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See my post above about paying off the credit

Posted By: card debt. - Topaz on 2009-03-31
In Reply to: I don't even earn enough to - Lilly

Sure, banks need to make a profit just like everyone else. But businesses throughout the whole country have become so money-hungry that they continue to cheat their customers more and more, in the name of making more and more money for themselves. MTSO's cheat us in order to make more profit. Insurance companies cheat us by making us pay more and more, and in turn denying more and more of our healthcare costs. Food companies cheat us by not only charing more for their products, but also by putting less and less in the box or the wrapper. (Cereal: Used to be about 3/4 full, now it's more like 1/2 full. Granola bars: Remember when 1 granola bar was an actual snack? Or even breakfast? Now the wrapper is the same size, but the bar is a mere shadow of its former self.) The banks cheat us by raising the rates or charging for services that used to be free. Mine recently starting nicking my checking account for $35 as 'overdraft protection' when my account became low. Now get this: I never bounced a check. I never wrote checks for more than was in my account. There was always at LEAST $25 in my checking account. But they would decide it was too low, nick me for the $35, and then surprize! My account is then MINUS $10! So what do they do? They charge me again!

I'm considering doing away with the bank entirely, including checking, and only using a pre-paid debit card. Now if there were just a way for our MT paychecks to electronically go into a bank-free debit card, instead of into the bank, then VOILA! Bye-bye, bankie.


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DH paid off credit card. Now I'm paying him back. No
nm
Before the post gets buried below regarding credit - very long message sm

I just wanted to share with the posters who were considering bankruptcy.


Unless you are on the verge of losing your home, I would strongly encourage you to consider another option.  Bankruptcy does not just go away after a few years.  It's there forever.  Even if you rebuild your credit afterwards, it's still there - a haunting demon.   A friend and my in-laws also filed bankruptcy in the past.


My in-laws filed over 20 years ago and have recovered financially but it's still there. 


My husband is a credit card spender.  I would only spend when I had the cash and did not depend on credit.  It didn't matter though.  Our spending habits combined nearly led to our financial demise a few years back too.


This is what I did and I hope you give it a try and it works for you too.


I started with a complete inventory of all of our bills, separating them into three categories.


Home  (mortgage and utilities)


Credit cards - (lowest balance to highest balance regardless of the APR)


Miscellaneous bills (entertainment, clothing, food, gas, fast food, etc.)


Since the Home category is pretty consistent every month, I set up a budget for that first.  I went back through our utility bill for the year prior and chose the highest month bill of the year and added that amount to our mortgage amount. 


Next, I reviewed our telephone, internet, and television (satellite) bills.  On average, I was paying about 230.00 per month for them all combined.  Way too much in my opinion.  I started shopping around and found a bundle package with Verizon.  Now I pay 153.00 per month for unlimited long distance telephone, satellite TV, and DSL service.  Saved $77.00 per month, just doing that.


Then I added this amount to the mortgage and utilities.  This totalled amount is what I know I absolutely have to pay every month and I better make sure it's in the account.


Next, I did the Miscellaneous.  I'm a paper keeper, meaning I keep EVERY receipt and then purge them about every 3-4 months.  I started going over what was spent where and learned that we spent a lot more than we really needed to.  I set up a weekly grocery budget and a fun budget.   If there was anything extra at the end of the week, it was divided evenly between the two and added to the next week.  I do this every week until the end of the month.  If there is anything left over, that amount is divided in half again and half is divided again and added to the following week's budget (grocery and fun), the other half is locked away in the savings account.


The money for monthly gas was a little trickier when the gas prices skyrocketed.  I first had a set limit for gas each week but did have to adjust that.  I did manage to adjust it a little bit upwards and still be able to pay the cards down (see below.)


Also, every time I spend cash, no matter if the amount is $5.01 and all I need is a penny, I don't.   Instead, I will give them $6.00 and get 0.99 change to put in my giant size espresso cup of change.  When the cup gets full, the change is rolled and turned in to the bank as a deposit into the savings account.  My cup last gave me $281.00 change to put in the savings account.  That was in March.  It's full again so will be adding at least that much to the savings account again very soon.  Nobody touches the cup!  They might lose a finger or even a hand!


