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Bankruptcy now... or never???
SirPeale:
--- Quote from: ChadTower on March 10, 2005, 07:58:23 am ---I still say he should look into credit counseling. They can reduce your interest rates down to almost nothing for you without lending you any more money. It worked awesomely for us without having to run from our accountability.
http://www.genus.org
Great site, helped us get out of $60k in debt within 4 years. Non profit, gov't approved and the lenders like them too since it's better for them than a bankrupt client.
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I'll second Genus. Has helped us lower our debt massively. The thing that was killing us was the interest. 24.99%? Bologna!
--- Quote ---I have also noticed that most of the people talking about "I have no debt, I drive a $750 car, I don't need this and that" don't have kids. You cannot stick your wife and kids with a $750 car. It's too dangerous for them to break down on the side of a highway when it's 5 degrees outside. I'm not saying they need a $30k SUV but they need safe, reliable transportation. I got my wife a '97 Subaru Legacy Outback about 18 months ago for $12k. It has a great safety rating, is nearly impervious to snow and ice on the road (AWD), and starts every morning. Some things, even though they cost some money, are more important than the money they cost.
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Say, Chad...whatever happened to that safe car, anyway?
fredster:
This is disturbing -
--- Quote ---Main reason I switched was that I didn't need a truck anymore
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How can you not need a truck anymore ???
I understand that the main reason people go into Bankruptcy is medical bills. About 1/2 ?
I know that one can carry a debt and manage it, sure. But the minute something goes wrong, that's when the problem happens. If you stay as debt free as you can, you don't have to worry about losing your car if you hold title.
A lot of these companies will settle for less. They kick you when you are down. A card that was at 5% goes to 21%. Late fees and extra interest gets you in deeper.
It's a personal decision and complicated. I pulled myself out by doing the Dave Ramsey method, and I paid those SOB's off one by one. I will never ever get wrapped up like that again. Between the people I owed on bills I made and Medical bills I couldn't avoid was a life changing experience.
ChadTower:
--- Quote from: Peale on March 10, 2005, 08:48:39 am ---Say, Chad...whatever happened to that safe car, anyway?
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It's still safe. :) We have had some repairs on it, the timing belt and water pump went recently. Alas, that's one of the drawbacks to buying a car that has 80k+ miles on it. The basic maintenance starts to kick in, mileage related failures. The big thing on this one is the AWD. I know people drive SUVs and say "hey, this thing is 4WD, snow doesn't matter", and they're stupid. AWD, though, actually does make a huge difference. I still say, even with some maintenane and some older car type headaches, it's better than sticking the wife and kids in a $700 car that is in poor condition and is far more likely to break down.
Zakk:
--- Quote from: Peale on March 10, 2005, 08:41:31 am ---
--- Quote from: Zakk on March 09, 2005, 11:00:05 pm ---This isn't a lecture, just a bit of advice.
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ChadTower:
Most of the folks I know who have done bankruptcy did it because they spent $75k filling out the giant house they just bought... and now that they have their house, the credit is less of an issue and the card debt goes POOF when they file.