It's come to this.......

[toomuch]

I started a thread last night about buying a car before filing bk, and what the chances were with a credit score of 514.

I had found a 2003 camry with low miles. I have not had a car since June when I let mine go back. Dh and I share his truck, but he works rotating shifts and I just started 6 weeks of radiation and not sure after that.

So, I went to the dealership, who is selling the car at private owner seller cost. I explained my situation to them, asked if I could take the car to my radiation appt which is 40 minutes away. They let me. The car is nice. It's only got 60k miles on it so I think it would be a good investment for me and dependable for years to come. I don't ever plan on buying another new car. EVER.

They need a co-signer I haven't had to have a co-signer on anything.......ever. So, I am going to ask my stepfather to co sign. This is digging deep for me because of my pride. Funny thing about poverty......it not only changes the way you have to live, but how you think.

I could pay cash for this car with the cancer benefits I'll receive in the next couple of months but then I would have too much equity (ga allows 3500 for a car), so I can't do that.

If stepfather cosigns and I file bk, will that effect his credit in any way if I reaffirm the car? Is this a wrong move on my part prior to filing bk (won't be filing til spring of 08?

Thanks for any help,

Too much

[woeisme]

so sorry to hear about your troubles! having health problems and financial problems at the same time is the worst, and one leads to the other in many cases.

I think if you plan to reaffirm the vehicle, and payments are always made, there shouldn't be any risk to stepfather's credit. He will be informed of the bankruptcy though, so if it's something you want to keep to yourself, that's something to consider. My brother owed on a loan that my mother had co-signed when he filed for CH 7. He reaffirmed the loan and paid it off after the rest of his debts were discharged, and it never affected my mother's credit rating. Of course she was kind of nervous when all this happened, because if he hadn't reaffirmed and paid the loan, then she would have lost her CD's that she put up as collateral when she co-signed for him. My sister-in-law was very mad that he reaffirmed the loan, thought having debt after the 7 was "wrong" and that my brother should have just let my Mom pay the price for being stupid enough to try to help them out, but luckily my brother didn't let her badgering and bullying work for once in their marriage. (she was a compulsive shopper who wouldn't even try to get a job, just sat at home ordering stuff off the home shopping network while my brother worked all the overtime he could get to pay the bills she was racking up.) Thankfully the loan is now paid off, my sister-in-law finally grew up and got a job, and everything was fine as far as my Mom's credit.

Good luck! My prayers are with you as you go through radiation.

[HeatherB]

so sorry to hear about your troubles! having health problems and financial problems at the same time is the worst, and one leads to the other in many cases.

I think if you plan to reaffirm the vehicle, and payments are always made, there shouldn't be any risk to stepfather's credit. He will be informed of the bankruptcy though, so if it's something you want to keep to yourself, that's something to consider. .

Exactly my thoughts, too.

[toomuch]

so sorry to hear about your troubles! having health problems and financial problems at the same time is the worst, and one leads to the other in many cases.

I think if you plan to reaffirm the vehicle, and payments are always made, there shouldn't be any risk to stepfather's credit. He will be informed of the bankruptcy though, so if it's something you want to keep to yourself, that's something to consider. My brother owed on a loan that my mother had co-signed when he filed for CH 7. He reaffirmed the loan and paid it off after the rest of his debts were discharged, and it never affected my mother's credit rating. Of course she was kind of nervous when all this happened, because if he hadn't reaffirmed and paid the loan, then she would have lost her CD's that she put up as collateral when she co-signed for him. My sister-in-law was very mad that he reaffirmed the loan, thought having debt after the 7 was "wrong" and that my brother should have just let my Mom pay the price for being stupid enough to try to help them out, but luckily my brother didn't let her badgering and bullying work for once in their marriage. (she was a compulsive shopper who wouldn't even try to get a job, just sat at home ordering stuff off the home shopping network while my brother worked all the overtime he could get to pay the bills she was racking up.) Thankfully the loan is now paid off, my sister-in-law finally grew up and got a job, and everything was fine as far as my Mom's credit.

Good luck! My prayers are with you as you go through radiation.

Thank you, Woeisme. You hear stories like that all the time.....where someone goes out on a limb for someone and they end up with the debt. My stepson let this very thing happen to his 85 year old grandmother. She is stuck with a 28,000 debt and can't understand why they expect an old lady like her on limited income to pay.

[toomuch]

Thank you, Woeisme. You hear stories like that all the time.....where someone goes out on a limb for someone and they end up with the debt. My stepson let this very thing happen to his 85 year old grandmother. She is stuck with a 28,000 debt and can't understand why they expect an old lady like her on limited income to pay.

Sorry, hit the wrong key.

I talked to my attorney's paralegal and she said bk would not hurt my stepfather's credit unless I didn't pay of course. He will get a letter letting him know when I do file. She said I could go ahead and pay it off anytime and still keep it. I feel better about making a few payments though until I know for sure the trustee won't take it from me.

My monthly payt will be what I'm now paying to rent one for one week. This is the first *break* I've had in a long time. Oh, that and yesterday my Mom's brain MRI was normal and the doctors are amazed....saying she is defying all odds. So, that news alone made my spirits soar!

Too much

[Keebler]

I want to help you -- but I can't do it directly.

Do you know about Prosper.com? It's an interesting Internet concept that has been around for more than a year where people lend money to other people. In a sense, it's the eBay of lending where you make your best case for needing a loan and set an interest rate you are willing to pay. Then, members (small-time investors) bid on your loan at an interest rate they're willing to settle for. When enough people have pledged to fund your loan (no one person will fund it completely) Prosper manages the transfer of funds and collects the payments. It's unusual but very legitimate. It may just work for you.

I think it would be a good idea to avoid a co-signer. It's one of those things where you leave yourself the option of getting in to trouble even though you never expect it to happen. I'd pay a higher interest rate myself in order to avoid puting a relative or family member at risk because you never know exactly what's going to happen. I'd rather pay the higher interest myself than agonize over the trouble I would cause if I found myself unable to repay the loan.

I'll bet you could get the relatively small loan you need by telling your story over there at Prosper. I can't be the only one who wishes he could help, right?

UPDATE:
Thinking about it more, I think you can get the loan this way but there's a catch with the bankruptcy. The Prosper loan would be unsecured and this is bad for two reasons. First, it will make it seem like you actually have equity in the vehicle. Second, you won't be able to reaffirm the loan.