That being said, and having two set amounts for each budget, I then subtracted that amount, plus the Household amount from our combined monthly income. 


Lastly came the dreaded credit cards.   To be honest, I was floored when I learned just how much credit card debt we had.  My husband had wracked up over $40,000.00 in credit card debt alone.   Since he paid his own credit card bills each month, I had no idea.  Even worse than that, he is very inconsistent about paying his bills on time so he had late charges and the interest rates were way the heck up there.  It was terrible. 


I took each of his cards most current statements and started from the lowest to highest balance.  The lowest one was about 1200.00 but the interest rate on it by that time was 22%.  This is where I started. 


I had him call the company and basically gave him a script to go by (my name wasn't on the cards or I would have done it myself).  He requested a decrease in his APR on each and every card.  Two of the five card companies agreed on the first call.  The 22% card was reduced to 11% so they cut it in half.  Not as low as I would like but it was a start.  Another card was up to 31% and they reduced that to 20%.  The other three didn't budge the first time.


This is where I made two 'necessary' purchases.  The first one was MS Money software.  I highly recommend it.  You can set up your checking, savings accounts, print your checks, balance your checkbook in about 5 minutes, pretty much a no brainer software that really keeps you in line with your bills and spending as long as you remember to faithfully enter any debit card purchase in your check register provided with the software.  It will also link to many banks to update your balances online.  You can also set it up to remind you for upcoming bills. (Maybe if the husband had used this earlier, we would not have been in this situation?)


The second purchase was about $8.00.   An accordion file folder for the monthly statements.  Husband always threw his away and I can't even begin to tell you what a dumb idea that is.  KEEP them.   Organize the tabs for each bill and put your statement in when you pay each bill.  I also write the date and the amount when I make a payment somewhere on the statement, then keep them in chronological order.


The actual payments came next.   The smallest balance card was paid off first.  All of other cards only got the minimum payment PLUS $1 more.  I started doing this just for my own peace of mind I guess but I learned later that this actually helped us a bit when negotiating the lower APRs on the three more stubborn cards.  It may have only been $1 extra but it was EXTRA payment and, believe it or not, they do look at that.


Excluding the card to be paid off first, I added up the minimum payments of the remaining four cards (plus the extra dollar to each of those) and decided on an amount to pay the lowest balance card to get that balance moving toward 0 as fast as I could.


In this case, I decided on 200.00.  This left me with a little over 200.00 extra (I call it mad money but it really goes into savings anyway -planning ahead for birthdays, auto insurance, Christmas, and emergencies.)


I had that card paid off relatively quickly in a few months.  When it was paid off, the card was cancelled and that 200.00 was added to the minimum payment (plus $1) on the next lowest balance card.  After the first month of this, once again, had the husband call his credit card company and ask for a reduction in his APR.  This time it was granted.  Should also mention that this card was one of the three that refused the request the first time.


The first six months or so of this was a mildly painful transition.  He was used to whipping out a credit card, I was used to having cash on hand for whatever I wanted.  It wasn't going to happen anymore.


Finally, I was down to the last remaining card (754.00 per month payment by this time, having applied the payments for each card to the next as they were paid off.)


When I got to this point, I started shopping around for cards with rewards programs and started comparing those cards.  The last card I was paying on also had a rewards program but not quite what I wanted.  I wanted to know if the terms were negotiable.   It was!  How about that! 


So, instead of losing a valuable customer the card company decided to keep me.


Now I get 3% back on purchases of most things as long as I pay the balance in full every month (which I do).  Any kind of air or rail travel purchased with the card is a 6% reward.


I no longer use a debit card.  The husband is not allowed to get a credit card again but instead, takes a certain amount of cash every week.  Say what you want but he got us into this mess pretty much so he has to live with it now. 


