Bankruptcy may be my only choice...

[pattycake]

I was out of work for almost two years after my son died of cancer. I had no choice but to live on credit for about 14 months and my bills are now about $4800 a month, which includes my home, car, all cards and other obligations. I'm now working full time and only bring home about two thirds of what I need to pay my bills. My question is, if I leave BofA and Amex out of the BK filing, do they cancel your cards anyway? I wanted to avoid this, but I don't see any options these days. I had worked so hard to rebuild my credit over the years, but my son's illness and failure to find steady work made it hard to stay on track. Thoughts? Experiences? I'm planning to keep my UFCU card, as they've been good to me over the past ten years.

[ezdriver]

I'm so sorry for your loss.

About the credit cards, I can tell you that my credit cards were all cancelled when I file Ch 7 last year ... even ones on which I had zero balance. I contacted Capital One and Wells Fargo to inquire about why the cards were cancelled. They both told me that their credit agreements and corporate policies require cancellation when a borrower files for Ch 7 bankruptcy. I tried to have them re-instated butthey would not do that either.

[pattycake]

Thank you for your kind words. I didn't know that, I'll have to look at my credit agreements with all my creditors. If they are all going to close my accounts anyway, I may as well just include them in the discharge. I'm working two jobs right now, about 65+ hours a week and still don't bring home enough. Add to all of this, thousands in cancer bills. I'll never get caught up this way, that's for sure. Does AMEX black list even if they are not included in the filing?

[mgs2010]

First, I'm so sorry to hear about your situation, that's terrible. As far as filing bankruptcy, I'll tell you from experience it's really not that bad. I wouldn't be concered with being able to keep a card from boa or amex. BOA will close you, I had that happen myself. I'm not sure on AMEX but they're not very friendly when it comes to bankruptcy, so I'm guessing they'll close you down as well. You'll be able to rebuild and get credit cards again. I haven't been able to get back in with BOA since my discharge nearly 3 years ago, however, I did get credit established with several other reputable banks and credit unions. USAA and Navy Federal have been the most generous post bankruptcy. Capital One is extremely forgiving - I filed against them for 9500.00 and they gave me two credit cards very shortly after my discharge with nice limits. Try not to stress about what cards you can keep now. Just do what is best for you and your financial situation - the rest will come with time. Good luck to you.

[pattycake]

Thank you. I've put this off for as long as I could, but I have an appointment with my lawyer on Friday to discuss options. The only card I'd want to keep is University Federal out of Austin, TX. I do not know if they cancel cards, but I'll have to find out.

[ntx]

I'm sorry for your loss.

Note that you legally can't exlude any creditor from your bankrtupcy filing - they must all be included.

You can try to reaffirm those debts as part of your bankruptcy case, if the court will allow it. You are also free to voluntarily continue paying them on your own after discharge.

Neither will necessarily keep your card open though.