So for days now Discover card has been calling relentlessly, even Saturday and Sunday. So since I'm right out straight working (yeah, right!) I decided to answer the phone yesterday when they called and begin the process.
The representative says hello and says he is calling to remind me that I'm late on my Discover payments and he'd just like to debit my checking account for the $537.00. I advise the rep that if I could make the payment, I would have done it myself, that I have a very serious financial problem. I further tell him that my business is real estate housing and I have no work and have lost my income. I advise him that I'm in over $130,000 in credit card debt and I can't pay anyone right now and I've consulted with a bankruptcy attorney, but am looking for alternatives and am talking with friends and family to see what they can do and I don't think I will have a solution for a few months, not until I know how much money I can come up with.
The representative advises me that he needs to transfer me to someone else so they can stop calling me so much. I get a lady who wants to know if I own real estate. I advise her that I do, but I have borrowed against it to the maximum while trying to avoid the situation I'm in and I have no equity left and with the failing housing market, I can't even sell it. She wants to know what company I work for. I advise her that that is irrelevant since I have no income coming in and I am a performanced based income and basically self-employed. I further advise her that there is no work, housing is not moving and where I live I can't find the kind of income I was making prior to the housing crash and I will not easily be able to fix this problem, I owe too many people and I just don't have the income and haven't had since January of last year, I've been floating myself with credit and that is how I got in this mess. She wants to know if I am married. This is a hard question for me, I got married in August 2007, no one knows because I did not change my name. Also, my husbands financial situation was terrible when we married, he has since been able to get debts settled, with my help, but his income is low and he has a daughter in college so he has been unable to help much here, basically he pays for most of our groceries and that is it.
I don't want to disclose to the representative that I got married, I was divorced nine years, I know they will think he has an income that I can tap into and they will put more pressure on me and it will make it more difficult for settlement. Also, this is not my husbands debt, it is mine and in just my name so he has no financial obligation to pay it, so I tell her I am not married (I just lied). We have no joint credit, we just have one piece of real estate together and I hold the mortgage on it because his credit was so bad he couldn't get a loan and almost lost the house. Currently the house is rented until we can sell either this house or that one, the sad thing is right now neither property has much equity and I've owned my house for 25 years and he owned his for 15 years, that is what divorced and being a single parent will do to you. I put two kids through college and it's expensive. He has a daughter in college and went through an ugly divorce that almost ruined him, bad things happen to good people.
I hear her typing away, she then tells me she has a program where they can reduce my payment to $700.00 a month until things are better. Let me see, I think I know my math, didn't the payment just go up? I advise her that I can't pay what I owe now and can't possibly pay more. I guess because my rate is up to 30% my payment just increased. She then says she will be in touch. She wasn't too bad and seemed sympathetic, but I know this will continue from here and will probably get worse before it gets better.
Today, my only daughter, wants me to go to a bridal shop with her. She is getting married in June and we are picking out her wedding dress and her brides maids dresses. My daugther is 31 and she lost her father several years ago, so I am it. She knows financially that I am having problems, but I have told her I will do what I can for her and I want to pay for her dress, it is the least I can do. In the old days I would have paid for the entire wedding, but I can't do that now (kind of makes me sad). She is self sufficient and they bought a home last year and they had a baby, so they are adults and I am an official grandmother. I just can't believe time goes by so fast.
Showing posts with label discover. Show all posts
Showing posts with label discover. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 15, 2008
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
Change in Plans
Recently my servicing of my retirement plan was transferred. I called them today to double check on my planned loan. My old company was Fidelity and they had advised me that I would be eligible for a $31,000 loan. My new company advises that that is not correct, that I will only be eligible for $17,000 to $19,000 if my 401k doesn't lose any more money. Big difference to $31,000 and a major hole in my financial plan for settlement. So now I need to revamp.
I currently have secured a $23,000 family loan and approximately $18,000 from a 401k. I am expecting a $3,000 tax refund, $3,300 hardship withdrawal, $2,000 repayment from a loan I made to a family member, so right now I have $46,300. I wanted to have at least $60,000, so I'm about $13,700 short. I can probably save an additional $5,000 by June and I have a car I'd like to sell for $7,000. I'm not sure if the car will sell with the economy what it is, but I will keep my fingers crossed. This is getting very close and now the pressure just went up.
