Need some advice

[ineedhelp201]

Hi all,

Long time reader, first time (obviously) poster from Kentucky. I've racked up a ton of online gambling debts over the past 1.5 years.
This isn't meant to be a sob story or anything, I'm just looking for some advice.

I have began to attend GA meetings, so that's a start.

However, I have the following:
$950 owed on payday loan 1
$1000 owed on payday loan 2
$1500 owed on payday loan 3
$9,500 owed to credit union 1
$2,500 owed to credit union 2
$3,500 owed to credit union 3
$2,500 GE Money bank CC
$500 capital one card
$300 GE Money bank card 2
$2,000 PNC CC
$500 chase card
-----------------------------------
This is a total of $25,000 of unsecured debt --- almost all of it went to gambling , and all of these lines of credit were opened in the past 2 years.

The credit union loans were took out to payoff credit cards. When those cards were paid off, being stupid, I used them again.


This is in addition to the $50,000 of student loans I owe.

My salary is only $35,000 a year, and I'm bringing home about $2,230 a month after taxes.


Basically, after rent, food and gas, there's not enough to pay all of my credit bills by just paying the minimums.

I'm looking for any advice/suggestions.

Anyone been in this type of situation?


I'm in a constant state of panic/worry/anxiety over this. I have a terrible feeling in my stomach 24/7, and it's all I can think about.

To make matters worse, I have a little over $100 in my bank account, and I'm never able to save any money....it all goes straight to the minimum payments.


Thanks for any input!

[ValleYum]

Welcome ineedhelp201.

Have you stopped gambling? I ask this because nothing, including filing bankruptcy, will help your financial problems unless you have fixed what caused them. (I am not being mean - just honest)

[ineedhelp201]

Welcome ineedhelp201.

Have you stopped gambling? I ask this because nothing, including filing bankruptcy, will help your financial problems unless you have fixed what caused them. (I am not being mean - just honest)

Yes - it's only been a month, but the meetings have helped....and I've found a sports league to play in, which allows me to concentrate on something other than gambling!

[ValleYum]

Good! Going to meetings is the second hardest thing you do, after the first which is admitting you have a problem.

Did you make any charges or cash advances to the online casinos themselves? How long has it been since your last charges? Since your last CC payment?

If you are considering BK, make a few appointments for free consults with BK lawyers in your area. They will know best how your your local trustee will handle things. Be honest with them so they can help you the most.

Your income is under the median in the state of Kentucky, so you could likely try to file a Chapter 7 - ask the local attorneys! They will know. Do you have any assets you wish to keep? You can use federal or state exemptions in Kentucky - ask the attorneys which exemption set will benefit you more. The federal seems more generous than Kentucky's but that is only based on my quick glance at them.

[philslyn]

WoW! Like one of the reply to you, even if you file bankruptcy, as long as you continue your gambling habit, no bk will help you.
But the fact you are determine to change, and is trying to do other things other than gambling is good, and a major step.
bk will discharge your unsecured debts, some debts that are used recently sometimes can be question, but if its not a luxury purchase, you more likely going to get it discharged, lawyer will tell you when and what to do, if you decide to file with a lawyer. remember student loans are not going to get discharge if you file bk, unless its an extreme extreme burden for you, ask your lawyer about that. anything that has nothing to do with government won't be wipe out.

hey take a deep breathe, don't stress yourself more, you need a healthy mind to think, take your time so you can get a better outcome.
NOLO book, is very helpful, this site is the best.

good luck!

[Pjmax]

I just wanted to say congratulations on taking the first step. I think that's huge! I'm just a newbie here myself, but the folks on this forum are great.

[ineedhelp201]

Good! Going to meetings is the second hardest thing you do, after the first which is admitting you have a problem.

Did you make any charges or cash advances to the online casinos themselves? How long has it been since your last charges? Since your last CC payment?

If you are considering BK, make a few appointments for free consults with BK lawyers in your area. They will know best how your your local trustee will handle things. Be honest with them so they can help you the most.

Your income is under the median in the state of Kentucky, so you could likely try to file a Chapter 7 - ask the local attorneys! They will know. Do you have any assets you wish to keep? You can use federal or state exemptions in Kentucky - ask the attorneys which exemption set will benefit you more. The federal seems more generous than Kentucky's but that is only based on my quick glance at them.

No assets other than a computer, tv, and cellphone! A car, but in my dad's name.

I'm current on everything except for one of the payday loans.

I did make a ton of charges directly to the online casinos, but they all show as weird transaction names...nothing that screams online gambling....but then again, i'm not going to try to hide it. I still have access to the credit on 3 of the cards, so i have been using that to pay some bills.

[btbeme]

Some cold, hard reality for you... my guess is that you have heard something like the following before, and are hopefully taking it to heart...

Your debts are a symptom of the problem. Nothing more.

Anyone who asks for help can be helped. These forums are here to help with BK questions. We will do so until we run out of answers. That is our commitment. Love ya.

