I have 30k in cc debt and my payment with hardship program is currently 500/month. I have been desperately searching for a better job but now i cannot affor to live and pay this bill so I am considering stopping payments. Any advice on how I should proceed? Is this a good idea?
I can’t hire a driver to cover my days off because I can’t afford it, and I can’t be gone entirely because the business needs me. So I work my job, then some days I’ve picked up DoorDash on top of it. As a business owner. I know how that sounds.
I’ve tried Dave Ramsey’s approach and it hasn’t been enough given the scale of this. I’m now seriously considering bankruptcy but honestly feel ashamed even typing that out.
If you were in my position — profitable business, but personal decisions that buried me in debt, family split across states, can’t easily consolidate my presence — what would you actually do? Chapter 7, Chapter 13, debt settlement, something else? Has anyone dug out of something like this while still running the business that got them here?
I have some credit card debt right now. I do not have the money , right now because I am in the middle of a disability case. I also have about 2,000 in hospital bills. So I have no income coming in for a long time.
Can someone explain to me what disputing it entails? Or negotiating for less? What would work in my favor so I can try to manage it?
Thanks
I have about 50k in credit card debt. I know I can pay it off but i need a plan. I make about 250k a year so making payments will be doable. Sofi keeps popping up an as option but curious to see what others have used also that had a good rate and terms.
Hey everyone. Exhausted 27yr old single mom here. I went through a really rough divorce a few years ago. My ex was abusive and unfaithful. Out of fear and a need to get away from him I took on a bunch of debt to be able to leave safely with my toddler. Finally got the divorce and custody of my baby, but I’m left with about $19,000 in unsecured debt over about 5 credit cards and a personal loan. I also have a car loan, but I’m not as worried about that.
I feel like I’m drowning, and it’s continued to snowball as more things keep coming up - car repairs, medical expenses, etc. I had 0 debt before my ex and I hate having debt. I want to get out of it but it feels impossible. My credit is a 574 rn. I used to have an 800 credit score. It’s devastating really.
My parents never really taught me about handling debt or much about handling finances, investing, anything. I don’t have anyone to go to for advice. Can someone please tell me the best way to deal with this? The consolidation loans I’ve found aren’t much better than the cards as far as interest rates go, and I don’t think my credit is good enough for a balance transfer card. But it’s stressing me out trying to keep up with payments on all these cards and the loan. The snowball method isn’t really even making a dent because I keep getting hit with the interest.
I want to consolidate, pay off the credit cards & stop using them, and just have one payment every month. But I don’t know the best loans to get or even how to find one that will be lower interest than what I’m being offered on CK (28% interest rate).
Any advice on how to deal with this so I don’t have to be so stressed would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
If I die will my student & personal debt be gone or will someone else related to me have to pay it
My mom is 62, over 50k in credit card debt from being a single mother for over 20 years, already drained her retirement savings, and isnt working atm so im stuck paying her bills in the meantime which I can barely afford myself. We can barely afford making the minimum payments on all of them each month which is over 1k while interest continues to rack up. Dont know what to do and need advice. Im well aware of the snowball method but she cant even afford the minimum payments atp along with her other bills and im not going to shovel all my money towards snowballing off all of her debt for the next decade in order to do so. Would a debt relief program like freedom, a debt management plan like nfcc, or bankruptcy chapter 7 be better for someone in her position. We need to drastically lower the interest/monthly payments at the very least to make it more manageable but if theres a way she could potentially get a fresh start without too many cons im all for that. We don’t have much to lose right now anyway. Im just afraid of her getting sued by creditors or something else going wrong like them trying to take her house which already has a lien on it from all this debt.
edit: I’m not looking for sympathy or advice on clearing the debt itself, I know what I need to do. I’m looking for advice on how to navigate life and maintain my mental wellbeing while having virtually no money left over.
I have around £20k debt (loans, credit cards and arrears with utility companies) with an absolutely tanked credit score. Debt consolidation loan is not an option for me. I also rent in the uk so any kind of insolvency or debt plan will probably prevent me from finding somewhere else to live if I needed to. I also have disposable income so I wouldn’t get accepted for anything like that anyway. I got into this situation through a mix of ADHD (diagnosed a couple months ago and now on medication), being very irresponsible and not being taught how to be financially-savvy by anyone.
