need a little advice

[anomaly13]

we have a lot of cc debt.  our household income has dropped by about 800.00 a month and we are in need of something.  not late on any payments, yet, but struggling to make ends meet and always coming out in the red at the end of the month.  considering debt consolidation or even bankruptcy.  how do i find a company that does debt consolidation that can be trusted?  

also if we do file for bankruptcy, do they come and take away what you purchased with the cc, how about your car if your still making payments?  

thanks.  can't wait to lift this stress.

[nd_deadhead]

I don't have any advice on debt consolidation, but I do have some suggestions. Is there anything that you bought recently with a cc that you can return? Anything around the house that you can sell? Have you cut your living expenses to the bone? Things that are necessities when you don't have cc debt might be luxuruies now. Things like cable, eating out, extra phone service - all possible area to cut. Can you sell your car, pay off the loan, and buy a less expensive one? Can you increase the deductible on your car insurance?

I think you should do everything you possibly can to cut expenses before you even think about filing bankruptcy.

[ilovemygirl]

I was in this position a couple of years ago. We had 25k of cc debt and no assets. We talked a lot about bankruptcy but decided against it in the end. It's been really hard but I'm very happy we didn't go for the bankruptcy. It's not that I'm against bankruptcy if it's absolutely necessary but I think it really should be a very last resort and absolutely 100% necessary.

I agree with the pp that if you haven't cut expenses down to the bare bones minimum, now is the time to do so. Also, why was the income lost? Is there a way to get it back or is someone sick/injured?

I know there's differing opinions on this but I HATE credit counseling places. They charge you a fee/donation to do something you can and IMO should be doing yourself. If you are talking about taking out a consolidation loan, that might not be a bad idea if you have high interest cards and can get a lower fixed rate with the loan.

[Sharlla]

If you are getting large tax return put all of it on your debt to pay it off.  if you are getting WIC or foodstamps put the money you would have spent on food to the debt.  is it possible to get a second job? donate plasma?  babysit?  sell things? 

[anomaly13]

nothing worth selling or that we can do without, think furniture, computer.  we have cut everything.  no tv, internet/phone paid by my mom, eating out/renting movies not happening.  have thought about selling car, paying loan, buying another car.  will have to seriously look into this as an option even if we just finance less.  also going to geico this week to see about switching.

dh lost his job 10 months ago and we have been using our little savings to make ends meet.  any work he can find would bring home less the unemployment pays.  

i have called the cc companies and they won't budge, i assume because we have never missed or made a late payment, some have referred us to a credit counseling agency instead of working directly with us.  i will look into a fixed-rate loan to pay off the cc debit.

[Sharlla]

so you are working? can you get a second job or get overtime?   he's unemployed and getting unemployment?  when does that run out?

[anomaly13]

since my original questions were for advice on finding a debt consolidation company and some of the bankruptcy process i would like to stick to that.  don't think i have not cut every expense possible at this point because i have.  anything left to cut is being considered very hard as what is left are the bare necessities and any ways to increase our income have been thought over and executed.  seeking help paying off MY debt is a last resort.

i just applied for a debit consolidation loan through our cu.  we will see. and i will call the cc companies again

[ilovemygirl]

OP - I am so sorry you are going through this. It must be awful. I hope you don't think anyone here was giving you a hard time. I asked questions/gave basic advice because I didn't know your situation and you gave no other info other than you were looking into filing bankruptcy & consolidation. It's always best to look at other options first and you'd be surprised how many people never think about selling off some things or cutting some expenses or adding some extra work. I know because I was one of them. It may sound silly but it was the ladies on this board that convinced me to do a lot of things I thought I couldn't/never thought of.

I hope your loan comes through and things get better.

[Sharlla]

sorry.  good luck

[zebra15]

I can answer a couple of your questions.  Usually what you purchased with the CC's is yours to keep. Citibank, discover, Captial one etc, they dont show up and ask for the stuff back.  It doesnt work that way.  The banks can put you in collections for the money due but bank does not want timmy's old shoes, a used CD,  stuff like that.  As for credit consolidation, for that to work you need to have the income to cover the payments.  In my banking and finance experience consolidation will ding your credit just as bad as bankruptcy.  So its a matter of personal ethics and what matters to you in the long run.  Finding a good consolidtation firm can be difficult at best.  I dont have a recommendation for you.  What I would try is the ladies over at creditboards.com/org??  I've been there a couple times and they are wonderful.   Also while Im not a huge fan of dave ramsay most of what he says makes sense, read some susie oreman too.  All the books can be found at the library.