Debt Consolidation?

Krissy366

OP, i'm not really saying you should do what I did but if you want to get out of debt sooner rather than later and you have some time to let you credit score improve then it is a viable option. There is some good advise here, but dont get scared off by the whole "moral majority" crew here who act like credit card companies are some poor little kid who you take advantage of but who never takes advantage of you. Do what YOU have to do to survive. Remember, you dont need credit... in the long run cash is king, credit cards are the devil.

I have cookies for all of you who wasted your money paying off your cards the "right" way. Well done! You are and will always be a credit card companies best friend.

I paid off mine the right way and I'm now the credit card companies' worst enemy, as I no longer have credit. I took responsibility for the money I borrowed in good faith, resolved to pay it off, and then to never borrow again. I accomplished all of that, on my own, through personal sacrifice. I gave up anything I could until I had finished paying my committments. I went 8 months without buying a single thing that I wanted but didn't need. I now live a debt-free life. If I had resolved to not buy things I didn't have cash for to begin with I wouldn't have been in the predicament I was in when I made the choice to rid myself of debt. But because I didn't go without when I didn't have the money and CHOSE to use credit I did the responsible thing and went without so that I could stop having credit. It was the best decision I ever made. There are certainly predatory lenders out there, and there are certainly people who get taken advantage of, but the reality is the majority of people are in debt because they can't do math and because they spend beyond their means. I respect people doing what they need to do to survive, but I don't respect people who think that their lack of personal accountability is a somehow a badge of honor. Meanwhile - when did "moral" become an insult? I'm quite happy to have morals. Oh, and any money I wasted was wasted on the day I purchased soemthing I couldn't afford, not on the day I paid back the company that allowed me to do it.

Tori_356

my boyfriend had around $35,000 in credit card debt, and used careonecredit.com to pay it off in 5 years (5 months left)....its a strain but it can be done. next we will be working on my debts i have about $8700 in credit card debt and $35k in student loan debt. it really blows but that is how we have had to live for while.

13% sounds low to me two of my cards have 21% interest rates. i recently did a few balance transfers to cards with promo 0% interest rates so i can not rack up more debt in the mean time while trying to pay. it's hard

neelia

I'm all out of resources and didn't know who else to ask about this, so I figured I'd post it here and see what happened lol

I'm trying to figure out how to consolidate my debt. I have about $6,500 left of my private student loans, and about the same amount ($6500) in credit card debt (long story - not my fault! lol). I notice my interest/APR or whatever for my student loans AND my credit cards is about 13%... I want to know if there's a way I can consolidate everything into ONE monthly payment, hopefully with a lower interest rate or APR. I'm clueless when it comes to stuff like this.

I've called a couple banks and asked them about a personal loan that could help me, but the ones I called also offer student loans, so they said they couldn't help me with those... must be a competitive sort of thing... anyways... anybody know anything about this kind of stuff? Is a personal loan a good way to go? Know of any US banks that would offer a loan that could pay off both student loans AND credit debt? Not only that, but for a lower interest rate or APR? My credit score is currently 720, so that should help a little, right? Blah! So lost, but at 13%, I will NEVER pay off these loans!

Anyways... if anyone has any advice, experience, resources, etc... that would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all in advance.

Love and Alohas,
Ihilani Kapuniai

Consolidating debt into one payment is a bad idea.

I have worked in finance for 6 years and prepare monthly budgets on a regular basis.

I also managed to get myself out of a hoard of debt a few years ago using Dave Ramsey's system. I use the same system to help my clients.

If you would like some free help, feel free to message me.

zandrellia

I'm all out of resources and didn't know who else to ask about this, so I figured I'd post it here and see what happened lol

I'm trying to figure out how to consolidate my debt. I have about $6,500 left of my private student loans, and about the same amount ($6500) in credit card debt (long story - not my fault! lol). I notice my interest/APR or whatever for my student loans AND my credit cards is about 13%... I want to know if there's a way I can consolidate everything into ONE monthly payment, hopefully with a lower interest rate or APR. I'm clueless when it comes to stuff like this.

