Smart Money reporter seeking help

[Kenbensinger]

Hi. I'm a reporter for Smart Money magazine and I've been lurking around Bankruptcy Forum for awhile doing research on debt for an article I'm writing. The story is focusing on America's consumer debt crisis and how millions of Americans are burdened with at times unmanageable debt.

For the article, I'm hoping to get in touch with a few brave individuals willing to share their stories so that others can be a bit more informed about what it means to take on debt in a credit-crazed society. Ideally these would be people who have incurred big amounts of credit card debt, mortgages that have reset and make it impossible to keep up, student loans that loom impossibly over their heads, medical debts that couldn't be avoided, etc. I'm looking for people who have thought about filing for bankruptcy, have filed for bankruptcy or, as I hear sometimes happens, have filed for bankruptcy twice.

What I hope to do is to tell the readers of the magazine about this problem and to do so in human terms they can understand -- explain how a simple college credit card or an auto loan can be the domino setting off problems that can last far beyond the day that the last penny of principal is paid off, in the form of bad credit scores, high priced loans and even in other ways (some employers are looking up FICO scores lately!).

The story is tentatively entitled "Living with Debt" and that's the theme I'm working with: how many Americans now face a life filled with indebtedness.

If anyone reading and posting on Credit Boards would be willing to tell me their stories, I'd be extremely appreciative. Please write me back or call me, or tell friends and contacts and see if they'd be willing to chat. I think this story needs telling.

Thanks!

[lrprn]

If anyone reading and posting on Credit Boards would be willing... ]

Ken, it would help your credibility with our members if you at least got the name of our forum right - it's The Bankruptcy Forum aka BK Forum. You already posted this same message over at CreditBoards a few days ago (yes, many of us here lurk on the other bankruptcy boards as well )

Folks in or near bankruptcy can be vulnerable, so we moderators are very protective of our members when a stranger makes a first post asking them for something. I went to the Smart Money website directly and searched for your name - it appears you are indeed a legitimate writer for Smart Money Magazine.

Members, here's a link to Mr. Bensinger's March 21 2007 story http://www.smartmoney.com/mag/index....il2007-forsale and you can see others he's written by clicking the Archive link to the right of his name under the article title . You can decide if you want to respond to Mr. Bensinger's request - it's up to you.

[SinkingFast]

Mr. Bensinger has also written articles for the Wall Street Journal and other periodicals. Hearst is a well known Publishing House.

[FilingOnMyOwn]

This is a reputable professional with no malicious intent, and I have previously notified members in this thread http://www.bankruptcyforum.com/showthread.php?t=13540

I would also like to add that I have spoken with him personally.

[Kenbensinger]

First off, my sincere apologies on getting the name of the board wrong. I will confess that I've posted on Credit Boards as well and it was a careless error on my part to confuse the names. The reason I posted on both sites is that I've had a devil of a time trying to find people willing (and bold enough) to tell their stories about debt.

As the searches above indicate, I'm a real reporter and not some sneaky debt collector on a fishing expedition (although my reporting is starting to feel like a bad day at the end of a dock!). Smart Money is a monthly personal finance magazine co-owned by Hearst and Dow Jones. I have been a reporter for a decade and previously worked for the Wall Street Journal. You can look it up.

We carefully edit and fact check every story for accuracy and do our best to represent everything as correctly as possible. We want to get things right.

So, I hope there are people out there willing to speak to me. I've already heard from a couple, but would love to hear more stories. Student debt is an area of particular interest to me, as is dealing with debt in the face of impending retirement. But in general, I hope to hear from as many people as possible.

Thanks again,
Ken Bensinger
Smart Money
1755 Broadway
New York, NY 10019
(212)373-9374
[email protected]

[SinkingFast]

I know some people here don't want anyone to know they filed BK. Not their families. Not their friends. Not their neighbors.

Frankly, I could care less about that. We've told people we filed. Our families know. Our friends all know. Our kids' friends know. If you think less of us, that's your problem. Not ours.

The people who do know completely understand. We went thru a period of extended unemployment. Followed by a new job. At lower pay. With more expensive benfits. That required us move hundreds of miles. We paid rent and mortgage payments over a year before we just couldn't do it any more.

