REPO MAN came for son's ATV

[CAB_44]

Oh gosh ya'll~
The repo man just came to our house to get our sons four wheeler.....
I was shocked....I think he's only a few months behind on it...
The guy said that if he doesn't get it tonight~ which he did....
(after we called our son to tell him, he brought it over here.....he was SO embarrassed)......
that he would have had to turn in the papers tomorrow and the sherrif would have served him lawsuit papers......
Scared our son to death~
I kept telling him he needed to get to the attorney's office...guess now he'll believe me.....anyway~
As his Mom, I feel SOOO bad for him........
The guy said that they send it to California and they will auction it off there, usually they get close to or sometimes over the amount that is owed on the ATV, and if there's anything left over due, son will be expected to pay for that.....
I've never had this happen before...so I don't really know what to do or think about it....our names are NOT on the papers, he bought this himself, so I know that we are not responsable in anyway for it's repo~
He said that HouseHold Bank would let our son know what price it brings and all the rest of the info....will they honestly do that?
The guy was very nice to us, and of course to our son~ ....but I feel SSSSOOOOO bad for him~
UUGGGHHHH....parenthood~ sometimes it just stinks~

[anonymuse]

How old is your son? Was he legally able to enter into a contract to pay for the ATV?

[razorguns]

He'll have to live without an ATV. It's not the end of the world. He'll learn and move on.

r

[miss puff]

....but I feel SSSSOOOOO bad for him~
UUGGGHHHH....parenthood~ sometimes it just stinks~

OH to be a mother and want to save our children from all the uglies of the world, no matter what age they are. I have had that "ferocious protectiveness" rear it's head a time or two and my daughter is only 9 (another girl was really mean to her.) I just wanted to go kick some 9 year old butt and put my daughter in a bubble and protect her. I know I can't always protect her and life will deal her some hardships but ooohhhh...... there are some days I wish they were little again and nothing hurt them.

Cab, tell your son to hold his head up. It will be okay in the end. Especially because he has you on his side.

[CAB_44]

Yes, Anonymuse~ he was 20 at the time he bought it...
yes, he will move on....
and yes, MP~ it does HURT....!! (us mother hens!!!!!!!!)
I just felt so sorry for him~ what can I say...it's just a mothers love...it breaks my heart, and for the way it happened....

But YES~ He needs to get on with some important decisions and get it figured out...
You can't help but feel sorry for them, yet you get angry with them too...that they can't seem to get their poop together....but the truth is, I'm 40 something....and haven't got my poop together yet either......
so goes life....I guess~ Ah yes....life~ but hey you're right razor...it's not the end of the world~
just makes me sad for him.....he's so young~

I suppose it would not have happened this way had he already gone to see the attorney.......oh well~ maybe he'll get on it now~
best I can hope for~ it made a believer out of him........
thanks guys

[Grace]

I suppose it would not have happened this way had he already gone to see the attorney.......

None of this would have happened if he had paid the bill. Don't teach your son that it's okay to not pay for things he borrows money to buy. Obviously it's okay to feel bad for what happened to him. But feel bad for the right reasons.

[SinkingFast]

None of this would have happened if he had paid the bill. Don't teach your son that it's okay to not pay for things he borrows money to buy. Obviously it's okay to feel bad for what happened to him. But feel bad for the right reasons.

Since your a newly joined Member Grace, you wouldn't know that CAB didn't mean for Son to dodge debt.

CAB posted some time back that Son has been having financial difficulties of his own. CAB has been working to help Son decide the best way to handle the situation. Son has been hiding his head in the sand.

Last night's visit from the Repo Man will probably be just the wake-up call Son needs to get in gear and work pro actively on his debts.

If you are a parent, as many of us are, you would share CAB's pain at having to go thru this with his/her child.

[CAB_44]

None of this would have happened if he had paid the bill. Don't teach your son that it's okay to not pay for things he borrows money to buy. Obviously it's okay to feel bad for what happened to him. But feel bad for the right reasons.

Thanks for the support SF.... you and most others here do know my situation and what my intent at raising my children has been and is....I thank you for your support~

First of all miss Grace~ I can be the first to assure you that I have always taught my children to pay for what they purchase, preferably with cash.... but if they did use a credit card, to not abuse it....
I can go on and on here, and while it really doesn't matter what I say, the fact is that I have made poor choices in my life and I am owning up to it....trust me.....it looks as though I will have to make a 100% payback in a chapter 13....and you know what.....I should....if I made the choice to abuse my CC's then that should be my fate....to pay back......morally,
or any other which way you'd like to turn it,I don't have a problem paying back what I owe......

You know, as a parent...you can try to do everything right...and I think I owe myself a pat on the back to say that I tried and still try to do everything with a moral value, I'm NOT bilking the system....but truth is, when your children grow into young adults, they make their own choices, and no matter how poor those choices are, he's still my child, and no matter what I LOVE HIM DEARLY~
For you to ASSUME that I taught him not to pay his way, is just utter stupidity~ you know not what you are talking about...

Our CC debt started out many years ago, when my husband's job was 'downsized'... I made so - so money, but not enough to support a family of 4. We have never lived extravigantly, not even close...and for years we did without, but for basic needs we had to use the CC. We have paid and been paying on those for many years ALWAYS on time....ALWAYS.... it has only been in the last few months that we decided it had to stop as we would probably never get it paid. In all of my 27 yrs of marriage, our CR are spotless, up until this past june....
so while I could try to appreciate your tidbit of advice,it is just that....an ignorant suggestion that I would teach a child to not pay his bill....I suggest that you read a few of
my threads...early threads...then you can give a more educated suggestion, even better would be for you to let us know how your kids turned out.....be careful though....I talked with a guy on MSN Money....and he seemed to think that his kids were perfect people.....hahahaha~ well, if I was a bettin' man, I would bet that they are hiding plenty from him.........

