someone please help me asap

[bjl584]

Re: someone please help me asap

There has been some good advice given, but I think that your problem may go beyond the scope of this forum. You may want to get some professional help for your situation. Someone that you can meet with face to face, sit down work out a budget, repayment options, and most importantly to teach you about basic budgeting and finance to make sure that you don't get into this situation again. It could be someone that does this sort of thing for a living or a trusted friend or family memeber that is savy about money. I think that would be the best place for you to start to clean up the mess that you're in.

[threebeansalad]

Re: someone please help me asap

You also need to consider ways to generate more income.

You stated you have 2 jobs. When was the last time you had a performance review? How about asking for a raise? If you are performing well at your job, gather the evidence and have an informed conversation with your boss as to why you deserve a pay increase. There are plenty of resources on the web that can help you prepare for this discussion.

Start selling things you don't need. Start with free places like Craig's List or local free classifieds, but consider eBay for certain items. It's amazing how you can generate cash with stuff that's just collecting dust in your house.

Take old clothes to consignment shops. If you have a Plato's Closet, they'll pay cash on acceptance for recent-fashion men's, women's and juniors clothes.

Do you have time to fit in a few odd jobs? Can you clean houses? Babysit? Get a newspaper route (not just for teens- driving routes pay fairly well). Shovel driveways, rake leaves, etc.

[vsjhoc]

Re: someone please help me asap

She already has some open collections and nothing is going to change that. I think they stay on the report for 5 years from their first contact.

Just to clarify: Collection debts stay on your credit report for 7.5 years from the "date of first delinquency." This date is the month after you made your very last payment. It has nothing to do with when the collection agency acquires the debt or starts hassling you.

Unfortunately, a lot of the sleezy collection agencies "re-age" the debt on your credit report so that it looks like your 7.5 years starts over when they enter the picture. This is illegal activity by them and you should dispute the date with the credit bureaus.

To the OP: For the moment, don't obsess about your credit reports. Only time and prompt payment will fix them. There is some good advice below about getting your financial life in order first. It doesn't happen overnight but life will get better. Good luck!

[fairy74]

Re: someone please help me asap

One other thing that I didn't see mentioned, just because you cannot get a savings account at a bank, don't trick yourself into thinking you cannot save. My grandparents lived through the great depression and never trusted banks, so their savings account was in an old coffee can in the freezer. True you don't earn a percentage on it, but at least get started. You will need some knd of emergency cushion to keep you from relying on the credit cards again and again whenever the unexpected occurs. Lots of other good advice has been given here, good luck to you!

[PrincessPerky]

Re: someone please help me asap

Just to 'ditto' the advice of selling and another job, I know you think you are already too busy, but obviously you have time to spend, so transfer that time into making money, by selling or by working, and you will find it harder to find time to rack up new debt.

[tabbycat31]

Re: someone please help me asap

I think this is bad advice and I'll tell you why.

1. Sooner or later, they will mark the bad debt against your credit rating - that means for 5 to 7 y ears, you won't be able to get any quality credit, just marginal, high interest credit cards - no mortgages, no quality car loans and if you do get a car loan - the salesman will screw you on the price (they always win).

2. Paying the minimum by design means the debt is never paid off - you just pay interest every month.

3. There's a psychological component to this and I apologize if I get "deep" here. I think if you just shrug your bills off, you subliminally say to yourself, "Ah, it's okay to borrow money and not pay it back." You "got away with it." You know what that is in some circles? Yup. A deadbeat.

You got all that money has to offer with the credit cards - eating out, clothes, concerts, but you didn't have to do any of the earning associated with it.

I think paying off the debts (and 5K isn't a whole lot in the scheme of things) is an important behavioral and value change you need to make. You need to go through the exercise of doing without and satisfying your debt to make a long term change.

In the end, you'll say to yourself, "It was hard but I did it."

Other than that, I think the advice was fabulous.

Most collection agencies already have the debt on the credit reports. I work for one, and they do it so it forces people to pay. It's a horrible tactic but it works.