I am thrilled that you are a month into gambling treatment. Unless you commit to make that lifestyle change, and make it permanent, anything we say will only help treat the symptoms. You are lining up two of the most difficult things most people could face - defeating addiction, and receiving a financial second chance. We will be here to help, encourage, and maybe even kick you in the pants if needed, but we will be here. It is up to you.

That said, your debts (sans student loans) can likely be fixed. A very important question - do you have any outstanding gambling markers?

Life after addiction is pretty darn good, even if it has its rough patches. Life after debt is pretty good too. You have an awesome chance to experience them at the same time! As ValleyYum suggests, your first step should be a couple visits with some local BK attorneys. Make sure that you are honest with your answers, as gambling and gambling debts have a somewhat peculiar way of inviting Trustee interest. You want to make sure that your fresh start is truly a fresh start, and that the casinos cannot torpedo your BK or be waiting for you post-BK.

Or, worse, that you are waiting for the casinos post-BK.

[ineedhelp201]

Some cold, hard reality for you... my guess is that you have heard something like the following before, and are hopefully taking it to heart...

Your debts are a symptom of the problem. Nothing more.

Anyone who asks for help can be helped. These forums are here to help with BK questions. We will do so until we run out of answers. That is our commitment. Love ya.

I am thrilled that you are a month into gambling treatment. Unless you commit to make that lifestyle change, and make it permanent, anything we say will only help treat the symptoms. You are lining up two of the most difficult things most people could face - defeating addiction, and receiving a financial second chance. We will be here to help, encourage, and maybe even kick you in the pants if needed, but we will be here. It is up to you.

That said, your debts (sans student loans) can likely be fixed. A very important question - do you have any outstanding gambling markers?

Life after addiction is pretty darn good, even if it has its rough patches. Life after debt is pretty good too. You have an awesome chance to experience them at the same time! As ValleyYum suggests, your first step should be a couple visits with some local BK attorneys. Make sure that you are honest with your answers, as gambling and gambling debts have a somewhat peculiar way of inviting Trustee interest. You want to make sure that your fresh start is truly a fresh start, and that the casinos cannot torpedo your BK or be waiting for you post-BK.

Or, worse, that you are waiting for the casinos post-BK.

No outstanding gambling markers

It was all done online and paid for with credit/debit card up front

[ineedhelp201]

Sorry - a question I need to ask:

Should I stop paying on all of my credit cards / loans (except student loans) ?
I know I need to wait for 90 days before I can file (or now about 80).

What would happen to the savings I would have...probably $3-4000 by the time I file?

[shoopy]

If you know that you are filing, there is no sense paying any more on the unsecured debts. I don't feel qualified to give any advice on the potential savings, obviously you will need to pay an attorney, pay bills. Don't really know what exemptions you have.

[ValleYum]

Like Shoopy says you will need money to pay your attorney.

Also, in Kentucky you can use the Federal BK exemptions. There is a wildcard exemption of over 10k that you can keep as savings if you don't use it to exempt home equity.

Talk to some lawyers asap!

[kawh]

... Should I stop paying on all of my credit cards / loans (except student loans) ?
I know I need to wait for 90 days before I can file (or now about 80).

What would happen to the savings I would have...probably $3-4000 by the time I file?

Before you stop paying on all of them, do the free consult with at least one attorney. If you have charged large amounts in the last six months, it might benefit you to pay on that one, depending on how large the amount is. 90 days is the presumption period, but inside of six months could be also dicey (sorry, no pun intended

If I were going to try to keep some small amount of savings, I suppose I would slowly draw out the savings in smaller amounts and buy gift cards that don't expire soon, at my favorite places to shop for necessities, such as Target, Walmart, etc. I know this may be a no-no, so don't consider this as my advice to you, but just what someone might do, hypothetically.

In case you have not done so, also keep paying on your debts until you have established a new contact phone number with each one, such as a cheap prepaid phone number with pageplus, tracfone or the like. Of course, if they already have your cell, they will try to reach you on that one, too, regardless of the new number. But you need to have a contact phone number with them that is active and valid, but won't drive you crazy when they begin calling.

[ineedhelp201]

Okay - so I'm about 70 days away from being able to file. I need to be a resident in Kentucky for six months, which comes in October.

What do I do in the meantime? Should I pay any of my outstanding debts? What if I get sued while waiting to file? I'm so nervous!!

[btbeme]

Okay - so I'm about 70 days away from being able to file. I need to be a resident in Kentucky for six months, which comes in October.

What do I do in the meantime? Should I pay any of my outstanding debts? What if I get sued while waiting to file? I'm so nervous!!

In most cases it takes 120-150 days before anyone will sue. Even if they do, it takes time for the suit, and you can easily buy time filing an answer, etc.

Stop paying. Like, yesterday. Save it or use it for exemptions, depending on what your state allows.

And GO SEE a couple attorneys, usually free of charge.