Need Credit/debt Advice PLEASE

You have to go into complete non-payment, meaning 30-60 days, before the cc companies are willing to work with you. And the longer you go without paying them, once a collection agency is involved, then they will settle for 50% or less than what is owed, but you have to be deliquent for a few months.

I can tell you that there are ways to barter with your credit card company. I "settled" my credit card debt b/c I thought that was a responsible thing to do instead of filing bankruptcy. They accepted at least half of what I owed and one even only wanted about 30% of what I owed. While it was AWESOME to be debt free my surprise came at the end of January when I received a 1099 for the debt that I settled. The irs/credit card companies(whoever) consider that settlement taxable income. I would try to call your credit card company and explain the situation-maybe see if you could lower your monthly payments by extending your terms. If you have been good at paying just keep trying to get them to work with you-call every day if you have to. I'm not sure why you would think they could force the sale of your house-this would probably be something that you should talk to a lawyer about. Good luck!!!!!

Many companies now are willing to settle for significantly less than you owe. I've had several debtors in the last couple of years offer to settle for as little as 30% of what I owe (I've been in similar difficulty, and I jumped on the offers if I possibly could).
You want to first make sure that you can borrow money from your dad, so that you can follow through on arrangements. Then call the cc company and tell them you are in financial trouble (which they probably already know, since you've made some arrangements) and ask to settle. They may make an offer, or ask for one, but there is a good chance some negotiating will be involved (so if you start with an offer, start around 30% to give yourself room to go up). Once you've reached an agreement, they will need to get payment within a certain amount of time, and probably will want to do an electronic funds transfer, so have as much ready as possible.

Do be aware that this still impacts your credit report/score. (But when we're struggling to eat, we don't care so much about that, right?) Also, the unpaid amount is reported as "discharged debt" to the IRS, and may be taxable. But overall, it may be the best option for you. It will keep the debt from going into collection and possibly into a judgement against you. (If you're unable to and it does go that way, I don't know if your home is considered protected or not; it may have something to do with the state, too).

Good luck!

We settled a lot of our credit card debt for just over 1/2 of what we owed. BUT..our sums were MUCH smaller. I think the biggest was about $3,000. The absolute BEST thing to do is to call the credit card company NOW and see what they have to say. They might be willing to work with you lowering your payments or something. If you do manage to come to a settlement, it does stay on your credit for up to 7 years. I don't know how negatively it affects your credit, but I would imagine paying nothing would affect it more. Not sure though.
Have you applied for government assistance with your food? You might qualify for food stamps and WIC if you have young children. I'm sure that there are churches that have food pantries as well.
Good luck to you and your family. I hope you are able to come up with something soon.

If you own your house free and clear why don't you just sell it and use the money to pay off the debt and live for the next year or so until you get on your feet? I know it sounds extreme but you have a HUGE out here.

You can negotiate your debt with the cc company but they usually will only go down to 70% of the original at most and it hits your credit as well an you have have to pay taxes on the 30% the cc company forgave.

Good luck!

Yes they will often take 1/2 or even less. Yes I have personal experience. Check out www.zipdebt.com and call him. The call is free and the program is reasonable. Your CC company cannot force you to do anything. You may wish to consult a bankruptcy attorney. If your house is worth less than $150,000 it should be exempt from bankruptcy. You should be able to get a free consultation.

They can put a lien on your house, but if you own it they cannot take it away from you. I went through DRS in Boise and they helped us out so that we could get everything paid off, they even negotiated the payment so I wouldn't have to.

To get food, there is the Idaho food bank, also call up WICAP they will provide you with a box of food for the amount of people you have with only asking the social security numbers of everyone and a stated income (no proof needed). It hasn't started up yet, but there is a community garden where you can glean. We have just joined that program, and my cousin was in it last year. You pick a bucket full for a charity, and then you pick what you want. Almost any church has a food bank as well, and there is a program called Love Inc. that helps out families in need. They do a program that will help you pay off your debt as fast as you can, as well as teach you ways to stretch your food, gardening, they also provide you with food every week for that week but you have to write out a menu so they know how much of each item you need, and help out with any other need, that they can help you with.

I understand your situation. We are debt free, only owing on our house and we thought that YAY finally we can breathe by eliminating it all, and then my husbands company cuts our income 3 times and raises benefit costs, so we have no relief.

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Lawyer time.

ANY time you have to mess around with the law, it's time to consult an attorney. If you can't afford one, legal aid should be able to either direct you to one, as well as to answer basic questions over the phone.

Credit card debt is usually unsecured, that means they can not force you to sell the house in order to pay the debt. However, I'm not sure if they can put a lien against it.

Yes, you can try to "settle" the debt with the company. It's done all the time. But you are correct the chances of them only accepting 50% are very slim, especically since you've already made an agreement with them to stop accruing interest, and therefore, have already reduced the amount owed.

As far as free food, I've heard great things about Angel Ministries. Google them. You can also check with your local Salvation Army.

Good luck.

Please consult with a bankruptcy attorney in Idaho. Almost all of them offer a free, no-obligations first consultation. They will be able to tell you what the homestead exemption is in your state - ie how much of your house's value you would be allowed to keep in bankruptcy. In some states the amount is small, in others it is reasonable, in others it is unlimited. Find out what your options are - it doesn't cost you anything and at least you know.