It's been a few years now working with this system but it has been very good for us.  I find that I average about 400.00 per month AFTER the rewards bonuses kick in so essentially I am able to bank another $354.00 per month in savings.  It adds up quicker than you might think.


Should also mention that we have two teens still at home and they can really be expensive.  They were made a part of the plan and do their part to help out too.  Their contribution is mostly the avoidance of fast food all the time.  They can come home and have a meal or eat before they leave. Things like that.


Sorry for the lengthy post but hopefully I can help anyone else get out of a potentially bad financial situation like we faced.


Why does closing a credit card account negatively affect your credit report

Especially when I never use it anyway, and really never wanted it?


With all the bank rearranging going on in the past few months, one of my accounts was tranferred to Bank of America. I was sent new cards and a new agreement, new interest rate etc...


So I called them up and cancelled but before they did, I had to listen to a spiel about how this would negatively affect my credit report.


Huh?? Why is that?


She's paying for it
You can be sure she is paying for the extra attention. Also, the hospital likely insisted that all that security be provided, not because they are necessarly worried about Britney but about people trying to get near her. The last thing they want is for her to get harmed while she's in their institution.

Usually if there is a VIP patient, they don't keep the chart all in one place - they parse it out in 3 or more different locations under lock and key.

Britney has always gotten that kind of treatment - when she was in Mousekeeters, everyone had to leave the gym where she worked out when she came for her exercise. Britney is a little snot, always has been even as a young teenager - turns on the sweetness for the cameras. Millions of people have bought her act.

However, I do feel for her in her present situation and hope she can turn her life around now.
Me again, tell you what I did about paying a bill for a dog
like I said above, huge animal lover. I have 3 furkids but a friend of mine whose son is a druggie, was not seeing about his dog. The dog needed an operation for a growth on his foot. I paid over $1000.00 for that and now I buy my newly adopted doggie its medicine each month. I never give my friend money because want the money to go for the doggie, not drugs for her kid but you can believe I am seeing the doggie is comfy!
Okay, I don't mind paying
to make sure everything is in order! Thanks for all the advice!
...paying for it himself out of his PT job earnings. nm
s
paying for college
I have two sons in college right now ...one out-of-state, one in a private university.  They both end up getting paid to go to school because they have so many scholorships.  Did the high school counselor help me find any....NO. We are in a small town and I got no help from the school or town. Neither one of my sons played any sports...but I will tell you what I found out...what is more important is that your child is involved in school and the community.  They don't care if they  have ever worked a day in their life...they want to know what they have done in school grade wise, and community wise. Even just ringing the bells for the Salvation Army at Chrismtas time will earn you a scholorship. I filled out over 56 scholorships for both my sons to go to school for free...you just have to learn as you go how to word answers on the scholorships.  We are not poor but we are not rich...but we made to much money to get any FAFSA help.
paying off bills
In our case, we refinanced through someone in our church who had a refinance company.  It included all our credit cards and no, we did not have to cut them up.  We still have them and DO NOT EVER USE THEM.  It also included paying off our cars.  The reason we had so much debt is because I wasn't able to get enough work at that time, now it is great and I can only say we pray and God has blessed us above measure, more than we deserve.
paying off bills
BTW we also pay an extra $100 each month on our mortgage.  Years ago someone told us to do that and were never able to until now.  Yes, I work hard, but we are doing great and even eat out once or twice a wk and sometimes more.  This friend in our church also agreed paying the extra $100 a month.  I have heard other fincance people on the Christian radio station saying the same thing, so it does make sense.  You pay the extra amount on the principal only.
paying bills
x
Same here paying bills - NM
NM
I am not against paying for your child's
but I have no intention of doing that for my own children. There are so many kids out there who have everything handed to them. I believe it will teach my children the value of a dollar and the value of their education if they pay for it themselves or with scholarships and hard work. I do encourage them to keep their grades up and will encourage them to apply for scholarships, grants, etc. I think either parent should have to foot the bill for college. If they want to, great; if not, I don't believe the court system should get involved.
Wow if you & hubs are paying that much
in taxes and didn't qualify for stimulus check (because you make too much?), ya'll must be rakin' it in!! Don't think you deserve much sympathy either, right? I know you we're asking for it, but seems a little harsh to kick someone when they're down...
Paying down debt

