Any One Declared Bankruptcy.

Call Donald Little in downtown Canton. He's really good! I know a few people (including myself) who have filed through him! It is very simple to do. We only filed because we had a vehicle repoed several years ago and they began taking $200 a week out of my husbands pay. We could NOT afford that. We now only pay a set amount each week. This is MUCH better than trying to live on what hubby was bringing home while his wages were being garnished!

Although I don't have this problem (although my husband would say I spent too much!) I was wondering if you have ever thought about those debt consolidation programs? I don't know if you have ever seen those commercials on TV for those? I see them all the time and they seem like a good idea. Maybe it might be something to look into. They are supposed to help NOT declare bankruptcy. Your credit is really hard to get back on track after declaring bankruptcy. Something to think about. Hey, lets face it, we all have debt!!! Here are some websites out there..
consumerdebthelp.org
americanfinancialservice.org
careonecredit.com
or just do a search on debt consolidation and it brings up a bunch of thing. Hope this helps!

Yes I have and I don't recommend it to anyone. Its a last resort. Everybody's situation is different. How many cards do you have? What is the total amount of all the cards? My mind is stuck on that line 'we both make good money but we are always broke'. Then you must be smart people and you can get yourselves out of this money problem. If you file bankruptcy chances are the marriage won't last either. Educate yourself about money. First go to MSNMONEY lots of good articles there. Get books from the library about bankruptcy and money management. It is better to work a second job than it is to file bankruptcy. Start a one month journal and write down every penny spent. Diapers,wipers and formula are a huge expense.And STOP USING YOUR CARDS.You have money because you have jobs. I was the only one working in my house and we are not together anymore.There is a difference between what you want and what you need. Bankurptcy clears up two things credit card debt and medical bills.The credit card companies want you in debt, its by design, they make money that way.People that have long term illnesses get into debt with hospital and medical bills. If you're young and healthy you can overcome this. YOu are not alone.Think how much money you can save if you only had one car; lower insurance payment lower gas per month.Look at every aspect of your life and figure out a way to do it cheaper.But if you do decide to file, don't wait until the money is all gone. You'll need some to pay lawyers or paralegals. Get professional help before its too far gone. How does it affect you...negative all negative.

I did bankruptcy almost a year ago now. I did it by myself. With the new law into effect it goes according to the number of people in your house and how much you two make a year together. I was very surprised considering that its 3 of us in my house and you couldn't make no more than 58,000.(I am pretty sure this figure is correct). Because I am part time that helped a ton. So I did it and it was the BEST thing that I could have ever done. It was the biggest relief. We too were like you guys we were only able to pay the bare minimal and it was hardly any room for extra expenses. On the flip side there are other things to consider like what kind of car you have, how much its worth, if you own property, etc...
People always think that when you file bankruptcy will automatically loose everything but thats not true. You have two options either chapter 7 or 13. If you guys own property, have cars I believe that are worth more than $900, etc... chapter 13 may be best for you. With this they consolidate all of your bills, compare your debt to income ratio, and come up with how much of your debt they think that you can pay, and give you a monthly payment, and tell you how long you got to pay it back. Chapter 7 is totally different. Chapter 7 is what I did and it erases EVERYTHING. So hope this helps. Good Luck on whatever decision you make.

It is a lot harder to file bancrupcy now. In fact, a friend of mine tried to file and she was denied, so just be careful. I would say that if you can at least afford to make a min. payment, try debt consulting. It's free and they will really help you out. As for an attorney, it will cost you, so dept consulting is really a good idea.

