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Debt Settlement

Submitted by nvindas on Sat, 08/30/2008 - 16:15
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How can I manage to settle ALL of my debts mself? I have never done this EVER and I am drowning in debt! Please ANYONE help!


thanks, yes it's all unsecured debt and we are at 90k total. i have been in contact with them and a few are aware that we just cannot pay at this time. i have been reading several posts and i am pleased to see that we can do this on our own(without hiring a company) and use the money that we would pay the hired company to pay off or settle with our credit cards. thanks for the input and I will keep checking for new posts. I greatly appreciate ALL of the comments and advise from everyone!


Submitted by nvindas on Sat, 08/30/2008 - 17:42

nvindas

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I too have over 100k in cc debt. The two largest are Amex and BoA. I've talked to both and told them in no uncertain terms that I want to pay but have no means to do so. I believe the more upfront you are the better the situation will be. In my case...my trucking company went out of business and they can see that. I've never abused my spending and told them to check into my situation if they don't believe me. Give the creditors as much info as you must (your story why you can't pay.) Be sure to tell them that you've consulted with a bankruptcy attorney who've suggested you file. Tell them it would be used as a complete last resort if necessary but you intend to find another way to pay your bills. My best advice is to communicate with your original creditors and try your best to settle with them after 90 days but before charge-off. Good luck to you.


Submitted by on Sat, 08/30/2008 - 19:59

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Hello, forum members. We have a Visa with Citibank that is 76 days past due. The wife is the actual account owner with myself as an authorized user. They call several times a day trying to work out a payment plan that is just not acceptable for us. I have offered a plan to them but, they don't want to accept my terms either. At what point will they listen to my terms and be more agreeable? Current balance is about $6500 and I am offering $100 a month for 54 months.


Submitted by partainjr on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 05:10

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partainjr.....

your offer is much too high..+ they won't negotiate a deal like that most likely. I would wait til 150 days past due then make a much lower offer to settle.....


Submitted by on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 06:16

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Quote from Guest, "My best advice is to communicate with your original creditors and try your best to settle with them after 90 days but before charge-off. Good luck to you. "

Good advice


Submitted by Bman90278 on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 07:04

Bman90278

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I'm sorry you're in such a bad credit situation....as am I. Being over 100 days late at this point and no money saved for settlements could present a slight problem....however...don't forget that no matter what you do from now on in....your credit is already bad.....so don't dwell on that part. Start with writing down a plan. Set a precise budget and look for any and all ways to save money for negotiated settlements. It's going to be time that is on your side and that's it. Communicate with your creditors at least 1-2 times a month and tell them that no matter how many times they call you it won't change your circumstances and that you're doing all you can to avoid bankruptcy. That said...you hold all the cards in this deck. Remember.....the person on the phone doesn't know you, neither do their supervisors and so on. If the absolute worst occurs...bankruptcy than how can that be all that bad considering your circumstances. Many of the posters on these forums and around the US. are in the same boat as you. Hold your head up high and start from today....the past will not help you today. Set goals and stick to them and everything will work out. Goodluck!


Submitted by on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 08:25

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Thanks for the input. We are not in good shape either as far as money saved for settlement but we do have something. We are going to start trying to settle with one of the cards this week. At least we are going to try and if it works, it will be one less card to think about. We never imagined that we would be in this situation but we are so we just have to move forward. I completely understand bman90278 as we did something similar-not quite exactly-with one of our cards asking them to help us out lowering interest rate so we could make some headway but instead of helping us they decided to reduce our credit limit dramatically! So if at any point we thought that we could transfer balances to that card to sort of "consolidate" debt it went down the toilet with that phone call! It was crazy! I tried to argue and rationalize with the person but there was no way around it. I must say that I am thankful that I found this site! We were feeling like complete losers having 3 kids and staring this situation in the face! We thought " how can we ever get past this and be great role models for our children?" It's very sad in my house sometimes. Thanks for the comments.


Submitted by on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 13:39

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Thanks for your input. I just don't understand why they are so unwilling to take money when it is offered. I mean, SOME dollars are better than NO dollars, right? It's no wonder that the major financial companies are losing so much money. Okay, so the next time they call, I just tell them to get lost & not to bother me again?


Submitted by on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 14:52

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I stopped paying my cc's December '07. I too have over 100k in debt. My main focus was debt settlement but the economy took a turn, hubby lost a lot or work and well-we no longer have the funds to settle these. I can tell anyone considering debt settlement on their own that it is possible. I never talked about settlement to any creditors but right before charge off-most of them mailed letters with settlement offers. Even now, some cards are in collections and I get offers every day. I wish I had the money to settle but we are filing BK. I just read this and had to add in what I know. I know everyone's situation is different but it is possible to settle on your own with much success.


Submitted by girlndebt on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 14:58

girlndebt

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Hi girlndebt! Thanks for the post! I am scared out of my mind to do this! I won't even mention how my husband feels!!!!!!!!!!! I haven't received any offers from any of the cards as of yet. We are about 90 days on a couple of them but the problem is that we have 3 b of a accounts and we are current on one of them. I don't think they will settle. :( I am trying to convince my husband to stop paying that one card also so that we can try to settle with them. He is having a hard time with that idea. i guess he feels that if he pays something then he is at least still doing the right thing! I don't know really..........


Submitted by on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 15:06

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It is all so scary...We have been dealing with this mess of ours for some time. We tried dmp (debt management), that didn't work, we have talked to a lawyer about settlement but don't know if that's the best course of action. Today we finally got our nerve up after both of us, my husband and I, crying all morning, to call my father-in-law. We told him a bit of what we have gotten ourselves into, we are going over to his house tomorrow to sit down and show him everything. Just telling someone has made us feel 100% better. We are not asking him for money, only advise and support. He said he would do whatever he could to help. The stress is killing us...Reny


Submitted by lmale on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 15:19

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Reny, I think that's a good move! It's always so much better to know that at least you have someone to talk to. My in-laws have been a big support to us. When they first knew we were having financial problems, they offered to loan us money to pay everything off. We turned it down because the truth is that we wouldn't have been able to pay them back either. Then once they knew the true extent of our debt, it was my father-in-law who first advised us to seriously look at BK as the only viable option. It took us awhile to come around, but it was a big help to just know that we had someone in our corner!


Submitted by alias1958 on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 17:46

alias1958

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My husband and I had A+ credit up until last year. We knew we were way in over our heads but managed to keep paying the minimums. Then BAM-those unexpected and unfortunate events you think will never come up-came up and we couldn't do it anymore. At first my husband thought debt settlement was not for us and that it would not work even after showing him this forum and blogs from other members who have already settled. He did not want to do it and did not want to ruin his credit. Eventually he came around...it was tough though.

We kept our financial troubles to ourselves even selling our house through a short sale without telling anyone. Up until a few weeks ago, my mother who lives far away had no idea about all this. Well, a lender called looking for me and she found out. I honestly felt relief that it was out in the open. My husband and I were wearing each other out with this mess!

I have every other card but BoA and have gotten settlement offers from nearly all of them. I know a few people who settled BoA recently with no problems. One was at 38% so it is possible.


Submitted by girlndebt on Sun, 08/31/2008 - 17:50

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