It is getting harder to make ends meet because of all the straws in our bank account.  I have 17k in CC dept alone.  It is with 4 different CC companies.   One CC has $200, #2  has about 4K, #3 has about 2K, #4 has 10k.  The 10K one has a 15 % APR, the others I believe range from 24% to 29% APR.  My biggest monthly payment is my house and I owe only  $4700 on it and it has 6.3% APR.  I sold some things and am getting $5K and that will be enough to pay off my house.   I would love to finally, officialy own this house and get rid of that $350 monthly pmt,  but I wonder if I should not pay down on the CC because of the high interest rates.  Any opinions.  TIA. 


 


Paying Down Debt
I feel you, believe me.  First, Bravo to you for facing this.  That's the hardest part.  I think if you are so close to paying off your house, you wouldn't want to take out yet another loan against it.  Additionally, the interest rates aren't that great.  What is the total of payments you are making on your credit cards?    If you can slap that 5000.00 on your debt first on all of the higher interest ones perhaps paying some of them off.  That will free up extra money to put on the rest of your credit cards.  Then once the credit cards are paid off, you can then work on the mortgage (I WISH I had your mortgage..).  Also we work in an industry where it is easy to pick up extra work---have you thought of that just to get extra money to pay off the debt?  That's what I'm trying to do.  Things are just so bad right now.  Good luck, hope this helps...
Forgot to add - what about them paying
for their part of the cell phone bill as well as insurance on their vehicle?
You are not paying for a thing that does not benefit you, obviously.
x
Remember you are paying him big bucks
My nephew is a mortgage broker and they make good money -- put in a lot of time but that 1 to 3% loan initiation fee can be quite steep.  It is not like they are doing a favor for you so speak up.  Go above his head ask to talk with a supervisor, anything.  Be nice about it but remember you are paying him a lot of money and so he is working for you and so speak up.  You don't have to be nasty but tell him your concerns and ask that you speak to his supervisor.   Good luck. 
Curious as to who is paying for the wedding?
x
You are kidding about paying $2 more an hour??
I find most Americans, regardless of their race, creed, religion, etc., etc. wanting to work. I have never had to worry if I hire the Mexicans here in town to work, show them what and your job is done. I have a lady who cleans (black) and I usually have to make a list and even then she wants to sit down most of the time. Have used all but found get my work done with south of the border folks.
I'm paying for all those wives and kids...
They only claim one wife as a legal wife, so the others they marry are married in the church but not on paper, so they think they are getting by with polygamy. So what happens to all those wives with children? They go to the welfare office, since they are single moms ( no marriage certificate), they are eligible for Medicaid, my taxes to pay for their children, food stamps, on and on. That is fraud and they should be ashamed of themselves, since they know exactly what they are doing... where is their religion in all this? This is scheming.....they call it "bleeding the beast", meaning the government. Of course, they do not care that it is the taxpayer's dollar, because they consider themselves better than the "outside world", since they believe they are the chosen people anyway.
Oops, should have been paying off a debt
/
insurance not paying for meds
Insurance said I had to be on Medicare before they would pay for Celebrex even with rheumatologist asking for exemption.
Plan on paying off my cards too sm
as soon as I get my settlement. Plan to tell them that I refuse to bankroll their bonuses, parties and whatnot anymore and they can put their credit you know where. I didn't get a bailout--all I got was higher interest rates.
And who said anything about them paying for their father's expenses?
Not me, for sure because I have more sense than that. I have told my husband we have separate accounts and he is not responsible for me if I were to die first. He does not have to pay my credit card accts, etc. because those were made before we even met. Lastly, let me just say this, if the father of those children WAS competent, he could then take his own father (the g'father) to court and he most probably would get THEIR share because he is NEXT of kin, not them. I do not think you have a leg to stand on in this matter. I have enough knowledge to know who comes first, etc. My father died owning about 1,000+ for a doctor's bill. I was next of kin, did I have to pay, NO. Where you got that sentence she and her brother??? guess you just pulled out of thin air.
quit paying and see if he says something..then you'll know..nm
x
not paying insurance for teens-I feel bad for you.SM..

