Advice -Emergency Expenses WWYD?

[DollyLama]

Only been trying to maximize credit and scores a little over 2 months as you can see in my siggy. 

Problem: Refrigerator totally flooded the kitchen, damaging floor AND cabinets. $1K deductible. Contractor, Insurance Adjustor have been out to assess the damage, total gut of floor, replace some subflooring due to water damage, and replace cabinets. 

Bigger Problem; Have not received the bids yet, or final amount, but almost positive these things will NOT be included- countertops, (built in oven currently) and countertop range, dishwasher, etc. These are old enough to be replaced and not retained for new things. Range hood also. 

No emergency funds to cover nowhere near this amount that we most likely will have to eat the cost ourselves. 

I recently was approved for a Discover IT $5500, and Capital One $1k, not used yet. Have only 1 other card PIF that could use Home Depot $1k (been open 2 years), 1 smaller CC PIF, and Amazon Prime Store Card, PIF, and a Wayfair, PIF. 

The only cards I see to be able to use to replace these appliances are the Home Depot, Discover and Capital One. Even though they wouldn't be maxxed, would you spread these across 2 or 3 cards to keep the utilization at a temporary high (6 months), and hope no AA if no card exceeds 29%? 

I'm working on my husbands credit, as he had no FICO, had put him as AU on 2 cards, and he was able to get a Cap 1, 1k limit, and my next step with him was to go the Alliant SSL route. 

Would it be better to have him do the Alliant route, but keep it open a bit, foregoing use of the CCs, then pay it ahead down the road? 

We have had so much happen to us since I started the credit overhaul, wind storm took out the fence, gutter on the garage, wasn't at that time enough to reach deductible. So my initial goal has been shot these past 2 months, of save, save, save for emergencies, from the utilization pay offs, and stick back what I was paying on CCs monthly payments I no longer had. 

My biggest worry is charging and having a card(s) closed, decrease line of credit, after I finally started to see some light. Snuffed out by this latest episode. 

If you were in my shoes, which route would you take, or an alternative one? Regardless if we find a scratch and dent cost appliances, it still will be a blow to our pockets to cover all of this. 

[Anonymous]

Sorry this has happened to you. It can snowball very quickly and feel overwhelming. If this happened to me I would have a home equity line of credit (HELOC) for this type of situation. You will have to check with your tax advisor, but often times the money used from HELOCs can be tax deductable. 

I am not saying take out a $100K HELOC and I am not advising to use your equity as a personal bank account. But using a HELOC for say $5K worth of necessary kitchen remodeling can be very smart. 

I think using credit cards for everything like this can lead to problems down the road. Especially if you need to max out most of your cards to take care of this. If you do not like the idea of a HELOC you could also look into a home equity loan as well. A good local credit union can review your situation and advise on the best solution for you. 

In the future you and the Mr. may need to consider a household account-try to save $100-$200 a month just for household expenses. Many financial gurus are suggesting this-open an additional checking account at your bank or credit union (as long as it is fee-free) and use it ONLY for household expenses. Hopefully it would only need to be used once every 3-5 years or so; but if you have $3K sitting in the account it can be used for emergencies like this. 

Good luck! 

[Anonymous]

Your home depot card has been known for large CLI's. I would call them and ask for a CLI and explain why it is needed. Using your home depot card for this purchase if you can get one of their finance deals will result in 0% interest as well. So as long as you pay it off before teh deadline you will not waste money on interest.

[Yodah]

Being that you highest score is TU.... Apply for a Lowes Account, once approved depending on CL call in and ask for 25K. If they dont give you that they will counter..

Then, use that card to buy your appliances on thier 36 month @3.99 %,  60 month @ 5.99%,  or 84 month @ 7.99% fixed payment plans. To qualify for one of these the purchase amount just has to be over 2K, it doesnt matter what you buy... This allows you to spread it out at a low APR, and save your other cards for other things.

[iced]

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@DollyLama wrote:

Only been trying to maximize credit and scores a little over 2 months as you can see in my siggy. 

Problem: Refrigerator totally flooded the kitchen, damaging floor AND cabinets. $1K deductible. Contractor, Insurance Adjustor have been out to assess the damage, total gut of floor, replace some subflooring due to water damage, and replace cabinets. 

Bigger Problem; Have not received the bids yet, or final amount, but almost positive these things will NOT be included- countertops, (built in oven currently) and countertop range, dishwasher, etc. These are old enough to be replaced and not retained for new things. Range hood also. 

No emergency funds to cover nowhere near this amount that we most likely will have to eat the cost ourselves. 

I recently was approved for a Discover IT $5500, and Capital One $1k, not used yet. Have only 1 other card PIF that could use Home Depot $1k (been open 2 years), 1 smaller CC PIF, and Amazon Prime Store Card, PIF, and a Wayfair, PIF. 

The only cards I see to be able to use to replace these appliances are the Home Depot, Discover and Capital One. Even though they wouldn't be maxxed, would you spread these across 2 or 3 cards to keep the utilization at a temporary high (6 months), and hope no AA if no card exceeds 29%? 

I'm working on my husbands credit, as he had no FICO, had put him as AU on 2 cards, and he was able to get a Cap 1, 1k limit, and my next step with him was to go the Alliant SSL route. 

Would it be better to have him do the Alliant route, but keep it open a bit, foregoing use of the CCs, then pay it ahead down the road? 