I've called a couple banks and asked them about a personal loan that could help me, but the ones I called also offer student loans, so they said they couldn't help me with those... must be a competitive sort of thing... anyways... anybody know anything about this kind of stuff? Is a personal loan a good way to go? Know of any US banks that would offer a loan that could pay off both student loans AND credit debt? Not only that, but for a lower interest rate or APR? My credit score is currently 720, so that should help a little, right? Blah! So lost, but at 13%, I will NEVER pay off these loans!

Anyways... if anyone has any advice, experience, resources, etc... that would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you all in advance.

Love and Alohas,
Ihilani Kapuniai

At this point debt consolidation may not be the best route to go. Consider this: If you pay your monthly payments at the 13% interest rate for just 6 months often you can call in to your creditor and request a renegotiation of terms - that is, you can reduce the interest rate. It may not be much at first, but if you continue to make regular payments you can continue to call in and renegotiate for a smaller interest amount. Many places are less concerned about getting the whole amount and more concerned with getting a little more than the original debt as debts are piling up and they need the money desperately.

If you're struggling to make ends meet: Consider deferment of your student loan debt instead of trying to pay both at once and killing yourself over time. You can often defer your student loan payments by as much as a year if you're barely making enough to live, let alone make a hefty payment at this time. You'll have to fill out some paperwork and get it approved, but once it is in you're good and often the interest is frozen during those months. (Not always, but sometimes.) Doing this could help you to get on track as far as reducing your total debt - which will help your interest rates in the long term (and it may not seem like it now, but that is far more important than reducing interest now.) as your FICO score will improve. This way you could roll together what you are paying towards both debts into one payment to that credit card debt (which is probably killing your FICO score right now.) and knock it out faster.

If you can do both of these, that is defer the student loan and pay more towards the credit card while renegotiating your terms every six months or so... you can knock out that credit card debt fast.

Getting another loan in order to pay off your debts might SEEM like a great idea, but it can hurt you as well. Taking out a $12000 loan right now would be near impossible unless you make very good money as lenders will view you as over-extending yourself. At this point, it would help you in the long run to put your head down and keep reducing your credit card debt while holding off on the student loan until that is completed or you're in better financial situation. (either you make more money, or you reduce the interest rate so that you can pay less over time.)

No matter what you do, do NOT stop making payments. Sure it's "only seven years" for that credit card debt but you have to remember that the seven years begins the day of your first MISSED payment after your last successful one - that is, all these payments you've been making so far will count against such bad behavior. So if you just made a payment and your next payment isn't due for a month - then seven years would start from that day if you failed to make a payment. Not from when you gained the original debt.

Additionally, student loans do not fall under the same statute of limitations - there is no seven year fall off point. You owe the debt and they will do everything in their power to get that money, including but not limited to garnishing your wages or taking your income tax refund.

Whenever you get a windfall like a tax refund, pay it down towards your debts. That is money you have been living without for an entire year, you never relied on it to survive before and shouldn't start now. Also, claim as many deductions as you can - reduced by one to assure you pay just enough tax through the year - so you're not giving an interest free loan to the government. That money could help you to pay off your debts now a lot better than it can later.

Once you have money to pay a sizable chunk towards your debt, call and renegotiate the terms per this payment! Keep doing this every six months and keep good records (everything in writing! verbal means nothing!) and you'll find your debt is gone in no time. Good luck! :flowerforyou:

dinosnopro

OP, i'm not really saying you should do what I did but if you want to get out of debt sooner rather than later and you have some time to let you credit score improve then it is a viable option. There is some good advise here, but dont get scared off by the whole "moral majority" crew here who act like credit card companies are some poor little kid who you take advantage of but who never takes advantage of you. Do what YOU have to do to survive. Remember, you dont need credit... in the long run cash is king, credit cards are the devil.

I have cookies for all of you who wasted your money paying off your cards the "right" way. Well done! You are and will always be a credit card companies best friend.

you have no clue do you? how do you feel about stealing from WalMart? you probably feel like the big corporation is getting what it deserves, not realizing in the end everyone else pays higher prices ( or interest in the case of credit cards ) but as long as you don't pay why do you care?



OP please do not take this crooks advise.