Kids don't make enough today to do it all - including teen car insurance - and some parents  LIKE TO HELP...again, to each his/her own.  My children have been working full time for 10 years and I'm still wanting to help them with that car insurance because it's exhorbitant for young people even in their 20s....until 25 actually where I live -


oh well, one thing is we can all AGREE TO DISAGREE - LOL


I've been paying a lump sum for my taxes
and was starting to get scared that I'm doing it wrong. Actually, my husband was doing the taxes, and this year we're separated. I've just been an IC two years and an MT for a little over three. So is it okay to send it all in April? This will be my first year to write off an office space and such. So many other things were going on before that I had no time to really think this all through. Numbers and taxes and math are not my thing!
I agree! My BP & I have walked out of restaurants without paying (sm)
if the mgr. wouldn't ask the people with a screaming baby or out-of-control toddlers (running around & actually eating off of other people's plates! Gaaack!)to do something about it. At movie theaters, if people bring screamers in with them, we go out to the mgr. and ask for our money back. My mom raised 6 kids and went to church with all of them every Sunday. If anyone (including the infant-du-jour) made any noise, they were removed immediately. Older kids had to sit in the car (with H*-to-pay when we returned home!), and babies/toddlers sat with her outside 'til such time that they calmed down again. And weddings? Forget it! She never subjected any of her friends' weddings to small children or babies. And we were trained, at at APPROPRIATE age and ONE AT A TIME, how to behave in restaurants. We had to use our "indoor voices", keep our napkin in our lap & our elbows off the table, and eat with the correct forks, etc. And in fancy restaurants, we were trained beforehand that we were NOT allowed to even ASK for a hamburger. That alone prevents many restaurant-meltdown scenes!
Good, does that mean I can stop paying taxes? - nm
x
Hey, I'll join you if you're paying ;-)
And I was just stressing over paying $500 for rental car (I'm driving), hotel, and baseball tickets for a rinky-dink 3-day trip 250 miles down the road. Still have to spring for gas money and food, but I'm feeling a little better after reading your post LOL. Of course, I'm not going to Las Vegas...

