Should I consider bankrutptcy?

[badjob]

Allright. Good job ended about two years ago. Kept thinking I'd find a new job that paid well. Used credit cards to get by. I've got about $15,000 in debt on one card and about $300 on the other. I've got plenty of credit left (believe it or not) and have not missed a payment yet, this will be the first month. I make about $280 a week after taxes, student loans are $270, credit card is about $250. Obviously this does not work out. Should I call my credit card company and ask for some slack or is that just putting blood in the water?

I keep hoping that I will find a good job but I'm starting to wonder if I should deal with this now and stop holding out for the real job. (going bankrupt over 15K seems stupid if I get a 30K a yr job, but at $9 an hour it is a different story) I don't own a house, have car loans (but I did spend some time sleeping in my car), or anything else of real value.

Has anybody used legalmatch.com and had good luck with it. I am thinking that a lawyer would be benificial. How do I afford a lawyer is another good question. Do I just stop paying the credit card and use the $ saved to hire an attorney?

As you can probably tell I am a bit confused about the whole thing and very stressed.

Thanks

[HRx]

Is it possible for you to obtain a part-time job? Do you have anything you could sell for extra cash to pay down your debt? So you make roughly $19,000 per year.....correct? You debt is more than half of your annual income...but doesnt exceed it. Hmm.....with the new BK law in place, you should definately consult the advise of an attorney ASAP....and get some solid baseline answers from him/her from your FREE Intitial Consult, to see what course of action would be in your best interest. With the information you presented, I personally wouldnt file BK...If youre willing to make some sacrafices.....you should be able to get ahold of your $15k debt within 2-3 years, and pay it off within 6 years, if you can stay focused and dont acquire new debt in the interim.

Good Luck!

[bkfiler]

good advice.

also, see several attorneys. they are free and can explain some good ideas to you.

also, in the meantime, do pizza delivery in a good area for extra cash.

then, start looking and thinking and wanting a $14 an hour job. ask everywhere. they exist. keep asking. send resusmees everywhere.

after you get it then pay down and off your credit cards debts and be very thankful you didnt file bk. then dont ever use the credit again. you only need $5K max of credit handy imo.

just some ideas, good luck

[badjob]

I can (with extreme measures) make a $300 payment a month to my credit card. This will pay it off inabout 7 years. A major concern I have is that, since my job has no benifits, one tiny little health problem, a car problem, or any little hiccup and I am sunk anyway and all the sacrifices I've made are for nothing. I'd love to think that another great job is out there for me but I can't really count on it anymore. (300+ resumes and cover letters, $ on job hunt services etc and nothing...) Well, I'd probably better just talk to an attorney as you both advised. Thanks for the suggestons.

[sunshine08]

Good advice. A part time job seems to be the answer, at least until you can find something else. Have you though about a deferrment on student loans?

[wednesday]

You know, it's amazing how $15K in debt can grow into $20K...$30K...or more...because as long as you keep making those minimums on time, the banks will keep raising your limits. And since you only earn $9/hour, and have no benefits, you can't really get ahead with any savings, and like you said, it only takes a doctor visit or a car breakdown to have you charging more to the card. Five or ten years from now you could find yourself still treading water, never having a spare cent to sock away or just spend on something you enjoy, and owing two or three times what you currently do.

I will take an opposite point of view from others here and say that at $9/hour, $15K in debt is a significant amount. As far as declaring BK7 and then a year from now starting to make more money...I hope you are that lucky, and that at that point you start putting away the extra money you are earning into savings so that if another job loss occurs, you have the resources to get by instead of accruing more debt.

[shirley200]

There are other options to bankruptcy. Take a look at http://mybankruptcycounseling.com you might finds some other info there that might help you out. Good luck whatever you do!!