I need some good advice...

[Anonymous]

HI there!  My situation is not good.  I am currently in a 3 year adjustable mortgage.  It is going to adjust December 1, 2007.  I made the mistake of getting so far in debt that I was not making my credit card payments on time.  All of my CC holders maxed the rates, some as high as 32.99%APR.  I tried a debt settlement agent. To be in their plan, you have to go "arrears" in your credit cards. I started the program in August 06.  By Jan 07, our credit had dropped over 100 points.  My Husbands high is 620, my high is 568. 

I got out of the settlement program, before any more damage could be done.  I have settled one of the 6 credit accounts, and made arrangements with the other agencies to pay a reduced payment, but I closed out the accounts prior to making those agreements.  All but one of the accounts is current. 

I am trying to figure the best way to raise our credit, and get out of this ARM, which could go up 500.00 a month. 

I have been trying to get into another mortgage, but our rates are so low that we are having difficulty. 

Any suggestions?

Sandy

[Anonymous]

I'd be more concerned about your overall financial picture than your credit score per se. You need to address the financial imbalance by raising income or reducing expenses. Have you considered renting out a room in the house? That could add several hundred dollars a month to the balance sheet.

[Anonymous]

If you have a 401k, a hardship withdrawl to wipe out the credit card debt might help you.  That might bring up your scores high enough to do a refi, but I wonder if the rate on the refi would be lower than what your adjustment will be...

I think it is wrong how the CCC jack up the rates.  It oft times pushes people over the edge.  Our government needs to do something about that, IMHO.