Well, have fun anyhow!! :-)
They may be citizens and are paying taxes like the rest of us.
What difference does it make?
When did parents stop paying attention?
I'm nearly done raising my kids, and they're good kids. In addition, I've been a boy scout leader for 12 years, so often I'm around a lot of really good kids who have parents who care. Tonight I was helping out a cub scout meeting with a bunch of bright-eyed, energetic cubs. Two of our older boys, 12-year-olds from the boy scout troop were also helping out. At one point, the kids all went outside with the den leader and another parent to do an activity. This was around 7:30 p.m. and it was dark outside. One of the boy scouts came back inside to get me. He wanted to let me know that they had to move the cubbies away from some "bigger" kids outside. Turns out, there were some 9th graders hanging out at the back of the school building where we meet. They were sitting near the playground, smoking and filling an empty 2-liter soda bottle with smoke, making smoke rings. They weren't particularly noisy, but their language was atrocious. Obviously, we didn't want that example near the little ones.
So I walked over and said to them in a calm voice, "Hey folks, I'm bringing some 2nd graders around here, and I'd like for you to move off the property." They just looked at me with an "I-hate-the-world" look, rolled their eyes and said, "Yeah, sure." Of course, there was no movement. I say, "I've asked you nicely once. You move now. You don't get another warning." One of our scout dads started heading over at that point. He's a big man about 300 pounds. These kids, two boys and a girl, started spewing language you wouldn't want a longshoreman to hear. I'm no prude, and I've done less than bright things as a teenager, and I've paid my dues working with some troubled kids. I wasn't shocked by the language, though, I didn't like it at all.
I did, at one point, say to them, "Look, can you do this at home?" The girl's reply was, "Yeah, my parents aren't old."
That one actually made me laugh. I said to her, "Well, if it's ok to do this at home, then that's a good place to be. You can't be here." She started screeching about how adults just don't show respect to her, and I laughed and said, "I'm sorry you feel that way, really sorry. Because that means you don't understand that you are being treated just the way you are asking me to treat you. In fact, I'm being way more patient than I need to be." I know she didn't understand. Nothing was out of bounds with these kids. The other adult with me made a remark to them about how little he thought of their parents because of their behavior. One overly-brave kid said that his parents were fantastic and let him do whatever he wanted. Yeah. That was pretty obvious. He told us we shouldn't be disrespecting his parents. I told him that I would never want to do that. Would he, therefore, please go home, tell his parents what happened and send them back down to me. I'd be there for the next 30 minutes. No one showed of, of course.
What gets me isn't so much the smoking, the lack of concern about the example they set for the little children nearby, or the language. Certainly, all of that was awful. But the big problem was the complete lack of respect they have for anyone else, especially adults. And as they behaved like obnoxious brats, they preached about how they should be treated with respect! I hear this over and over form kids. If I can get them to actually have a decent dialogue, I usually ask the kids to define respect. They generally give me a correct definition, but that's not what they are asking for. What they really mean when they say that adults don't respect them is, "You won't let me do what I want to do."
So when did parents stop teaching kids these basic rules of conduct, and when did parents forget to really teach children about respect for others and respect for themselves? I'd be absolutely sure the world was going to Hades in a handbasket if it weren't for the really wonderful kids I work with each week. "My" boy scouts are great kids!

Unfortunately, the 12-year-old boy scout who called my attention to the loitering kids saw most of the exchange above. But later he came to me and said, "You know what? Now I know why you are constantly on top of us about our language and our behavior at scouts."
"Really? Why's that?"
"Those kids don't even realize that what they were doing was so awful. They think they have a right to argue and yell and curse. They do it all the time at school, so they think it's o.k. If you were to let us do that all the time, we'd think it was o.k., too."
Now there's a kid who will go far! And it was one of my payoff moments in scouts!
Apparently paying my Iowa taxes
Man, they've gone up. Dang it all to heck.

Otherwise, I'll be using the difference by knocking out my small bills in anticipation of paying off our zillions of dollars worth of student loans in about 800 years.
paying bills/wedding expense
My daughter is also getting married in March, if they don't change the date again.  And buying me some software/books for work...
How about all you folks having tons of kids? I'm paying for them and your
C-sections and OB costs, as well as all your little offspring's school costs.
Wow, apparently you have not heard of paying it forward. nm
x
My son's insurance stopped paying for Zyrtec
changed recently. I guess it's nice for people that don't have insurance but when a med goes OTC you can't exactly use it as a medical expense on your taxes anymore
Refinancing, nope. We have been paying loads on
the principal and started out with over $220,000 in 2004 and already under 97,000. If we refinanced might get a shyster deal, know who we are with, trust them and do not want any additional burden such as the refinancing charge to apply.
No dead beat if no CS agreed on but not paying court
df
Bless your heart, they were talking about paying on principal
and that is when I talked about paying also. Don't hate. I have been in bad shape before. When I was there, I worked and worked and worked to make my ends meet and now, well what can I say? Again, not good to have hate in your heart.
so, you think we should reward them by paying for their bed, heat, water, food?
nm
You must live in a high pizza delivery paying
area that they get $7-8/hr.  Most make minimum, if that, but keep their tips.  Oh, add in gas to save you the trip of lugging it home yourself, then yes $2 is insulting.
I just found out that social services will be paying me a visit and I am

freaking out!  My estranged husband, on whom I have a restraining order, showed up at my house today, obviously he had been drinking.  Long story short, one of my son's friends shows up, one that is not allowed at the house.  I immediately sent the teenager away, but my husband proceeds to start raging about how he would run things if he were still living here.  I then told him he could leave as well.  That I kicked the teenager and I expected him to leave too.  He refused and said he would leave if I gave him money because he needs to contribute groceries to his buddy with whom he is staying.  He doesn't work and hasn't worked for much of our marriage.  I told him if he wanted to help out his buddy, he should get a job.  He came into the house, sat down on my couch and refused to leave until I gave him money. 


