I guess everyone who posts here has the same story... massive debt. I won't lie and say I was financially responsible but I was not.
Unfortunately, I have accumulated about 40K in unsecured debt with potentially every creditor out there.
Approximately 20K from American Express, 12K from BOA, and 8K from Citi Bank.
I am working my butt off but unfortunately I can't really make a whole lot more money than I am to get these bills paid. I am also in school. I work 40-60 hours a week and take on a full course load. When I contacted a credit counseling agency, they told me to work more to pay off the bills... I don't see that as an option - I'm already working at my limit.
Fortunately for me, I have ZERO late payments and ZERO collection debts. My score is sitting right around 610. Its because I have a Huge amount of debt. My credit lines with Amex and BOA are closed. CitiCards reopened my credit line with a low APR for no reason that I can understand but I said yes to that cause the interest rate was a 24% and now its a 8%.
From my understanding, debt negotiation agencies typically are shady and also you need to be late in your payments etc which I am not. I'd rather not declare bankruptcy as I have heard it is pretty much a very horrible idea. But I am now thinking it might be worth it?
I am hoping that as soon as I finish school in 1.5 years I can get a better job with higher income to help me achieve these goals of paying everything off but will it be too late? The damage be done to my credit score?
At this point, I'm considering taking out a small loan to help me make my monthly payments on things. This seems ridiculous. But I have cut down my expenses to almost nothing...
Any suggestions? Or should I keep up the fight and hope that eventually things will get better?
Thanks for you advice!
