Feeling the squeeze....

[DUMBAGAIN]

I've not posted in sometime, been pretty busy...i like the new look of the forum!

Well we are a year into our plan, first year didn't seem to bad, however we are really starting to feel the squeeze. Medical bills, my son is a senior this year, lots of expense there, plus trying to help save a little money for a beater for him to get around in. Not to mention trying to figure out how we might help with some college expenses next year......I am just venting I guess, really mad at myself tonight.....I want my money back...But I must pay the piper! We have been lucky, not having to sacrifice much, however the time is nearing, think it's time to look for cheaper housing and lower utilities. We have 30 months left and we have to see this thing through!

Hope your day is going better than mine, Dumb!

[sheilaE]

Hi there!
I feel your pain. We have a daughter in her 2nd year of junior college, a sophomore and a 7th grader.We haven't filed our 13 yet, but it's coming very soon. Stopped paying cc in March. Stopped paying the 2nd last month. We don't know what our payback will be, but I'm hoping it won't be as much as the 2nd that we're stripping-which is $550.00. I can't even imagine how we're going to survive this, but we will. I think it's much harder to do it with children. Our's don't ask for much-but raising kids is NOT free. Our Youngest had to go to Urgent Care last week for an ear infection. That Dr visit and the meds he needed costs us $$$, which is why we'll be fighting to keep as much money as we can once we file. Good luck to you! Sheila

[needanswers]

I'll join this party. We're 4 months into plan and we've had one thing after another come up recently. I'm putting off dental work because it's $3000 and we just don't have it. One of my kids needs to start her orthodontics, ugh..... It's been impossible to save anything. I just worry we'll never get any kind of emergency savings built up. I have a teenager that graduates high school during plan and will enter college and I worry about how we'll have the money to pay for it.

[julsmom]

We are so in that boat! I thought we were filing this to relieve some stress and now I just have new stressors! We have a car payt that is paid outside the plan, plus the 1st mortgage & the trustee payt all due at the same time & Dh gets a check after that is all due! Ughgh! We have had major medical bills since filing (2 surgeries, a hospitalization & weekly appts, co pays, meds, etc) it added up fast...and now a 700 bill on the car. How am I ever going to do this?

[andy158]

Its all about priorities. Some things will have to wait and some never happen. Taking control of your finances is difficult, but you are on a learning curve in a bk13. This is the way you should have been living all along financially. Don't bite off what you can't chew and swallow. I know what you are all going through. We have a 16yr old graduating next year, a 21 year old defering college until we are able to help and a car that needs repairs everytime you turn around. Just found out yesterday our 21 yr old has to have wisdom teeth extracted and no insurance to pay for it! It is quite frustrating, but we couldn't continue down the debt road. It will get better. Life will go on and 50 years from now it won't matter!

[tammygirl1]

Right there with you! Filed July 29th and just had to shell out 1600 for a rebuilt transmission that decided to go out last week! There went the emergency fund (what little we saved) + bill money for this month. At least we got our Trustee payment sent out and will have to work through the rest.

[minan]

I'm right there with everyone else. I just filed on 7/30 and have already sent in one payment. I am worried about making ends meet. I've started looking for a second job so I can have extra money to build up my savings account which only has $22.00. My goal for the next 5 years is to make the payment each month because I cannot afford to not make it through the chapter 13. I know that it's a pain right now and have my bad days of anger and tears, however I keep telling myself that 5 years will pass by quickly. Doesn't seem like it on some days. This week is tough because I have my creditor's mtg on the 17th. Nervous and worried as heck. Can't sleep much because I'm constantly worrying.

[rjmwx81]

I'm right there with everyone else. I just filed on 7/30 and have already sent in one payment. I am worried about making ends meet. I've started looking for a second job so I can have extra money to build up my savings account which only has $22.00.

Careful with that plan. Once the trustee learns of the income from the second job (and he probably will since you often have to hand over tax returns), he could modify your plan to a larger payment since you're making more income.

[Billssuck]

I'm 15 months into my 36 month plan and it definitely has been a rough one with my husband's job loss after only 5 months into the plan. We have modified to surrender our house because we can't afford it with my husband's lower income (he found a job making $1k less after 4 months of unemployment). Since we're foreclosing and not making our house payments right now, you'd think we could save a bunch of money but things are always coming up (uh...this week...over $1,000 dollars in car repairs and our lawn mower broke down again after just spending $800 to repair it a few months ago). But on the flip side, we are learning alot from this experience and hope to see the light when we're discharged in less than 2 years. Good luck to all!

[muzzey58]

I'm 47 months into this bankruptcy. It's not just one headache, it's a migraine! You just really have to budget for everything in advance. We haven't had any extra money this year due to medical bills. My husband fell in February and broke a rib. In June I broke my right food. In August I had to have surgery on my arm. Talk about expensive! We look at our co-pays and cry! We have about a year left!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hallejuah! I will never use a credit card ever, ever again. They're a death trap. I think that lawmakers should force credit cards companies to put a skull and crossbones on the front on all cards. They are dangerous and will suck money out of your pocket!

We've been through almost every conceivable obstacle in this bankruptcy. My first lawyer made a mess of our filing. I called and called with no response from him. I had to quit work because of sustaining a very bad shoulder injury at work. So my part of the household income was gone. I tried to have him ask the court to modify our plan. I finally had to fire him and hire a new lawyer. My new lawyer filed a petition in court to modify our plan. She did get it through. The next year we found out we owed the IRS $7000 almost because of the bad advice from the first lawyer. The amount was absorbed into our plan. A year later our car was going bad. The front end suspension was going and the security system was failing. The repairs were over $3000. We had to file a petition to incur debt. That was one of the big headaches because the Trustee objected to us getting the new car. The Judge overrulled the Trustee and we were allowed to get the car. Now we're facing a new challenge. Someone stole my husband's social security number and opened up a charge card at HSBC. We're being harassed by a debt collector about the card. We've turned it over to our attorney to handle.

So you can see that there will be challenges ahead for all in a 13. You just have to find ways to cut out things you don't need. Find new ways to enjoy life. We've learned to go to local beaches along Lake Erie in the spring, summer and fall. In the winter, we'll save a little each week and have one night of a movie and dinner date. We watch movies on our Wii on Netflix which is about $9 a month. We get to see newer movies without paying a premium price.

In every life there are struggles. Being thankful for what you do have is a stepping stone to finding peace in this stage of life. I remember when I was a kid we had absolutely no money. I remember a few times with money struggles, however, I remember the holidays, picnics which made life special. It's the small things in life that are special. You will be all right. The time goes fast. I wish you the best.