Again~ Thanks SF and others
CAB

[13inOR]

I agree Cab, sometimes our kids have to learn a hard lesson but it doesnt mean we have to ENJOY watching it happen....... I feel for you and know what you mean completely.

[Worried Mom]

Cab44, I feel your pain. I'm going through a similar situation with my son. I waver between wanting to hug him and wanting to smack him. I'm still waiting for him to get his head out of the sand. Since we are on opposite ends of the country, it's hard for me to communicate with him. Good luck to you and I know just how you feel.

[CAB_44]

Cab44, I feel your pain. I'm going through a similar situation with my son. I waver between wanting to hug him and wanting to smack him.

LOL~ yes WorriedMom and 13 in OR ....that is so true!!
We have been up front with our children about "what NOT to do" ... however, I never told them TOO much as to worry them....why take their childhood away, yet when he was 15 or so, I showed him some things on paper that should've made him go "wwhhhoooooaaaa, OK Mom, I won't do that"....mostly because he was the type of kid whose friends had what they wanted....and I did not raise mine that way....what they had was what they needed....not always what they wanted~ My daughter is a different kind of kid...she could care less of "having what her friends have"....yet she spends her money (she has a job after school, both my kids worked at 16) how she wants, and I don't say much, because I think as kids they should be able to "blow it" SOME....I say that with caution.....she buys ALL of her own gas with her own money..... she doesn't make much and by paying for things at school, she ends up broke by late Wed. LOLLOL~ but I have showed her my most recent findings about the 31K + that I spent alone on payments this last 6 months on CC.......I WANT both of them to know, not to do what I have done....it's not like I just started telling them 24 hours ago~ this goes WWWWAAAAAYYYY back~ but you know...like I said, at the end of the day...THEY make their OWN decisions after they move out and /or turn 21. And this is what son has done~ But good gosh~ I STILL LOVE him with all my heart~ doesn't matter what he does~ I ALWAYS WILL!!!!!!!!!
I may not approve, but that's not my job~ that's his, and I do want to love and see Grandchildren some day~ LOL....I just love my kids...unconditionally....that's a parents "supposed to do" job~ and that's what I'm doing.....may not love what he does, but I love who he is~ always!!!!
Thanks for the support guys~ You're the BEST!!!!!!
CAB

[Grace]

No, I didn't know the whole story. I just saw the one post by a parent saying that if their son had seen a lawyer sooner there wouldn't be a problem. Why would someone finance an ATV? It's not something that you need to get to work. It's a toy. Anyway, if you get to the point where you can't make the payments, why would you sell it?

[SinkingFast]

When we lived out in the country in Missouri, one of our neighbors mowed his yard with his ATV. He had a pull behind mower that he attached to the ATV to mow with. Acreage property.

His ATV was camo painted because he took it on hunting trips with him. That's how he brought his deer in.

ATV's are not just toys for kids. They can be used as tools too.

Have you priced a new ATV, Grace??!! Do you know how much they really cost??!!

[EmmaT]

Cab_44,
Unfortunately, the auction does not care about your son one bit. They will sell a car (or ATV) for whatever they can, and sometimes it's no more than maybe a quarter of what it's worth. Then the bank tacks on the missed finance charges, the charges to repo the vehicle, their lawyers' fees, etc. The proceeds are deducted, and your son gets stuck with the remainder. My son had a car repossessed a few years ago. (The dealer should never have sold him the car, they knew my son's income wasn't enough, but that's another story.) He owed about $12K on a $16K vehicle, and after auction he still owed over $6K. It took him 3 years to pay it off. He bought a $500 beater truck from a friend so he could get to work. Learned his lesson, though. Today he has a good job and steady income, has a debit card for those occasions when he needs a Visa or MC for a purchase online etc., and stays away from credit. We've come full circle. My father never bought anything on credit, except his house.

[CAB_44]

Cab_44,
Unfortunately, the auction does not care about your son one bit. They will sell a car (or ATV) for whatever they can, and sometimes it's no more than maybe a quarter of what it's worth. Then the bank tacks on the missed finance charges, the charges to repo the vehicle, their lawyers' fees, etc. The proceeds are deducted, and your son gets stuck with the remainder. My son had a car repossessed a few years ago. (The dealer should never have sold him the car, they knew my son's income wasn't enough, but that's another story.) He owed about $12K on a $16K vehicle, and after auction he still owed over $6K. It took him 3 years to pay it off. He bought a $500 beater truck from a friend so he could get to work. Learned his lesson, though. Today he has a good job and steady income, has a debit card for those occasions when he needs a Visa or MC for a purchase online etc., and stays away from credit. We've come full circle. My father never bought anything on credit, except his house.

Hi EmmaT~
Yes, you are right, I know they don't sell them for more than they obviously can, but the guy just said, he thought outin California, they would get more than they would here....things are higher out there, I guess even at auction....who knows~ ....but he realizes that he will get stuck with the remainder, and that's just the way it goes....thanks for your insight and input, I do appreciate it!!!!!!!!!
My parents never bought on credit either....