We went thru severance. Cashed out our retirement. Our house went into Foreclosure. All the while, the Credit Card debt piled up.

Part of what weighs on me in speaking publically are "intangibles" as it were. There are people, important people, who do not know we filed BK. And so far we have not suffered because of their lack of knowledge.

Our insurance has not checked our Credit. They don't know. Hence we still have insurance and our rates have not increased.

Our Bank evidently does not know. We've had no change in service there.

Both are things that people here have had trouble with. Insurance rates increased significanly. Insurance policies cancelled. Banks and Credit Unions dismiss Members as customers because of BK.

Some people here have been denied jobs after several "call back" interviews and hints they were "THE" candidate when the back ground check came back showing BK. That's illegal. Employers know it. So they skirt the real reason with some faint excuse.

I guess what I'm trying to say is,.............

You say you need our names to authenticate your story. You really have no idea what you're asking us to do in giving you our identities. Putting our names in a nationwide publication.

Might as well sew a bright yellow Star of David on us and put us on a train.

Pretty much, that's what you're asking us to do.

[Kenbensinger]

Well, as the descendent of people who were killed in the Holocaust, I think the analogy might be pushing it a little bit -- no one is rounding up and executing people with debt problems.

But I understand your point and believe it's a valid one. There are long-term implications of filing bankruptcy, and some don't go away for years or possibly ever. And I understand very well that people might not want to go public with these stories. I knew what I was getting myself into before starting this story.

So, I respect your right to privacy and your decision not to participate. But if you have a change of heart, or if somebody else reading this feels they're willing to tell their story, I'm all ears.

Thanks!
Ken

[Runnin on empty]

Mr. Bensinger, as someone who has a background in journalism I understand the pressures you are under. At the same time, I'd be remiss if I didn't also echo SinkingFast's sentiments. I have yet to take the first step in the BK process, but both my wife and I are adamant that we do not wish people to know. We will not purposely lie to anyone, but we're not about to willfully offer the information either.

I feel our story is unique, yet a paradigm of what a large portion of the population is dealing with. I think it would make a good piece. That being said, I refuse to put my dirty laundry out there so that it can be used against me at a later time when I least expect it and are at our most vulnerable.

[juststupid]

Ahh, Student debt. The bane of my existence. Most of my debt was incurred in the years following high school and the first years of college until I met my husband. And as much as I would love to share my story so other students don't get into the debt that I got myself into because no one really taught me about money.

But there are only 3 people in this world besides all the helpful people on this board that know we have filed. And we really don't want the rest of our families to know. I really hope though that you find people to help with your article.

[JollyGG]

While I agree with JustStupid that only three people in this world other than my husband and I know we filed and I don't feel like informing the rest of the world that is not the reason I have not responded.

Basically my story is not that interesting and I'm sure most of the people here would feel the same way. There was no one thing that pushed us over. We can look back and see numerous small things that contributed and see places that we could have made smarter choices. But there is no big bad wolf in our story.
Yes, we have student loans (400 per month), yes we have child care (700 per month), yes we have had job losses (happened over a two years proir to filing but still responsible for a part of our debt), and yes we have had medical bills (two babies). But no one thing sent us over the edge. It doesn't seem to us that there is anything unique or interesting about our story.

I do however sincerelly hope someone out there with medical bills, or preditory mortages responds. These are both problems that should never have been faced by people and it's not fair that some people got into this situation. Unfortunatelly, I dont' have a good excuse for how we got in over our heads.

[Mortgage Guru]

Ken you should be able to find a ton of content all around. I'm in the mortgage business and have seen the 2/28 arms destroy people. the sub prime industry has set off a lot of bankruptcy's. The credit card companies bury people too by giving more and more credit. sometimes people have no choice. I've never read your articles but I hope they are fair in the light that mortgage companies like new century who I had work for (in the good credit div.*) had a policy of never waving the pre payment fees. this would keep the rock right on top of people. We were not allowed to wave the fee even when we re wrote the loan at the same company. they have a lot to do with the bankruptcy's and foreclosures. I've seen many family's lose their houses.

*note we weren't allowed to write sub prime in my division