My son called the police to enforce the restraining order.  The police show up and while he is in their custody, he tells them that I have 10 to 14 teenagers in my house every day and that he doesn't feel that it is a good environment for our 8yo daughter.  He tells there was marijuana in my house. 


So now the police are telling me they have to file a report with family services because my house could be a hostile environment and they have to follow up on every complaint.  The marijuana episode did happen; however, my daughter and I were not at home.  My husband was still living at home at the time and caught my son and a couple of friends smoking it and instead of stopping them immediately and kicking everybody out, I was told that he took a hit off the joint.  I was told that by all three kids whom I questioned separately.  When I confronted my soon to be ex about this, his explanation was that he didn't take a hit, he put it up to his mouth and nose to smell to see if it really was pot.  Still he did not put up fuss, punish our son, or kick anybody.  Instead I find out about the pot from the sister of one of my son's girlfriend who told me because she was worried about her sister and she was the one who originally told me my husband took a hit.


Now, because my husband is angry that I have kicked him out and am filing for divorce, he is telling these lies and half truths to the cops and now I have to worry about getting visited from social services.  I've been crying all evening and I'm wondering what I should expect.  I have to clean my house from top to bottom, make sure this sucker shines and I guess not let my son have any friends over ever again!


I am so upset!  I absolutely hate my ex-husband.  I live in a rat hole as it because he has refused to work and he has junked up with all the crap he refuses to throw away.  The man won't even through away magazines.  I have stacks and stacks of magazines and newspapers that every time I've tried to throw out or recycle, he picked them out of the bins and brought them back into the house.  Now I'm faced with this mountain of crap that I have deal with immediately before I get visited by the social worker. 


I'm sorry to go on and on.  I'm just so overwhelmed and stressed and I just want to curl up in a little ball and die.  My kids are my life.  I don't beat them, I feed them, I clothe them, I play with them, and have fun with them.  They are the reason I work, the reason I breathe.  The idea of having someone come into my home and question my fitness as a mother makes my physically ill.


You guys, thank you for continually listening to my saga.  You guys gave me the strength to kick him out to begin with.


Bill Gates is paying $100,000 million or is it billion? Not easy
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call back and request an appt sooner. Since you are paying for it, they should have no problem
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My girlfriend did use the service. It worked great for them. It also put all their payments in one. The only thing is you need to watch what "items" you put under the service because it will keep you from purchasing items for so many years.
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I have used Consumer's Credit Counseling Services locally. They were wonderful to me. Put me on a generous budget, put all my bills under one payment (had to cut up all credit cards - which was a blessing and freedom after I got used to it), cut the credit card interests way-way-down or to none, and finally got everything paid. At first there was no charge from them, but later I paid $5 a visit, but I imagine they have surely put a low charge now. They were pretty strict with me (which I needed), but it worked. They were always accessible to talk with, which I really liked too. Also it was nice to refer callers to them, saying, "I am a client of CCCS and they are helping me" and not have to deal with the callers any more. In fact, after they were notified of intent to pay by CCCS they never called again.

Good luck. It meant freedom to me.
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I did hear that credit counseling is reported to the credit bureaus, but so are late payments, over-limits, missed payments, etc., etc. so ultimately I don't imagine it could ding your credit score any worse.
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I don't know the answer to that. We have only bought cars and a house on credit since then. Be sure to talk to the credit counselor before signing up and find out. They will know.