I haven't had to declare bankruptcy myself, but the one thing I would caution you to think about is whether you can change your spending habits and budget that got you into this situation? Because many people who consolidate debts, etc., keep on getting back into debt and end up even worse off. The key is cutting up your credit cards, getting some help with starting a budget, and making sure you change your habits. Otherwise, bankruptcy is just a temporary solution.
It could be helpful to you, so I'm not saying don't do it, just be careful.
Something to think about, also,is that even if you declare bankruptcy you are still ethically committed to pay those bills. Not everyone will agree with me, just want to put that thought out there. Something not everyone thinks about, is how we are affecting the people that work for these companies that we are now not paying. Not being judgemental in any sense, or wanting to start a debate--I definitely know that things happen and we aren't always able to help it, I'm just saying it's something to factor into the decision. It at least takes the "monkey" off your back and you can pay the debts at your own pace then.
If you want to find a free debt counselor, try www.crown.org they may have someone in your area.
Good luck!
Lynn

L.:

I've never filed bankruptcy myself. However, I'm a law student and I just finished taking a class on Bankruptcy. Please, do yourself a favor, don't take other people's advice on this -- pay the money and see a lawyer. Every person's bankruptcy is different and very dependent on their own particular set of circumstances. If you knew what could go wrong and the consequences for when things go wrong, you would agree that hiring a lawyer is worth the money.

I can't give legal advice as I'm not a lawyer, only a law student, but I think the best advice that anyone could give you on whether you file bankruptcy is to see a professional. I know people hate paying money to lawyers, even when they are providing a valuable service, but I look at it this way: if I had a broken leg I wouldn't hesitate to have a doctor set it, I wouldn't try to set the leg myself. Right now, it sounds like your financial difficulties are something of a broken leg to your family -- hire a professional to fix it.

I've been there and for some people it's the only way out. About 5 years ago, my hubby (now ex hubby) and I got behind on our house payment (and were getting ready to lose our house)and other bills due to having our 2nd child, him getting laid off a few times, etc. and it was the best thing for us. We filed Ch. 13 which is a repayment plan, that way we could keep our house and car. Also, we chose the shortest plan which is 3 years. I know plenty of people though that play the "Bankruptcy game" and rack up bills and debt and file every 7 years which is horrible. We learned our lesson after filing once because it is so nice once that 3 years is up and things are back on track. You should go talk to an attorney and see what your best options are. Good luck

As many said, Bankruptcy should be the LAST resort! I filed Chapter 7 about 8 years ago when I was still unmarried and it was for medical bills. It was a little easier for me to obtain credit again (many creditors will consider filing due to medical bills rather than you bought a bunch of unnecessary things) but I still have BANKRUPTCY on my credit report. It can hurt as far as trying to gain employment (some companies do look for that), it slowed down the process when my ex-husband and I were getting a mortgage, jacked my interest rate up when I bought my car (most auto loans are highest 6%, mine was 11% even with a co-signer!).
My ex-husband and I went through the same as well with credit and finally had to go to a credit counseling service. If you are in Toledo I recommend Consumer Credit Counseling Service. I had tried one I saw on TV prior to that and they were HORRID! I had made 2 payments and creditors were NEVER contacted. Upon your first payment to CCCS they are on top of it and get the ball rolling. Many creditors are also very understanding if you do speak with them. I believe it was Citi Card that reduced fees and such while we were waiting for the first CCCS payment to get to them. Other companies will also set up a payment and match your payment to help you get in the clear. In this day and age creditors know it's a tough economy and will work with you and a credit counseling agency rather than getting no money at all if you declare Bankruptcy.
The Bankruptcy laws have also changed and it's not as easy to do it. Again, I highly suggest a credit counseling agency or even speaking to the creditors yourself to see if an arrangement can be worked out. Many times too creditors will "cancel" your account so you can't charge but you still pay the balance due.
Good Luck! I know it's tough, it can get depressing and things seem hopeless but somehow it all works out. Just keep positive and don't give up!

my husband and me were thinking the same thing this last christmas due to him losing his job out of the blue and not being able to get a job. before we did, we sought out help from friends and family. first thing i recommend and this helped us sooo much if you have a house payment, you can as for hardship assistance. you send verification of employment, etc, and write a letter on what has happened, and within a week, they cut our house payment down by half for 3 months. hat might help you out a little as well.

