Life without a car??

[sweetchks14]

ok so has anyone been here done this?
Im going to return my car.
How long will I be able to hold onto my car?
What will I do in between time where I have to give back the car and wait for discharge to finance a new one.. omg could anything be more frustrating!?

[bkmaggster]

I take the bus and ride my bike. It's not very convenient, but it works.

I had to give my car up about 45 days after I filed. That's how long it took to get the stay lifted.

DH is about to give up his car, and we are going to get him a ~$1000 junker. Getting him to work would involve 3 bus transfers and several miles of walking making his commute 2 hours long instead of 30 minutes. So it just isn't practical for us to go completely without.

[mccaverty]

Yep - walked, took the bus, rode my bike...lots of character- and cardio-building experiences...and as soon as I got my discharge, I got another car!

[hamburgervol]

The relief of stay on my vehicle was was granted for me 18 days ago. I have called the lender numerous times trying to arrange pick up. I can't get them to come get mine.

[bkmaggster]

The relief of stay on my vehicle was was granted for me 18 days ago. I have called the lender numerous times trying to arrange pick up. I can't get them to come get mine.

We found that the only way to get rid of it was call the lender's lawyer, whose contact info was on the stay documents in Pacer. We offered to bring the keys to her office and she got the surrender arranged rather quickly for us.

[OhioFiler]

100 years ago everyone lived life without a car. 40 years ago we had no microwave ovens. 20 years ago PC's were almost unheard of. 10 years ago hardly anyone had a cell phone.

Today the Amish continue to thrive without any of these items (though many use cell phones). It's all about adapting to our environment.

[ease]

We have one car we rarely use. Our kids bike or take the city bus where they need to go. DH walks to work. I bike our youngest to school and bus to my job. It's a wonderful way to live and there are lots of books/websites on the subject. My 2 favorites are Divorce Your Car, written by a woman who lives in rural Michigan and How To Live Well Without Owning a Car, written by a guy in L.A. You can get bikes cheap at garage sales or craigslist and most cities have family bus pass programs. Our family of 5 pays 150 a year for all of us.

[bluemartini]

Ugh, this is a sore subject for me. No one wants to think of having to take the bus or ride a bike. Kudos to those who have been forced to do that and survived.

My car might be worth perhaps $1,000 over the exemption allowance plus the wild card allowance according to my attorney. He said if it gets questioned that I might have to pay the difference between the exemption amount vs. the car's actual value. I hope it doesn't come to that but hey, it's better than living in collections hell or worrying about having my car seized.

I'm very early into this process, won't be able to file Ch. 7 for nearly a year. In the meantime I guess the car will continue to lose value, so that's a good thing!

[ease]

Ugh, this is a sore subject for me. No one wants to think of having to take the bus or ride a bike. Kudos to those who have been forced to do that and survived.

My car might be worth perhaps $1,000 over the exemption allowance plus the wild card allowance according to my attorney. He said if it gets questioned that I might have to pay the difference between the exemption amount vs. the car's actual value. I hope it doesn't come to that but hey, it's better than living in collections hell or worrying about having my car seized.

I'm very early into this process, won't be able to file Ch. 7 for nearly a year. In the meantime I guess the car will continue to lose value, so that's a good thing!

I think of taking public transportation and biking as the responsible thing to do...environmentally, traffic congestion, health. There's no shame in it at all. I'm quite proud of how little I contribute to green house gases.

[bluemartini]

I think of taking public transportation and biking as the responsible thing to do...environmentally, traffic congestion, health. There's no shame in it at all. I'm quite proud of how little I contribute to green house gases.

That is a great attitude to have, Ease... you've got the right idea!


I am lucky in that I live right on the bus line... if my car breaks & I can't afford to repair it, I have instant back-up transportation.
You have to look for the silver lining...

[lovebirds]

Ya'll are incredibly lucky to have access to public transportation.

Most of Louisiana lacks any form of public transportation. Where I grew up, we would have to walk 5 miles to get to our neighbor.

I dream of the days where I can move into a large city and get rid of my car. I just want to walk and maybe enjoy a good book while taking a bus/train/subway.

[debtprison]

Public transportation isn't so bad if it is available and if the hours and locations fit in with your work.

If anyone here is paying monthly payments on a vehicle I advise NOT doing that. Find someone you know who is good with cars and go out and buy a car for cash from a private seller. Best are those which look horrible on the outside but run great. I bought a car for $300 which lasted me three years and over 70,000 miles. Many people pay $300 a month and their cars don't last for 70,000 miles.

[shabam]

I wish we had some let alone better public transportation options near us too.

A car is either a sink-hole or a money pit

[LSUTiger32]

What will I do in between time where I have to give back the car and wait for discharge to finance a new one?

Try saving up some money and buying a beater. See, this is the notion that you have to get rid of. Instead of worrying about when you can finance another car......DO NOT FINANCE ANOTHER CAR.

[pookieny]

I'm waiting to hear something about the car. I filed 6/10 and my 341 was 7/17. I haven't gotten any discharge papers yet and I still have the car and I haven't made a payment on it since May. My loan is with Wachovia and it's a 2005 Toyota Camry and I owe $10,000 which is just about book value. I will miss it!

But I do work from home and only have to go into the office 1 day a week. I can get there by bus but getting the bus home is a little tricky because I work an hour past the last bus leaving. I have a couple family members who will pick me up or I can cab it for $20 including tip. But way better than a $335 per month car payment.