I received two calls this morning from Discover, I'm 8 days late on one account and only 1 day late on the second, I'm wondering if they are calling because I am late or if they are calling because I closed my accounts with them? I'm 24 days late on my Bank of America large account and 13 days late on my small credit card with them. Nothing else is late yet, although I made my payment with Chase a day late and they raised my rate to 29.99%, they are just so kind! I can't believe how they think raising rates, charging late fees and overlimit fees are going to encourage me to pay my account, don't they know how discouraging this can be because you can never get ahead and eventually you just stop paying and they lose. If credit card companies tried harder to work with customers, locked into a fixed rate and couldn't change it (like a mortgage payment or car loan), they wouldn't have as many defaults and losses. I really believe our government needs to get involved with stricter regulations on the credit card companies. My prediction is that the credit card crisis will supersede anything we have seen in the mortgage business.
So how will I sleep tonight and sleep for the next six months until this all comes to a head? I really don't know and I'm trying to just take a deep breath and one day at a time.
I currently have secured a $23,000 family loan and approximately $18,000 from a 401k. I am expecting a $3,000 tax refund, $3,300 hardship withdrawal, $2,000 repayment from a loan I made to a family member, so right now I have $46,300. I wanted to have at least $60,000, so I'm about $13,700 short. I can probably save an additional $5,000 by June and I have a car I'd like to sell for $7,000. I'm not sure if the car will sell with the economy what it is, but I will keep my fingers crossed. This is getting very close and now the pressure just went up.
I received two calls this morning from Discover, I'm 8 days late on one account and only 1 day late on the second, I'm wondering if they are calling because I am late or if they are calling because I closed my accounts with them? I'm 24 days late on my Bank of America large account and 13 days late on my small credit card with them. Nothing else is late yet, although I made my payment with Chase a day late and they raised my rate to 29.99%, they are just so kind! I can't believe how they think raising rates, charging late fees and overlimit fees are going to encourage me to pay my account, don't they know how discouraging this can be because you can never get ahead and eventually you just stop paying and they lose. If credit card companies tried harder to work with customers, locked into a fixed rate and couldn't change it (like a mortgage payment or car loan), they wouldn't have as many defaults and losses. I really believe our government needs to get involved with stricter regulations on the credit card companies. My prediction is that the credit card crisis will supersede anything we have seen in the mortgage business.
So how will I sleep tonight and sleep for the next six months until this all comes to a head? I really don't know and I'm trying to just take a deep breath and one day at a time.
Tuesday, January 8, 2008
First Collection Call
I've been preparing myself for that first collection call. Today I get a recorded message that leaves an 800 number and asks me to call back. So I call the number and hear "Credit Card Services" and it ask me to put my last four digits of my credit card in. I'm not sure which credit card is calling and if it is a collection call or someone calling to get me to open back up my credit card, since I closed them all on January 2nd. I'm not yet 30 days late on any card. I guess I'll just wait and see if they call back. However, my thought is not to really talk much to anyone for the first 60 days and then to send out a letter to the creditors advising them of my situation.
I've been spending a lot of time reading about people and their debt for the last six months and I'm not surprised to see how debt can affect emotions. When you look at the whole scope of things, debt does control most peoples life's. I was very upset when I finally realized I was not going to recover from the housing market crash and that my income would never be the same and there was no way I could continue making credit card payments. I had many sleepless nights, went on depression medication and anxiety medication and etc. Then about six months after I knew where I was heading, I finally made up my mind that this was not a bad thing, this was a good thing. I was finally dealing with my credit cards and I was finally going to be forced to pay them off and no longer use them. I was actually going to be freeing myself from the credit cards and the huge monthly payments I've been paying for the last ten years. I've been living on the edge for at least that time, if not before. It's time to get rid of cards and learn how to manage my money better and I think "everything happens for a reason"; and I needed this lesson in my life.
One of my passions is cooking, so while I'm waiting for my opportunity to settle my debt, I've been looking for ways to save money grocery shopping, yet still feed my family tasty and nutricious meals. The first thing I do on Sunday is take out the Super Market flier and see what the deals for the week are. I look for the two for the price of one specials. I had purchased a small chest freezer so I can freeze foods and use them at a later date. So this weeks special was to buy one package of boneless pork chops and get a second one free and chicken breast was $2.29 a pound for the family package. So I bought the pork chops and the chicken breast. I froze the second package of pork and split the family pack of chicken into two packages with freezer bags and froze the second package. Two of the meals I will prepare this week will be grilled pork and lemon chicken.