another thing you might look into is a finacial advisor. they might be able to get all your credit cards onto one payment and cut your payment way down. something me and my husband do is a budget. we kow how much each of us makes, and we pay the bills first, put money into the savings and then might go spend a little on ourselves.

i dont know if this has helped, but keep your chin up :)

My husband & I did this a couple of years ago. Before the laws changed. It has helped in that we don't have to worry about answering our phone any more. We had a couple of accounts that were in collection & a huge mortgage. We had also both lost our jobs. Now, we are living in an aparment that his father had to co-sign for (last resort). But, we are starting to get things back together. The apt. is helping rebuild our credit & we are even considering a SMALL credit card to help with that. We want to be able to start saving money & buy a house again. It was a good thing for us. There was no way else to get out of the mess. After losing our jobs, we both found good jobs & are somewhat stress free. Feel free to contact me if you have any other questions.
K.

L.,
I understand the feeling...While I haven't seriously considered this as an option for my husband and myself, the thought has crossed my mind. Like you, we both make decent money, but seem to have no money for many things. I'm not even talking about going out to eat, etc. I'm talking about things like paying bills on time and making full payments.

Our situation came to a head a few nights ago when we had our gas shut off because we were two months behind with payments. We were able to scrape the money together to make a payment and get it turned back on, but it really made us take a look at what was going on.

I have a certain set of bills to pay out of my paycheck and my husband has a certain set to pay out of his. I had been telling him that I am paying out more than I am making, but he didn't believe it for some reason.

So, we made out a detailed list of how much we make and all the bills we take care of. It turns out that I am definately paying out more than I make. We haven't come to a complete agreement about how we're going to handle the situation, but at least we know what our situation is now and we can work on it.

Anyway, I guess what I'm trying to get at is, before you make this decision (which is HUGE), take a look at your incomes vs. expenses. You might be able to make some adjustments.

I have some freinds who filed for bankruptcy and it "fixed" their problems by wiping away their debts, but the law has recently changed. I'm not sure of all the details, but to my knowledge, with the new laws, you still have to pay back all your debts. It's not like it used to be and it doesn't give you the fresh start many people think. My friends pay cash for everything now, which is probably better for them, but it's very hard to get loans, etc now.

You might pay out more in the end with interest, but one option I have have been considering is loan consolidation. This would put all debts into one monthly payment, lower than all the individual loans.

Just some thoughts. Good luck and let us know what what you decide will work for you. I have a feeling a lot of us are in the same boat!

Hi L.:
I sent you a personal message.

After my husband and I had a business venture we sunk close to $40,000 oin credit cards and a 2nd mortgage on our house. We tried one of those debt places that was supposed to negotiate settlements on our credit cards. My husband was more successful in negotiating with the companies than they were. It was destryoing our credit and we were still getting no where fast just wrecking our credit. So we decided to declare bankruptcy. We put the medical bills from our 3rd daughter as part of the bankruptcy, which also helped. It gave us a clean start. We have 1 credit card only to help rebuild our credit, which didn't seem to be effected to badly. We pay cash for just about everything. That is key, to really learn from this and to look at the things you might want for you and your children and if it's not something you need and you don't have the cash for it then you really don't need it. Or it gives you something to save for.

I felt ashamed for filing bankruptcy but in all honesty I would do it again in a heart beat given the circumstances we were in. Talk to an attorney, get things started that way you won't be afraid to answer the phone anymore!

Hello L.. It is true that the laws were recently changed with filing bankruptcy, but they don't affect most people. The best way to know is to have a consultation with an attorney who specialized in bankruptcies. I do know that you can file without including your house and one car. Best of Luck!

have you considered using a finacial assistance group? we have and we write one check to them once a month and they disperse the money to the people that we gave them. Credit cards, medical bills, anything that you want to add. I am using American Finacial Solutions found them on the internet. C.