hey. this is my first post. i'm not sure if this is an exeptable topic on the board, but you guys seem like the ones to ask. i currently have 3 credit cards. discover platnium 10k limit, with about 7.5k outstanding. chase platnium 5k limit, about 5.5k outstanding (over limit due to fees), and a gold bank of america 4k limit with about 3k outstanding. i was out of work for about a month and a half and fell behind on my payments. all of them are now hitting me with incredible monthly fees and minimum payments, that i can't keep up with. i need to try and consolidate or something as my credit is rapidly going down the toilet. i do not own a home but hope to get one as soon as i pay off some/most of my debt. any advice that will help me save my credit and lower monthy payments would be greatly appreciated.
With you past due, I'm not sure of anything solid. Best thing is to try and work with each individual creditor and see what they can offer. Are you in a position now where you will not have any problems making payments in the near future?
i just got a new job so i will be able to make payments, but i don't think i can swing the amounts they want and still have enough to live. what kinds of things will the creditors be willing to do? is there anyway to consolidate this kind of debt and lower my payments without hurting my credit? btw prior to the last few months, i have about 2 years of credit history with only a couple of late payments.
--i just got a new job so i will be able to make payments, but i don't think i can swing the amounts they want and still have enough to live. **any chance of a loan from a friend or relative to either get u out of debt or at least catch up? Or a co-signer w/ EXCELLENT credit or enough collateral to get a personal loan to pay this all off? --what kinds of things will the creditors be willing to do? **sometimes they may raise your limit to get u out of being over the limit; some may waive late fees and allow u to catch up; some will just grant you grace time w/o any penalties but being the credit cards you stated earlier, don't count on it happening. The most you may get is a lower interest rate. But call them, u may be surprised. --is there anyway to consolidate this kind of debt and lower my payments without hurting my credit? **see above about a personal loan and co-signors; you'll still have the late dings there but that's not all that bad. Bad are judgments, public records, charg-offs and collection accounts. --btw prior to the last few months, i have about 2 years of credit history with only a couple of late payments. **that will almost ALWAYS be a benefit to you. Don't let ANYONE tell you that what happened before as a positive does not help now!
thank you. i'll try to find a co-signer but i don't know if i will be able to find one to cover the whole thing. failing that i will try contacting the companies directly. while looking over the site i have noticed many guides, but didn't notice any that were directed at this type of situation. did i miss them or are they not here?