After all my outgoings, including minimum debt repayments and food, without spending a penny more, leaves me with around £300. I have 2 jobs; one 9-5 and a self-employed side hustle which varies in earnings. Sometimes I have more than £300 left over. The interest on all my debts is really high. My longest loans final payment will be in 24 months. I have absolutely no savings.
How the hell do I survive, cope and manage? I already know that my only real option is to just not buy anything at all until the debts are paid. Cut back on anything non-essential. Plough every spare penny into my debts. I was kind of on track with it, but it just seems that unexpected costs are flying at me left, right and centre, so any disposable income ends up going on car repairs or vet bills, etc.
Has anyone else been in a situation where they pretty much had no disposable income and just had to live like a pauper for a few years? How did you do it without being chronically depressed? Any tips to make it less soul-crushing?
I am 32 M separated, hopefully will be divorced someday.
Stuck in a debt trap created by my father. He is old now and unable to work.
The total debt right now is a little over USD 500k
Have a property that's seized by bank and would eventually be sold off to get back bank's money(around 35% of total debt).
Another property i.e our home was already sold off a few years back to pay some debts. Presently I live on rent with my family and have nothing else that can be sold off to get free of the remaining 65% of my unsecured debts from market, friends and family.
I don't want to quit / die without paying people back.
Can someone help me in making money?
I am really stressed and dont know what should I do. Not able to function how I could before covid.
Hello Everyone,
Im about to embark on my journey to pay off debt save for an emergency fund then for a down payment on a house current situation is slightly rough, I'm just looking for advice on how to not give up, how to stick with it and power through ya know
Debts
Company Balance Monthly Minimum payment APR
Car Loan $10,549.30 $550 4.49%
Personal Loan $6,624.73 $224.59 11.99%
CC1 $6,616 $75 0%(until Oct)
CC2 $2,206.60 $75 27.24%
CC3 $957 $45 0%
CC4 $98 $40 22.74%
parents $4,800 $400 0apr
Must Pay
Rent $950
Xfinity $98
Phone $56
Excel Energy $125
Save $50
Invest $30
Insurance $120
Optional
Hulu $20
Spotify $16
Rocket Money $10
Gym $20
Need to budget in
Gas-$150
Groceries for 2 people-$300
Cats-$150
Fun-$50
eating out $100
This is a rough estimate for my budget, my income is on the low end and most of the time im up $100-200. thank you for reading and i know this will take time, im just impatient to get out, and eating out kills me any advice would be amazing! Income is around $3,700
The more they keep taking my post down ima keep putting them on as I have nothing better to do , well I got a 16k loan I’m going to be defaulting on very soon , I have been paying 628 to be exact for 3 and a half years already and i still have 4 years left . I’m just going to work something more manageable with them because at this point they already got their money with all the damn interest I have payed so they can eat one, it’s not like I got free money . If u get mad I’m not gunna pay my debt then stay mad haha . I’m going to ask for another 2 month extension due to hardship and then after that I’m done paying it, I already took all my money out of my bank account and closed it .
I need help making a financial situation regarding debt. My wife and I each have 1 CC under our names. She has a Citi Cash card with a $2,500 balance due. It's high because she used it for a work trip and will receive reimbursement on Friday. It's not a problem. I have the Amazon Prime Visa CC with a $6,000 balance due. We both use it. It's not a problem, either. I've been paying $1500/month on it for the last 6 months and still paying other bills with no issues. That's another story. We have no savings, but several investment accounts (Roth IRA's taxable brokerage account, CD's).
Again, not the problem!
Thursday, my wife had shoulder surgery out of network from our medical insurance, BUT, still received the "in network" discount. Prior to this, we agreed NOT to put the expense on our CCs. Our HSA account doesn't have the amount needed in it. So we applied and approved for this Care Credit. It's basically a CC for medical and dental expenses. We have a $6000 line of credit and 0% interest for 12 months. Her surgery was $4400 total. We can easily pay $500/month on it without incurring any hardship. At $500/month, it can be paid off by next April.
Here is the decision.
Wednesday, my Dad hands me a check for $5,000. I was, and still am, just beyond grateful and overwhelmed with his generosity. He gives us money every quarter, but never this much. Just a great guy!
I checked my Amazon Prime card history. We've paid over $21,000 to it over the last 6 months!!!! I'M STILL BREATHLESS!! Money that could have funded more investments, a house backup generator, pool repairs, whatever!! I want this card balance down and out!!!
