I have a consult with an attorney Thursday, and I'm not sure what to bring or what to expect.
At the beginning of nursing school (2005) I found out I was pregnant. My husband had been recently laid off. We were had about $15,000 in c.c. debt, with some small medical bills. I stopped paying the cc's around that time, as we had to pay for a baby.
Fast forward to today. One of the credit cards are suing, with others likely to follow. I graduated nursing school and make decent money now (@50,000). My husband never found a steady job, and is in school full-time. Besides the original, approximate $15,000 in cc debt, we have about $6,000 in medical debt, and $30,000 in student loan debt.
I have a few issues. First, I don't know how much I owe. I no longer have any statements, and I haven't been keeping every bill sent. The only way I have a general idea is from my credit report.
Second, I don't know if I should file Ch 7 or 13, or if I even have a choice. If all the late payments and lawyers fees were removed from the original debt, I could probably swing paying them off within 3-5 years. I really don't know, because I'm really not sure how much I owe exactly.
How many tax returns do I need? I have the last 2 years. 2008 tax return shows income of $11,000 and 2009 $28,000. Take home this year with be about $35,000 but that's because I now pay for insurances and have a 401K. Gross is close to $50,000.
We do not own a home. We each have a car that is paid off. We have lived off cash and not credit for awhile now. Owning a home and getting a newer vehicle is a long term goal, but not an immediate need. Our monthly living expenses, including my stuent loan payment is about $1500. There isn't much more to squeeze out of there right now, but there is some wiggle room.
I have been stashing emergency $$$, including having cash to pay for the lawyer.
I really just don't know what to do or expect. By the looks of my credit report I don't owe that much, because some have been written off and don't include all the extra fees. Yet, I just don't have the money to pay them all off at once.
What can I do to prepare?
At the beginning of nursing school (2005) I found out I was pregnant. My husband had been recently laid off. We were had about $15,000 in c.c. debt, with some small medical bills. I stopped paying the cc's around that time, as we had to pay for a baby.
Fast forward to today. One of the credit cards are suing, with others likely to follow. I graduated nursing school and make decent money now (@50,000). My husband never found a steady job, and is in school full-time. Besides the original, approximate $15,000 in cc debt, we have about $6,000 in medical debt, and $30,000 in student loan debt.
I have a few issues. First, I don't know how much I owe. I no longer have any statements, and I haven't been keeping every bill sent. The only way I have a general idea is from my credit report.
Second, I don't know if I should file Ch 7 or 13, or if I even have a choice. If all the late payments and lawyers fees were removed from the original debt, I could probably swing paying them off within 3-5 years. I really don't know, because I'm really not sure how much I owe exactly.
How many tax returns do I need? I have the last 2 years. 2008 tax return shows income of $11,000 and 2009 $28,000. Take home this year with be about $35,000 but that's because I now pay for insurances and have a 401K. Gross is close to $50,000.
We do not own a home. We each have a car that is paid off. We have lived off cash and not credit for awhile now. Owning a home and getting a newer vehicle is a long term goal, but not an immediate need. Our monthly living expenses, including my stuent loan payment is about $1500. There isn't much more to squeeze out of there right now, but there is some wiggle room.
I have been stashing emergency $$$, including having cash to pay for the lawyer.
I really just don't know what to do or expect. By the looks of my credit report I don't owe that much, because some have been written off and don't include all the extra fees. Yet, I just don't have the money to pay them all off at once.
What can I do to prepare?
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