Non credit card debt

[ducaki]

Hi all,

I am trying to help my fiancee get rid of all of her debt and clean up her credit. I have been pretty frugal all my life and have not had to do this for myself before so I would like to hear people's opinions and options that are out there.

Here is the situation:
- Most of her debt is not tied to credit cards but mostly traffic tickets and cable bills adding up to about $1.5k.
- The above amount is spread out amongst 5-7 creditors
- There is an amount owed to an insurance company around $10k - accident happened over 4 years ago
- We put a short plan 2 months ago and have paid off over $250 in tickets since then

The situation tells me that there may be more debt that we are not aware of and we will be pulling a credit report this weekend.

One issue is that she will stop working in 2 months as we are execting a daughter. I plan to dedicate around $75 a month towards paying off the debt during this time.

Most of the advice on the net is about credit card debt. I am very leary of settlement/consolidation companies and I cant really apply the method of paying off the debt with the highest interest rate first since there are none. I am not sure which of the above debts are being reported to the rating companies but we will find our with the report we will be pulling.

How would you go about handling this given the situation? I am also not sure of what to do about the 10k debt!

Thank you

[snafu]

Once you have the credit report you may be able to make a better plan. Will your significant other be collecting maternity benefits? I suggest you protect your own credit rating and not co mingle financial affairs. If interest isn't being added is anything else adding to the sums owed? It's efficient to pay off the smallest balance and move up the list 'snowballing' through the list. Does she see any possibility of negotiating a smaller payout to the insurance company? Sometimes it's best to try nothing to lose, possible gain.

No matter how tempting, babies need very little, keep costs as flat as possible, demolish old debts and make a realistic financial plan for the future.

[GrimJack]

With regards to the traffic tickets, go to mitigation court immediately. At the very least you can get the penalties and interest reduced but you might be able to get the current balance reduced by half. When I was young, foolish, and lived in an apartment with parking meters all around - I came home, passing a couple of police officers in the hall to find a "we stopped by looking for you" notice on my door. I made an appointment to speak with someone about the tickets and got them reduced by 2/3s so I guess the point is go talk to someone - a magistrate, anyone who can set you up with a plan (you being your fiancee, of course).

[bjl584]

Is your fiancee on the same page with you financially at present? I ask, because from your post I see a very frugal person about to marry someone that has a bunch of debt in collections. I was once in a similar situation. You can guess what happened. I'm single at the moment. How would I handle this? First and foremost you two need to be on the same page financially as I said earlier. If you already are, then that's great. One thing that I would absolutely not do is bail her out and pay off her debts for her. Doing that may get her accustomed to that sort of an arrangement going forward. I'd hate to see you become her personal ATM. She needs to pay back waht she owes. Help her get on a repayment plan however that may look. I like the idea of trying to get the traffic tickets reduced. For the rest, see if any of the debts have surpassed the statute of limitations. See if you can pay back pennies on the dollar for the ones that aren't. Start making calls and negotiating whatever you can however you can. Help your fiancee cut her expenses and get her on a repayment plan to make everything right.

[snshijuptr]

I wouldn't be afraid to play the "expecting our first child" card when you call the various debtors. She will probably have to call, but she can let them know that she is changing her life, getting married, and having a baby so can they help her setup a manageable repayment plan. Find out what fees, interest, and penalties she is paying on each debt and make sure you pay off the highest costing debt first. If she really has a bunch of small debts, you can hopefully knock one or two out a month.

Are you also saving up for your little bundle of joy's medical bills. As an expecting mother myself, I'm prepared for about $1-2K in hospital charges and that is with good medical insurance. You don't want to add to her debt. You might want to discuss with the OB & hospital now to determine your payments.

Also just making sure that you are using www.AnnualCreditReport.com to get your actual FREE credit reports. This is the government website.

[naomibatac]

Non-credit card debt

Actually, credit card debt is similar with other debts in principle. Therefore, plenty of the things you read about how to eradicate credit card debt can be applied to your other kinds of debts. The others are correct in saying that you let your fiancee pay for her debts. You can help her plan, but she has to pay on her own. Being frugal is a very good practice; hope you can teach your fiancee how to be one.Good luck on your coming baby. Make sure you are prepared for her not just financially, but also emotionally.