Grilled Pork
3-4 pork strips
1 T minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
salt & pepper
Take your pork strips and place them in a bowl, usually four pieces, coat them with olive oil, 1 tablespoon of minced garlic, salt and pepper. Place in refrigerator for at least four hours, turning at least once. Then grill them on the barbeque grill until cooked through.
I usually serve these with herbed potatoes - cut red or gold yukon potatoes into bite size cubes, lightly coat a baking dish with olive oil, sprinkle garlic powder, cajun spice, salt and pepper over potatoes, bake at 350 for 20 minutes, turning potatoes after the first ten minutes. Serve wth a side of corn, one can kernel corn and one can creamed corn mixed together.
Stove Top Lemon Chicken
3-4 chicken breast
1 can chicken broth
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 T lemon pepper
1/2 c. flour
1 egg
Pound out four chicken breast until they are flat, make a mixture of flour and lemon pepper, whip one egg, dip your chicken in the egg and then coat with the flour mixture. Place chicken in a lightly greased fry pan and saute until golden brown. Remove the chicken from the fry pan, pour in one can of chicken broth and 1/4 cup of lemon juice, sprinkle a half a teaspoon of lemon pepper then add two heaping tablespoons of gravy thickener (I like Wonder sauce and gravy). Heat until the mixture thickens and then add your chicken breast back into the sauce. Let simmer for about five minutes then serve over hot rice with a side of green beans.
Both of these meals are under $10.00 and they are delicious.
I've been spending a lot of time reading about people and their debt for the last six months and I'm not surprised to see how debt can affect emotions. When you look at the whole scope of things, debt does control most peoples life's. I was very upset when I finally realized I was not going to recover from the housing market crash and that my income would never be the same and there was no way I could continue making credit card payments. I had many sleepless nights, went on depression medication and anxiety medication and etc. Then about six months after I knew where I was heading, I finally made up my mind that this was not a bad thing, this was a good thing. I was finally dealing with my credit cards and I was finally going to be forced to pay them off and no longer use them. I was actually going to be freeing myself from the credit cards and the huge monthly payments I've been paying for the last ten years. I've been living on the edge for at least that time, if not before. It's time to get rid of cards and learn how to manage my money better and I think "everything happens for a reason"; and I needed this lesson in my life.
One of my passions is cooking, so while I'm waiting for my opportunity to settle my debt, I've been looking for ways to save money grocery shopping, yet still feed my family tasty and nutricious meals. The first thing I do on Sunday is take out the Super Market flier and see what the deals for the week are. I look for the two for the price of one specials. I had purchased a small chest freezer so I can freeze foods and use them at a later date. So this weeks special was to buy one package of boneless pork chops and get a second one free and chicken breast was $2.29 a pound for the family package. So I bought the pork chops and the chicken breast. I froze the second package of pork and split the family pack of chicken into two packages with freezer bags and froze the second package. Two of the meals I will prepare this week will be grilled pork and lemon chicken.
Grilled Pork
3-4 pork strips
1 T minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
salt & pepper
Take your pork strips and place them in a bowl, usually four pieces, coat them with olive oil, 1 tablespoon of minced garlic, salt and pepper. Place in refrigerator for at least four hours, turning at least once. Then grill them on the barbeque grill until cooked through.
I usually serve these with herbed potatoes - cut red or gold yukon potatoes into bite size cubes, lightly coat a baking dish with olive oil, sprinkle garlic powder, cajun spice, salt and pepper over potatoes, bake at 350 for 20 minutes, turning potatoes after the first ten minutes. Serve wth a side of corn, one can kernel corn and one can creamed corn mixed together.
Stove Top Lemon Chicken
3-4 chicken breast
1 can chicken broth
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 T lemon pepper
1/2 c. flour
1 egg
Pound out four chicken breast until they are flat, make a mixture of flour and lemon pepper, whip one egg, dip your chicken in the egg and then coat with the flour mixture. Place chicken in a lightly greased fry pan and saute until golden brown. Remove the chicken from the fry pan, pour in one can of chicken broth and 1/4 cup of lemon juice, sprinkle a half a teaspoon of lemon pepper then add two heaping tablespoons of gravy thickener (I like Wonder sauce and gravy). Heat until the mixture thickens and then add your chicken breast back into the sauce. Let simmer for about five minutes then serve over hot rice with a side of green beans.
Both of these meals are under $10.00 and they are delicious.
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