Hi everyone, I haven't been on the forums much since AT is usually a work-related habit, and I was laid off in February, and am still looking for work. I am a software engineer, and while I have had many interviews, no solid work yet. We all know the economy sucks here and my situation is reaching a tipping point and I need to evaluate some unpleasant options which will undoubtedly ruin my credit report, but I think I can avoid bankruptcy.
My problem is that I needed my full time job to pay off massive amounts of credit card debt that I accrued a few years back while living with a vampiric family member. Yes, I know this was stupid, I never ran interest on my cards for years before then which is why my limits got so high. I have since cut out the bad family member from my life. I am now considering not paying the debt, since CCs are unsecured and they can't come after me. I don't want to get into my personal situation deeply here, so I'm not looking to be judged personally. I have paid a ton in interest to these banks, and yes I agreed to it, but the simple reality is coming down to the fact that I cannot pay them now.
I genuinely value the advice of many level-headed ATers so if someone has some reasonable guidance I could use it, because I have always been the guy who pays his bills and never dealt with creditors, or sought professional help with anything like this. Feel free to PM me if you feel more comfortable with that, I expect this topic to get controversial.
My main income is Unemployment Insurance (UI) and I Maxed out at about 12 bucks an hour equivalent. This will run out in August, I doubt they will extend it, since the govt is broke. Since I have been laid off, this has been enough to cover my Rent and minimum payments on CCs, with nothing left. I have been buying gas and food on my CC, using up available credit, and it is going fast.
I am confident that I can find a local job making 10-12 bucks an hour when UI benefits end, but this way of living is unsustainable. I need an engineer's salary again to be able to get by. So I need some help planning out this worst-case scenario.
I have about 25k in debt. 11k on a citi card. 10k on a BoA card, and about 3k on a discover card. I also have a unsecured personal loan with Citizen's bank that started at 10k and is down to 6k, I used it soley to consolidate some credit cards last year. I was not prepared with savings when I was laid off because I was paying down debts aggressively and had a plan to be done in 2 years. So I have already paid a ton of interest here.
1) My first question: since CC debt is unsecured, I can simply not pay it and my cards will be shut off, right? I know they will pull every tactic to try and get me to pay it, and I will have to deal with creditors, they have no legal recourse as far as I know. I live in VT which has some decent laws against creditors in my case. I believe the trick is I need to not contact the creditor at all and after a period of like 2 years, it is done. My credit report is trashed, but no one can garnish my wages, and I haven't filed for bankruptcy. Can someone confirm these thoughts and/or elaborate on them?
2) Is there a good, ideally non-profit debt consolidation company that can take care of this fully or partially? It would be nice to take some of the stress off by having a lawyer deal with all of the companies.
3) Are there any good tips or tricks if I plan to not pay my bills? Can I have them remove my phone number associate with the account so they don't call me, for example? Yes I know what I have to do is shitty, but I want to feel confident in my decision.
I am an all or nothing type of guy so I am tempted to drop all of the cards and loan, but the more difficult and better path might be to drop the two big ones. I might keep the discover and pay it off so I can still build credit. Or I could open a checking acct with citizens and get a small (like 500 bucks) cc for monthly expenses that I always pay off. I hate not having a CC, it is essential for doing business online. So I might just drop the BoA, and Citi, and maybe the Discover. I have been a member of all these cards for 10 years, and I just called all of them and no one can extend my limits, which I am about to reach.
Clearly I could use any advice because I am not used to this mindset or environment. If anyone would like to talk to me, PM me first. I can do alot better in a personal conversation.
Judge me if you like, but I am not going to respond to personal flames. My life sucks enough already. My shame is my business.
Cliffs:
Unemployed
In CC debt of $25k+ and can't pay it
need tips on becoming a deadbeat, and handling creditors
I think I can avoid bankruptcy but need some expert advice
My problem is that I needed my full time job to pay off massive amounts of credit card debt that I accrued a few years back while living with a vampiric family member. Yes, I know this was stupid, I never ran interest on my cards for years before then which is why my limits got so high. I have since cut out the bad family member from my life. I am now considering not paying the debt, since CCs are unsecured and they can't come after me. I don't want to get into my personal situation deeply here, so I'm not looking to be judged personally. I have paid a ton in interest to these banks, and yes I agreed to it, but the simple reality is coming down to the fact that I cannot pay them now.
I genuinely value the advice of many level-headed ATers so if someone has some reasonable guidance I could use it, because I have always been the guy who pays his bills and never dealt with creditors, or sought professional help with anything like this. Feel free to PM me if you feel more comfortable with that, I expect this topic to get controversial.
My main income is Unemployment Insurance (UI) and I Maxed out at about 12 bucks an hour equivalent. This will run out in August, I doubt they will extend it, since the govt is broke. Since I have been laid off, this has been enough to cover my Rent and minimum payments on CCs, with nothing left. I have been buying gas and food on my CC, using up available credit, and it is going fast.
I am confident that I can find a local job making 10-12 bucks an hour when UI benefits end, but this way of living is unsustainable. I need an engineer's salary again to be able to get by. So I need some help planning out this worst-case scenario.
I have about 25k in debt. 11k on a citi card. 10k on a BoA card, and about 3k on a discover card. I also have a unsecured personal loan with Citizen's bank that started at 10k and is down to 6k, I used it soley to consolidate some credit cards last year. I was not prepared with savings when I was laid off because I was paying down debts aggressively and had a plan to be done in 2 years. So I have already paid a ton of interest here.
1) My first question: since CC debt is unsecured, I can simply not pay it and my cards will be shut off, right? I know they will pull every tactic to try and get me to pay it, and I will have to deal with creditors, they have no legal recourse as far as I know. I live in VT which has some decent laws against creditors in my case. I believe the trick is I need to not contact the creditor at all and after a period of like 2 years, it is done. My credit report is trashed, but no one can garnish my wages, and I haven't filed for bankruptcy. Can someone confirm these thoughts and/or elaborate on them?
2) Is there a good, ideally non-profit debt consolidation company that can take care of this fully or partially? It would be nice to take some of the stress off by having a lawyer deal with all of the companies.
3) Are there any good tips or tricks if I plan to not pay my bills? Can I have them remove my phone number associate with the account so they don't call me, for example? Yes I know what I have to do is shitty, but I want to feel confident in my decision.
I am an all or nothing type of guy so I am tempted to drop all of the cards and loan, but the more difficult and better path might be to drop the two big ones. I might keep the discover and pay it off so I can still build credit. Or I could open a checking acct with citizens and get a small (like 500 bucks) cc for monthly expenses that I always pay off. I hate not having a CC, it is essential for doing business online. So I might just drop the BoA, and Citi, and maybe the Discover. I have been a member of all these cards for 10 years, and I just called all of them and no one can extend my limits, which I am about to reach.
Clearly I could use any advice because I am not used to this mindset or environment. If anyone would like to talk to me, PM me first. I can do alot better in a personal conversation.
Judge me if you like, but I am not going to respond to personal flames. My life sucks enough already. My shame is my business.
Cliffs:
Unemployed
In CC debt of $25k+ and can't pay it
need tips on becoming a deadbeat, and handling creditors
I think I can avoid bankruptcy but need some expert advice