PLEASE HELP - I'M IN A MESS..

[Anonymous]

Hi Community.

So, I'm in a really bad situation (please no lectures).

I got in to a really ill-advised scam whereby I took out several credit cards for a real-estate investment deal.

The scam artist was supposed to take off funds using their merchant account and use the funds to

put towards real-estate purchases. He was also supposed to make regular payments on the credit cards

until profits were made from a round of refinancing on the properties, at which point he would pay them off

completely and I would have an equity stake in the properties in question. He took the money off the cards but,

surprise, surprise after about 6 months, he stopped making payments. The cards he targeted had an intro 0% APR,

which has now expired and I'm left having to make monthly payments of close to $2000.

Almost all the cards are maxed out, there have been several late notices because I was unable to keep up

with payments and my credit score is in the toilet. Several of the accounts were closed by the lender.

I'm really depressed and dont know how to get out of this. It's over $40K (before payments and interest)

I've tried to recover the money from the guy but it's gonna take a long time if at all to resolve it.

In the meantime, I have to keep throwing good money after bad to cover these payments. I'm reluctant to

declare bankruptcy or whatever but I'm wondering how much longer I can go on doing this.

I can't borrow money from anyone and i hear that credit repair and consolidation companies are also sharks.

Please help me i'm desparate.

M.

The cards are all in my name and I changed the info and got replacement carda a while ago so he can not access them.

the cards are :

*Bank of america 9300/10000

*penfed 4500/5000

*fuel rewards 5800/6000

cabelas 4800/5000

*amex 3500/4000

citi 6500/7000

discover 4300/4500

nasa 6700/7000

ameriprise 2350/2500

the ones with n asterix have been closed and the ones in bold have really high interest rates.

[Anonymous]

First of all you need a lawyer here. This is serious fraud. See if your local news channel has any type of consumer advocacy groups. They may not cure your problems but they will at least prevent other folks from falling ill to this same person's tactics.

I would stop paying 2k a month that is insane. I would even be hesitant to put my money in a checking account for fear they would levy it.  You should have all your reports frozen who knows what else this person is capable of.

You cant keep up paying so you are going to fall behind (which u already are) no matter what, so why would u keep throwing away 2k a month when that isnt enough?

Look forward to 7 years of bad credit and in the mean time I would try to focus on one card to pay off, in this case I hate to say it but capital one would be the card I would pay in full and they should treat you right through all of this hopefully.

Could you list your balances and with which cards they are with?  I would like to think they would be willing to work with you and possibly lower the interest amounts to continue payments.

Honestly 40k sounds like a lot but there should be a way for someone here to guide you on how to consolidate that into a payment way less then what you pay now.  If your credit is worth that much to you, I think you should be able to get out of this.

[jeffery581]

Dispute for starters

[creditguy]

I assume you have already contacted your local authorities about this guy and they are pursuing him, if not get on that. Second if you truly can't afford this you need to contact a bankruptcy attorney and figure out your options. I know your reluctant to file BK and honestly I'm not sure it's 100% an option, but if you truly can't afford this what other option do you have? Unfortunately credit card companies could care less you were scammed, and will not be kind when it comes to collecting so you've got to do what you've got to do. Good Luck I hope the best for you and your situation.

[myjourney]

Welcome to the forum 

Sorry you fell victim to a real pcs of _ _ _ _

That being said for your mental health and financial future BK may be the best option considering the amount of money owed

I invite you to visit the BK forum and at least seek options and opinions 

[degs138]

were all of these charges from the same merchant.  I would dispute every charge with the credit cards to get the ball rolling.  If it is fraude then you need to dispute it.  Deffinitly freeze your credit reports.  Call each lender and talk to the fraud department to see if you can possibly have a credit for the fraud charges and then hire a lawyer.

[Anonymous]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Hi Community.

So, I'm in a really bad situation (please no lectures).

I got in to a really ill-advised scam whereby I took out several credit cards for a real-estate investment deal.

The scam artist was supposed to take off funds using their merchant account and use the funds to

put towards real-estate purchases. He was also supposed to make regular payments on the credit cards

until profits were made from a round of refinancing on the properties, at which point he would pay them off

completely and I would have an equity stake in the properties in question. He took the money off the cards but,

surprise, surprise after about 6 months, he stopped making payments. The cards he targeted had an intro 0% APR,

which has now expired and I'm left having to make monthly payments of close to $2000.

Almost all the cards are maxed out, there have been several late notices because I was unable to keep up

with payments and my credit score is in the toilet. Several of the accounts were closed by the lender.

I'm really depressed and dont know how to get out of this. It's over $40K (before payments and interest)

I've tried to recover the money from the guy but it's gonna take a long time if at all to resolve it.

In the meantime, I have to keep throwing good money after bad to cover these payments. I'm reluctant to

declare bankruptcy or whatever but I'm wondering how much longer I can go on doing this.

I can't borrow money from anyone and i hear that credit repair and consolidation companies are also sharks.

Please help me i'm desparate.

M.

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I'm sorry that this happened to you.  Have you contacted the police as this quite possibly was fraud.  At the very least I would contact an attorney and explore your options as this is way beyond anything a credit repair company is going to be able to help you with and probably beyond the expertise of most of us here.  Depending on your financial situation and income vs the $40K, bankruptcy might possibly be an option.  Ultimately all of your creditors will follow suit and shut down your accounts if you're unable to pay them and then turn the accounts over to their collection departments.  This is why you're going to need sound legal advice

[Anonymous]

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@jeffery581 wrote:

Dispute for starters

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There's nothing to dispute.  That wont go anywhere right now.

[Callandra]

How long ago were these charges made? There's a time limit on chargebacks. And if you've been making payments, disputing now won't work. Your best bet is to file a police report and consult an attorney.

[Anonymous]

yes. these charges go back to the winter of 2014 so i dont think i can challenge them now.