,000 more than her previous one. So it's not the end of the world. She told me that after her bankruptcy, she spent the money and got a secured credit card and re-built her credit from that point on. So there is hope after bankruptcy.

[debtmonster]

I was really shocked at my work when I had mentioned to some co-workers that I was going to file and they replied "oh, I've filed too, and so has so and so over in accounting and so and so over in operations, and so and so etc." You would be surpirsed who else you know who has filed. Nope, no one will have a Scarlett B over the chest like you would think.

And as my lawyer says, if your friends or family have a problem with you filing, then tell them to pay your bills.

Yep, I agree. In 2007 I was contemplating bankruptcy if anything we to happen since I had tons of zombie debts. I had co-workers who said the same thing you're saying who are also wanting to go bankrupt. One of the co-workers who is still a good friend of mine wants to go bankrupt now. He lost his $55k job and has been working odd jobs.

I feel no remorse in doing it since I had a boatload of debt. I just can't wait for my discharge so I can start opening secure credit cards and rebuilding my credit where I left off. I stopped paying all creditors last year from the first attorney who told me and that's when my credit went to the toilet.

I can't wait to get back on track. Life gets better.

[tisci]

I'm actually in the process of calling & trying to settle now. A few are not really willing to discuss a settlement w/me, but I will call back in about a week & try again. The other problem I seem to be running in to is that in order to settle, I need to pay it in a lump sum & I don't have the money to do that. I'm definitely not planning on jumping into this at all. I don't want to file if I don't have to, but figured I would try to get some advice here.

[debtmonster]

I'm actually in the process of calling & trying to settle now. A few are not really willing to discuss a settlement w/me, but I will call back in about a week & try again. The other problem I seem to be running in to is that in order to settle, I need to pay it in a lump sum & I don't have the money to do that. I'm definitely not planning on jumping into this at all. I don't want to file if I don't have to, but figured I would try to get some advice here.

Post as many details about your case as possible so you can get lots of good suggestions to help you in your decision.

I was in the same boat years back and that's why I just walked away from the debt. I couldn't deal with it. The people were nuts about those settlements. I either had an income or I didn't. And when I did get it, I was playing "catch-up" for all of those months I went without work. I had a lot of gaps of unemployment and I went from job to job around the country. I'd get back on track, start building good credit again, lose a job and not be able to find another one for a long time and then my credit would go down the toilet again.

The only reason I want good credit now is just so I can qualify for a foreclosure in 2 years before the prices sky rocket again. Now I am wishing I filed bankruptcy sooner to get this behind me before I miss the boat again. Hopefully homes will stay cheap for the next 2 to 5 years.

[hereforinfo]

The only reason I want good credit now is just so I can qualify for a foreclosure in 2 years before the prices sky rocket again. Now I am wishing I filed bankruptcy sooner to get this behind me before I miss the boat again.

The soonest you can buy a home is 3 years after your home is foreclosed on, regardless of the bankruptcy. The clock doesn't start ticking until the deed changes hands back to the bank.

[debtmonster]

The soonest you can buy a home is 3 years after your home is foreclosed on, regardless of the bankruptcy. The clock doesn't start ticking until the deed changes hands back to the bank.

Man, that is NOT COOL! It could be a LONG time before the deed changes hands! MANY, MANY MONTHS, if not another year!!

WOW! I am SUNK. Well, that's 3 years to come up with the largest down payment ever, then.

[MrSmithster]

$17k is isnt a large amount for a BK, but its all relative. i was forced to file with only $28k due to 40% wage decline due to lack of work for the last year+(and nothing makes me think things will change soon). if your in the red every month, month after month, it doesnt take to long to relize that things are only getting worse, and that its possible to have to live the rest of our lives in debt. yes, there is a price to pay. thats why filing should be last resort and throughly researched and discussed with a few lawyers. watch out on working out settlements this early in your troubles. it sounds like you dont have a game plan. watch for offering to much info during settlement talks. they can and will use this against you if you decide to file at a later date, especially if you continue to use some credit lines.

[debtmonster]

if your in the red every month, month after month, it doesnt take to long to relize that things are only getting worse, and that its possible to have to live the rest of our lives in debt.

Amen to that, brother.

Debt = paying to use your own money.

[killinstinct]

Man, that is NOT COOL! It could be a LONG time before the deed changes hands! MANY, MANY MONTHS, if not another year!!

WOW! I am SUNK. Well, that's 3 years to come up with the largest down payment ever, then.

I'm in the same boat. Moved out/quit paying mortgage six months ago and haven't even recieved a notice of default yet. I wonder if they'll EVER foreclose. At least I don't owe the $300+ grand mortgage anymore...

And who wants to own a house (money pit, even a NEW one) that is no longer a "guaranteed investment" these days. No more roof repairs, yardwork, painting...I used to enjoy this stuff, but now I'm over it. I spend a lot more time with my kids and wife now instead of doing all this busy work. All those hours and days I'll never get back doing yardwork, plumbing....ugh. And now I'm paying less than HALF what my mortgages were living in a place equally as large and nice.

But I realize 'having your own place' is really important to some people. To each their own.

[debtmonster]

http://props.flarent.com/prop-detail...34&unitID=1520

Look how nice of a place you can rent here in Central Florida.
2800 sq. ft., 2005 construction, $1095/mo., 3 bathrooms, 2 car garage... SUPER NICE!

Look at the price and what you get for the money. Most of the good paying jobs are about 20-35 minutes drive from there.

Like you said... you get a better place for leaving your old one and get the same or better living conditions. It makes no sense.

In 2005 I was looking for these deals and NONE were to be found. Now 4 years later they are all over. I got TOTALLY SCAMMED GOOD!

[killinstinct]

It was the same in our neck of the woods. Renting a place now for $1095, 4 bedroom, 3 bath, garage, view of the Columbia River Gorge/Mt. Hood. Incredible....

[liz417]

I was really shocked at my work when I had mentioned to some co-workers that I was going to file and they replied "oh, I've filed too, and so has so and so over in accounting and so and so over in operations, and so and so etc." You would be surpirsed who else you know who has filed. Nope, no one will have a Scarlett B over the chest like you would think.

And as my lawyer says, if your friends or family have a problem with you filing, then tell them to pay your bills.

When I was at work the subject of Bankruptcy came up (no one knows I am filing as that is a personal decision), anyway, I was shocked to hear that out of 6 people in the room, 4 had already filed for BK in the past!

You never know....

[debtmonster]

It was the same in our neck of the woods. Renting a place now for $1095, 4 bedroom, 3 bath, garage, view of the Columbia River Gorge/Mt. Hood. Incredible....

In my new neck of the woods, you can't rent anything for less than $1300-2000/mo. and these places are NOWHERE NEAR as nice as in the URL I posted in the previous message.

I told me my wife we need to move out of here and she doesn't want to leave since all of our family lives in this area. So now we will be broke without no affordable places to live until she stops thinking this way.

[killinstinct]

Ugh. That sucks. If rent was 2 grand I might as well have just kept the house. But then I'd still have maintenance, maintenance costs, etc.

Maybe your wife will get sick of being poor sooner than later!