We have had so much happen to us since I started the credit overhaul, wind storm took out the fence, gutter on the garage, wasn't at that time enough to reach deductible. So my initial goal has been shot these past 2 months, of save, save, save for emergencies, from the utilization pay offs, and stick back what I was paying on CCs monthly payments I no longer had. 

My biggest worry is charging and having a card(s) closed, decrease line of credit, after I finally started to see some light. Snuffed out by this latest episode. 

If you were in my shoes, which route would you take, or an alternative one? Regardless if we find a scratch and dent cost appliances, it still will be a blow to our pockets to cover all of this. 

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Are the appliances inoperable? I'm a little surprised to hear that flooding rendered a range hood inoperable.

Use what what funds you have to cover the deductible. Anything not covered by insurance should be kept until you can afford to replace it (that is, do not carry a balance on a 10% or higher APR card or loan). If something is damaged but not destroyed (inoperable), keep it for now. If it can be repaired for considerably less than replacement, consider that option.

If the appliances and countertops are not usable, your best bet is to finance them at the lowest interest rate you can get. If you KNOW you can pay them off before a 0% APR promotional rate is over, great. Otherwise consider a HELOC or personal loan to minimize interest. Be very sure they aren't usable and it's not just some cosmetic water damage. Unless you're selling the place in a few months, there's no reason to replace until you can afford it. If there is any mold in an appliance or section of countertop, consider it destroyed and remove it.

[Anonymous]

I would definitely request CLI from Home Depot.  My GF got a card last year for 0% interest over 12 months and they gave her $5000.  Now she's up to $17,000 or something without every using the card again (PIF early on the 0% balance).

[DollyLama]

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@iced wrote:

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@DollyLama wrote:

Only been trying to maximize credit and scores a little over 2 months as you can see in my siggy. 

Problem: Refrigerator totally flooded the kitchen, damaging floor AND cabinets. $1K deductible. Contractor, Insurance Adjustor have been out to assess the damage, total gut of floor, replace some subflooring due to water damage, and replace cabinets. 

Bigger Problem; Have not received the bids yet, or final amount, but almost positive these things will NOT be included- countertops, (built in oven currently) and countertop range, dishwasher, etc. These are old enough to be replaced and not retained for new things. Range hood also. 

No emergency funds to cover nowhere near this amount that we most likely will have to eat the cost ourselves. 

I recently was approved for a Discover IT $5500, and Capital One $1k, not used yet. Have only 1 other card PIF that could use Home Depot $1k (been open 2 years), 1 smaller CC PIF, and Amazon Prime Store Card, PIF, and a Wayfair, PIF. 

The only cards I see to be able to use to replace these appliances are the Home Depot, Discover and Capital One. Even though they wouldn't be maxxed, would you spread these across 2 or 3 cards to keep the utilization at a temporary high (6 months), and hope no AA if no card exceeds 29%? 

I'm working on my husbands credit, as he had no FICO, had put him as AU on 2 cards, and he was able to get a Cap 1, 1k limit, and my next step with him was to go the Alliant SSL route. 

Would it be better to have him do the Alliant route, but keep it open a bit, foregoing use of the CCs, then pay it ahead down the road? 

We have had so much happen to us since I started the credit overhaul, wind storm took out the fence, gutter on the garage, wasn't at that time enough to reach deductible. So my initial goal has been shot these past 2 months, of save, save, save for emergencies, from the utilization pay offs, and stick back what I was paying on CCs monthly payments I no longer had. 

My biggest worry is charging and having a card(s) closed, decrease line of credit, after I finally started to see some light. Snuffed out by this latest episode. 

If you were in my shoes, which route would you take, or an alternative one? Regardless if we find a scratch and dent cost appliances, it still will be a blow to our pockets to cover all of this. 

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Are the appliances inoperable? I'm a little surprised to hear that flooding rendered a range hood inoperable.

.

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No, just aged, the concern I had is everything is built in, wall oven, cooktop, range hood is attached to cabinets. They will be yanking all top and bottom due to matching. May or may not have to bite too much of the bullet. Spoke with contractor yesterday, told me countertops are included in their estimate, as they were attached to the cabinets and removing those in our shape of kitchen layout will result in them breaking. He told me don't shop as yet, as he tries to justify to replace the kitchen to the original this he factors in, it's not simply replacing a free standing stove. We will get the good or bad news within a week, after he talks to adjustor. I just in my head immediately go for the worst case scenario, and these are by no means cheap to replace. If we have to replace what we can out of pocket, we will save what we can, and new on others. No way I would put a 10 yr old built in wall oven in new cabinetry. Same for cooktop. The way my luck is they would burn out, or quit working a week after they put them all back. Dishwashers are much easier to replace. 

[DollyLama]

Thanks everyone for the advice. Talked with contractor yesterday, said don't jump the gun as yet, wait to see what insurance company adjustor says after all bids are submitted. 

[Revelate]

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@DollyLama wrote:

Thanks everyone for the advice. Talked with contractor yesterday, said don't jump the gun as yet, wait to see what insurance company adjustor says after all bids are submitted. 

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Yup yup, don't let this derail you; as an aside the SSL trick only ties up cash for about 1.5 months assuming you pull the usual aggressive paydown to $20 or whatever, but one of the beautiful things about it is the effect is nearly immediate for 95% of the benefit, so if you need to delay it it's not a big deal.

What's your cashflow look like in terms of being able to pay the $1K off if you focus on it?  If it's just a couple of months then even floating it on Discover isn't a huge deal especially as they're still doubling up to 2%.

End of the day: relax you'll be OK .