So.........
Do I use it to pay down the Amazon Prime card BECAUSE of the interest?
Or.....
Do I pay this Care Credit balance and use the remaining to add a third payment to my Amazon Prime CC? I'm getting 0% interest on it.
Thank you for any advice or decision-making ideas offered. I appreciate it.
I just got my first bonus from my first full-time job, and I’ll have about $30k in my checking account. That’s literally all the money to my name.
My current situation:
- 23 years old
- $30k cash (all sitting in checking)
- No savings account or investments
- Contributing enough to my 401(k) to get my employer’s full match
- ~$200k in student loans that enter repayment in a few months, with interest rates ranging from about 3% to 9%
After all my monthly expenses, I’ll have around $1,500 left over each month to save, invest, or put toward my loans
If you were in my shoes, how would you allocate the $30k?
I’m trying to make smart financial decisions from the start instead of looking back in a few years wishing I’d done something differently. I’d appreciate any advice or different perspectives!
Income: ($3,600/month)
Current monthly bills:
Rent: $460 ($230/check)
Car: $515
Car insurance (to dad): $100
Cash loan: $90/month ($320 left)
Credit card minimum: $30
Paydays: 7/10, 7/24, 8/7, 8/21
I’m moving into a new apartment on August 22, and my share of rent will be about $600/month.
My situation
Right now I have:
$1,920 in cash advance loans
$1,000 credit card balance
Only $400 left in savings, which is going toward a toll violation before my next paycheck
I also need:
Contacts: ~$300
New tires by August: ~$600
At least $600 saved for the apartment
The biggest problem is my cash advances. I have to pay them off before the beginning of August because I’m going on a work trip, and my per diem gets deposited into the same account. That account is currently negative, so about $1,600 would immediately disappear if I don’t clear it first.
Current plan
7/10 check: Pay rent, car payment, and buy contacts. I’d have about $550 left to live on.
7/24 check: Put basically the entire paycheck toward paying off the cash advances before the work trip.
The problem is that after doing that, I won’t have enough money for rent or living expenses until my 8/7 paycheck. The only solution I can see is taking another small cash advance (~$500) just to get through those couple of weeks, then paying it off in August.
I’ve also considered a personal loan to consolidate everything, but with my credit I’m mostly seeing lenders like NetCredit or CreditFresh, which seem expensive.
My goal is to be debt-free (besides my car loan) as soon as possible while still covering:
Work trip in early August
Tires
Apartment move on August 22
Is there a smarter way to handle this, or am I stuck slowly working my way out with small cash advances? Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Hey everyone,
I’m curious how people decide when a normal credit card payoff plan is no longer realistic.
Let’s say someone has around $32,000 in credit card debt across four cards, with interest rates between 23% and 29%.
They have stopped using the cards and are making every minimum payment, but after rent, bills, food, and transportation, they only have about $250 extra each month to put toward the debt.
They have already tried applying for a consolidation loan but were denied, and they do not qualify for another balance transfer card.
Would you keep using the avalanche method even if the payoff will take several years, or start comparing hardship plans, nonprofit credit counseling, debt management, settlement, or bankruptcy?
I’m especially curious what numbers or warning signs would tell you that the current plan is no longer sustainable.
Hey everyone,
I’m curious how people would handle a situation like this.
Someone has around $24,000 in credit card debt across three cards, with interest rates between 25% and 30%. They are still current on every account, but the combined minimum payments are around $700 per month.
Their work hours were recently reduced, and after rent, groceries, transportation, and other essential expenses, they only have around $300 left each month. They haven’t missed a payment yet, but it’s becoming difficult to keep everything current.
Would it make sense to contact the card companies now and ask about a reduced interest rate or fixed repayment plan, or should they continue paying the minimums while looking for additional income?
The concern is whether asking for help could result in the cards being restricted or closed, but waiting until payments are missed also seems risky.
Has anyone successfully received a hardship option while their accounts were still current? What questions should someone ask before agreeing to anything?
Hey everyone,
I’m curious to hear from people who have dealt with high-interest credit card debt while already living on a tight budget.
When rent, groceries, transportation, and other essentials were paid, and most of the remaining money went toward credit card minimums, what actually helped you start making progress?
Was it calling the card companies about hardship options, changing your budget, increasing income, or focusing on one balance at a time?
I’m mainly interested in practical steps that helped when there wasn’t much extra money available each month.
