credit card use?

[munchkn813]

My husband mentioned a year ago when money got bad about filing for bk. We tried for the next year to just make things better and get out of this situation ourselves and I got a part time job finally (from stay at home mom of 2) and was hoping that extra money would help...but nope. So we decided over the weekend we were just going to do it. My husband was supportive and agreed to a joint file to just try and wipe out all the debt.
He's worried about us keeping the house and van (been in the house for 5.5 years and had the van since April). Without the credit card and medical debt, we can easily afford out mortgage, car payments, insurance, utilities, etc. Just not the rest...

I called Monday morning to set up a consultation with a lawyer and we meet Tues the 22nd.

I stopped paying credit cards yesterday and am just continuing to pay medical bills (only like 25/month...I want to repay them) and use the extra from not paying our 30 credit cards (I had to quit working 2 years ago due to medical problems then having a baby/newborn then the time to find a job, so we lived off of credit cards and have about 40K in debt from ccs and medical). DH switched jobs at the end of June and I got this job at the end of Aug (teacher schedule so will not be working over the summer, so want to get things moving to get the debt gone asap). My husband gets commision so his pay varies week to week, but we make around 3,600/month and pay around 1,900/month on credit cards and then another 1,700 on mortgage, car (our 2nd car is a pos that is paid off), insurance and utilities. As you can see...that leaves nothing left for food, diapers, gas... We should be okay for a ch 7, right?

My husband is freaking out about me not paying the credit cards though. We started getting calls already today (I was already late on 2 because I couldn't pay them until I got paid yesterday, then I had one more due yesterday). Not paying them is the right thing to do though, right? And get caught up on the mortgage and car? They have never been more than 30 days late, but we cut it close each month.

Also...I just read a thread about not using the credit cards with bk. We will obviously stop now...but have been using them (the teeny time amount that has been left available on them) for gas and groceries here and there with whatever limit was left available after a payment ($30ish?) and some christmas presents still before we decided to file over the weekend. Before I can file for bk do we have to have no cc usage for like 90 days??? Crap...

Sorry this was so long...I am clueless about all of this... HELP!! haha

[whipster1]

CC use for gas and groceries are no big deal...those are necessities not luxuries...forget about presents. I had to fill my gas tank the day I filed cuz I was flat broke...CHANGE YOUR PHONE NUMBER or turn off the ringer, those are auto-dialers that keep calling till someone picks up.

If your total use of the CC's is less than a few hundred dollars you can probably file today, worst case is you pay back some of the latest charges, but that is very rare.

Good luck!

[munchkn813]

Thanks for the reply! You made me feel much better!
I turned the ringer on the phone in our bedroom and living room off. I have the ringer on the phone in the kitchen on low (in case a little one - I have a 4 and year yr old that both love the phone - takes off with it so we can find one of the phones if we have to page it, ha) but the main base in the kitchen is still ringing at full volume. I need to look at it closer and try and get it turned off completly if I can. My poor mom babysits for me while I go to work every afternoon and has to put up with all the calls...they are already starting!

The credit card charges are def. low. Well...except for one card (I just remembered about this) my DH was the best man in a wedding and he gave them our cc to hold 2 hotel rooms for the bachelor party on Oct. 31st and they were going to pay cash when they checked out but the charged the credit card automatically, so there is a couple charges totalling a little over $300 - that also sent the card overlimit...arg... I was not happy with him over that one!
The rest of the cards are at their limit too, but when I sent in like a $60 payment and the finance charge is $30-40 that opens up like $20-30 dollars and I will get gas or some food for a few meals to tide us off until the next paycheck on them.
Then I bought a $15 shirt I needed for work and a $15 movie from best buy to finish off a gift before we decided to file. I would be fine with paying those back though if necessary - I just don't want those to be the reason we wouldn't be able to file for a couple more months.
Oye...I have been calm and excited about filing and getting out life back in order, especially to have a fresh start for our little girls and set a better example for them as they are growing up and now I am really starting to freak out about all of this.
Tuesdays's mtg with the lawyer cannot come soon enough!!!

[backtoschool]

Charges for those small amounts will be fine.

[keepmine]

My husband gets commision so his pay varies week to week, but we make around 3,600/month and pay around 1,900/month on credit cards and then another 1,700 on mortgage, car (our 2nd car is a pos that is paid off), insurance and utilities. As you can see...that leaves nothing left for food, diapers, gas... We should be okay for a ch 7, right?

Nobody can tell you if you're a Chapter 7 candidate until you fill out schedules I and J and see if you have disposable income to fund a 13. Just fromm what you posted, you have $1900/month that could be dispsable income since, you can't count payments on debt that will be discahrged as an expense.
But, you have a lot more expenses that a mortgage, car or food.
Fill out this and get an idea where you stand.

http://www.legalconsumer.com/bankruptcy/means-test/index.php