New to all this and really stressed out!

[sunshinepa]

Welcome. You have already made a good decision, came to the right place for help and support. Right now the road seems long but you will get there!

Don't get over worried about lawsuits, I had one, it's not really that big a deal. Luckily I filed before mine got to court but honestly, if it gets that far they get a judgement and it can be vacated once you file.

[brennan]

Hi---Brennan---for what it's worth---chances are very slim that the credit card companies
will start suing you within the next four to five months---and it's usually after six that they
can get aggressive---and then there's the response time---and the court date---and by
then---you will have most likely filed for bk---so that you won't have to worry about judgments.

That's very reassuring! Thank you!

Our attorney also told us that we have at least (in most cases) 6 months into it before the creditors start anything serious (ie: lawsuit). Keep looking for a rental situation, with all of the BK's and FC's going on right now there are alot of people renting. Landlords are a little more tolerant of your situation and probably have many more tenants with the same history. You may have to put down a bigger deposit in the beginning but if you can sign a lease ahead of time (maybe 2 months ahead) and pay the deposit off in installments by move in date or something like that. With your 1st and 2nd mtgs, utilities for a house, upkeep, repairs etc. all added together you might be surprised in that renting could be a stress reliever in the long run.

That's a good point about the costs of home ownership vs. renting. We're really aware that this might be our best chance to move (since if we stay we'll still be really upside-down value wise) so I'm going to start seriously researching the rental climate.

alot of good advice in here

Definitely! And every bit of it is truly appreciated!

Welcome. You have already made a good decision, came to the right place for help and support. Right now the road seems long but you will get there!

Don't get over worried about lawsuits, I had one, it's not really that big a deal. Luckily I filed before mine got to court but honestly, if it gets that far they get a judgement and it can be vacated once you file.

Thanks for the reassurance. I feel much better reading all these replies and am no longer quite as stressed out as I was!

[PushRestart]

Welcome to the wonderful resource that is the BKForum, this place has really helped my wife and I to figure lots of things out, stick around and learn all you can. We have been prepping for our BK for 6 months now and no one has sued us, but many folks have called to ask for payments. We did exactly what our lawyer told us and we are ready to file in the next week or so. While the stress has been hard, we are pushing ahead (and Pushing Restart :o) and have enjoyed living on an all-cash basis for a while now. As for renting somewhere, it is more easy than folks think. Many folks have a BK or foreclosure/short sale on their credit these days; as a realtor, I help my short sale clients rent homes all the time and not once has a landlord passed on renting to them, worst case I have seen is first, last and a $500 deposit but they still could rent... Hang in there, when you are on the bottom, they only way out is UP!!

[discouraged]

And when you think about it, outside of the obvious maintenance costs, a washer or dryer going out would eat up the $500 extra quickly.

I really wanted to keep my house, even though it was/is WAY underwater but now, after my dishwasher went out along with the dryer (no, didn't replace them), I'm thankful I'm not going to be stuck with the rest of the things that could go out - this house will need a new furnace in about 3-4 years, just hope the washer hangs in there until the foreclosure. Renting sounds sweet to me right about now.