I unfortunately had a very serious psychotic episode which resulted in me losing my job. I was unemployed for a long time as well but have recently recovered and am working again.
Age: 40
Salary: $149k
Monthly Take Home Pay: $8500
CC Debt: $70k
Mortgage: $4650
Car Payment: $600
I live alone
No kids
I haven't looked into it yet but I'm contemplating contacting a bankruptcy attorney soon to see if that is an option for me. Moving isn't a great option as I bought my house April of 2022 and the house is maybe worth a little more than what I owe. So I would owe the bank a check if I sold, if you account for realtor fees. I guess I could consider a short sale. I do know the house isn't helping my situation. Any thoughts or advice is appreciated.
Edit: Just to give some perspective. I spent a lot of money while I was sick. $5k for trashing a hotel room because I thought people were trying to burn the hotel down. $5k for towing charges because I kept running out of gas and getting stuck driving in places I shouldn't have been. $8k deductible for involuntary hospitalizations. $4k for an attorney because I got arrested for trespassing while I was sick. Shit like that.
I’m 32 and feeling extremely overwhelmed, anxious, and ashamed about my financial situation. I’m hoping for some honest perspective and practical advice.
I currently have about $46K in credit card debt spread across multiple cards.
A lot of this started in my later twenties when I was working lower-paying jobs, built my credit to begin getting approved for cards with new member bonuses, and traveling and spending beyond my means. It got worse after I moved to a new state about two years ago for a fresh start after a bad breakup. I moved with very little (just my car and clothes), was unemployed for a bit, and lived off credit cards during that time.
I eventually landed a job making $110K, but instead of aggressively paying down the debt, I continued making poor financial decisions. I furnished a new apartment and put a lot of it on credit cards without a real payoff plan.
I’m only now starting to seriously face my finances and work through the anxiety I have around checking my bank and credit card accounts. Looking at the numbers has been scary.
Here’s my current situation:
I know I’m fortunate to have a higher income now, especially after years of making much less, but I feel like the habits and choices I made have put me in a hole that I’m still learning how to climb out of.
I’m trying to figure out the best next step. Should I be looking into a nonprofit credit counseling/Debt Management Plan through NFCC or ACCC? Should I try hardship programs with each creditor? Is bankruptcy something I should seriously consider, or does my income make that less realistic?
I've also considered just cashing out my minimal 401K ($35K -- I only started putting money in there when I landed my first good paying job in 2024).
How bad is my situation, realistically? Is this fixable with discipline and a structured plan, or am I underestimating how serious this is?
Any personal experiences, advice, or points in the right direction would be greatly appreciated.
Feeling pretty hopeless after finally starting to take a look at the hole I put myself in.
So, I've been paying roughly $650 a month, split between two different credit cards for quite some time. There was a point in time when the balance was lowering and I had a considerable savings put aside for paying down the cards. One thing led to another and I had to use my savings for rent and my car payment while I was with out a job for a few months, so I paid the minimum payment which is all interest at this point.
Here's my list of debts:
I was skeptical of signing up for a debt relief program. Over the last few years I've applied for personal loans through my credit union and regular bank. Denied. I tried doing a balance transfer for both cards to at least lower my minimum payment and also have no interest for 2 years. Denied. Multiple phone calls with both Discover and Chase to lower my interest rate, which did not work for Discover, but I did get my Chase rate lowered.
I have been struggling with my physical and mental health this last year. I was financially abused by my now ex while I did not have a job, literally using my savings to pay his mortgage plus my car and these credit card bills.
I just used my tax return to pay off $500 on each card, plus my car payment for two months.
I have three jobs, plus gig work. (1,900 a month)
The process was really easy, first we tried to get a personal loan for 24k, but obviously I did not get approved since my score is (680-690)
Ultimately, I'd rather take the dip in my score and pay these people to represent me/negotiate with Chase and Discover. ($199 a month as opposed to $600+)
My car is financed through Honda and I am keeping my Mastercard open because my issue is not spending money, it is high interest on money I have already spent on major life needs (health scares, a bed, braces). I'm hoping that keeping this card open will help me because I know that this program could hurt me long term on my score. They did advise to close it, but it is a $35 payment on a card I've used once a year since opening. The hardship is not the $35 a month, it's the never ending $600 payments to balances that never go down.
Patience is key with these things. I'll keep this updated with the pros and cons of the whole situation.