[nanamom]

Re: someone please help me asap

I agree, First Great that you recognize a problem and want to change, then stop spending, make a budget, get some help, and sell whatever you can. Make sure there is room in the budget for a little bit of fun money or you'll blow the budget before you get started. See if you can get some help form a consumer credit counseling place, one that isn't being investigated for fraud like the one I used several years ago. Try a local church and see if they will help advise you. Have your bills paid online and your checks direct deposited and put the ATM card in a bowl of water in the freezer. It will give you a chance to think before you use it. I also agree with starting to save, even a couple bucks will add up in the long run.

[moneymom]

Re: someone please help me asap

hello,
this is moneymom i have read all of the reply's to my request they have had some good ad-
vice i still need advice on how to start getting out of this mess i got paid and now i am back
to the beginning please help me with a basic budget using the old envelope method i am
married my husband pays the other bills but i need help with my own debth that i have made
a mess off. thank you

[Diolla]

Re: someone please help me asap

A basic budget-

Food
Housing (rent, mortgage)
Utilities
Gasoline

Make envelopes with Food & Gas written on the outside, put the amount you plan to spend (in cash) into the envelope.

Make a list, put the amount you have to spend at the top
Put the most important thing you need to spend on and subtract.
March down the list until you are out of money.

A good question for what is most important is "If I only had enough $$ for one thing what would it be?"

Don't let anyone else tell you what is most important, you have to decide.

Once the money is available write the checks or go online and pay down your list, withdraw the money you need for the cash envelopes and you are done until the next paycheck comes.

This is called living paycheck to paycheck, if you can squeeze even a little extra out for saving I would recommend it.

If you need more detailed help you will have to post or PM me your bills but using this method you should be able to get a handle on it.

All the Best

[PrincessPerky]

Re: someone please help me asap

Does your husband know of your debt?

If not step one is to let him know, if you are scared of that try working up a plan t first, and then letting him know, and asking for his support to help you stay on track. (a simple good job can do wonders after a rough week)

As for exactly what you need to do....I think you said you have no re-accuring bills to pay of your own each month?

If that is true then you can skip the first part of diollas advice, you just need to pick an amount for gas and food and fun, get your three envelopes and fill them on a regular basis.

No ATMs in between, in fact freeze that atm card, and all CCs

We can't make the perfect day to fill them or the perfect amount for you.

The best we can do is suggest, a first idea would be to fill up on pay day, and that pay day also be the day you send the rest of the money to old debts. (if you can use ebill it is easy once you get the hang of it, if not, write out a check and mail it to the payment center found on the bill, include the account number, this is where your husband holding your hand is helpful for moral support ilus maybe number/address hunting-if your husband can't do it, try a credit counseling center, if they ask for money walk out, try the local phone book)

A guess on amounts of gas. food and fun would be nice and relaxed for you to start (don't expect to go from all spending to none overnight).....and that amount for me would be 40 feach, but I don't even know what you drive nor how far to work, that is just an easy number for me to stick to if I were driving and only feeding myself.

I do feel savings is important, but if you husband already has an emergency fund you can prolly skip it, and simply focus on debt, if he doesn't then set up a seperate savings account that you hide/freeze the withdrawing info for, and send a comfortable amount each payday. (10% is a good guess, but not writ in stone, 10$ is a nice round number that will grow)

If you have a feelings that tithing is important, write a check on payday before the food.gas.fun, and bill paying, and then drop it in the offering or mail it.

Short version, freeze the cards, take out roughly 120 for food, fun and gas each week, send the rest to a bill (lowest first)

[StevenM]

Re: someone please help me asap

1 -First of all, it looks like you may have a cell phone problem. Your delinquent cell phone bills total around $1,000. If you still have a cell phone, throw it in the nearest deep body of water and don't get another one for at least 3 years.

2 - Pay off your total debt with the highest interest rate obligation first, while paying only the minimum on the other debts. When it's paid, switch the money you were paying on the first debt to the second, while paying only the minimum on the other cards/bills. As you get the bills paid off, you'll be putting more and more toward each credit card or other debt in the sequence, until you're debt free.

3 - Free up as much extra cash as possible - go to the No Credit Needed Blog, where they have a post in which people sent in their best money saving tips. There's a wealth of inormation there. You'll find it here: http://www.ncnblog.com/2007/01/16/yo...-tips-updated/
My favorites are cutting frivilous spending and buying your groceries at a warehouse food store. You can find tons of tips on my blog "Debt Free" as well. There's a link in my signature.