Starting Out and Over

[NikJ4]

Ok, I am in the land of the dead. I currently stopped working to go back to school because I was one who worked in the mortgage industry and didnt care for the direction it was going, I am blessed I chose to stop because I would have been Jobless in San Antonio. Well, now all the wolves are calling and it is driving me crazy. I stopped answering the phone and I may or may not open the mail. I work part time because with school ( taking science only pre-reqs full time for PA School admission) and 3 kids (4 if you count my husband), I am to the limit. Sad part is that it doesnt take a lot to get it under control, just trying to find time to get scheduled to work is hard. (ok enough whine with no cheese..not in the budget) Where do I start to get back into the land of 500's we will work on the larger #'s later. My husband's is better than me but he does not use credit and the little he has had some lates. Me, lets just say, Jesus loves the little children. I want to get us right while still trying to pursue my education. Do I get all of our credit scores and reports first and start with him and then me or try and tackle them both consecutively? Any and all suggestions welcome (as well as prayers and donations....I had to try...jk.....) Oh yeah, little behind on mortgage 2months....forgot that. opps.
I have to laugh to keep from crying.

Desperate for the Good Credit Life.

[Anonymous]

you need to pull all 3 CBs   

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

take your time  it can be very confusing at first!!!!   read these threads   the first is for newbies....it has all the abbrevs that we use and it has the freq.requested thread......the freq requested has too much info. to take in all at one time.....but this is where you will get most info. that you are looking for.

feel free to ask as many question as you need.

Tale your time and do it right!!!!   we are all here to help

[Anonymous]

And get your mortgage caught up or at a minimum go work out a deal with them to add those payments to the end of your loan.

reduce your credit card usage, make minimum payments at the least, and get your overall credit card utilization to 20% or better.

[NikJ4]

Thanks for the pep talk. I just got into a payment plan to get caught up. My credit is so trashed but at least I am starting. I will keep informed once I go back to work full time where things stand.

[Anonymous]

Rough story, if you're ready to fix it I think you're in the right place. In your position I wouldn't make a single move without consulting the 'free' experts here first! :-)

Ryan

[NikJ4]

Thanks, Had final job interview today so keep fingers crossed. Time now will tell. I sent off the first batch of GW letters this morning. I didnt realize the time it took to get just those 5 done. I feel like i am never going to get it together fast enough. This is so time consuming. Getting in debt was not this hard. I feel like i get consumed when I start doing any credit repair. Any suggestions on how to attack without being overwhelmed. I am an ostrich at times and have no problem sticking my head in sand. I am working on getting out of that practice because it is not helping me achieve my ultimate goal....Credit Revival..

[makeynik]

Hi NikJ4,
I have had a simiiliar story...single mom, went back to school, working 3 part time jobs for about 4 years, living without utilities (one week no water, 6 months no heat or hot water...late on mortgage several times, because heck...I want a warm house in the winter even if I have to move out of it! It takes time...just because you have a full time job, like I do now (teaching 3 years now)it does not mean that all is peachy without working on your credit. Do not do what I did before I read good stuff here: Multiple inquiries to mortgage companies for refinancing or for credit cards (digging into deeper)paying collections off without negotiating removal from reports...etc.

My credit score is low, but I have hope, and have seen an increase of 7 points in a couple of weeks while following advice here.

My advice is to cut expenses...get a scholarship for daycare if you can, YMCA's provide daycare and scholarships, pack school lunches, find a free park or beach with a picnic close to home to take the kids, ask about scholarships for park district programs, get on WIC if applicable etc...work on your own score, because you just never know, if you will need to stand alone and support your kids...(sorry to say, but that's the truth at times!) It can be very, very depressing, but keep your eye on the goal!

Also,FHA will finance/refinance with no mortgage lates for 1 year...might be able to pay off debt that way, find out about your bank's mininum score for refinance, too.

[Anonymous]

To not get overwhelmed-

Get acccounts current and stay current- put multiple ways in place to ensure nothing gets missed-

Have a debt plan- seeing your scores go up can keep you going-

In repair- do 1 or 2 TL's at a time start with the most current derog and move backwards-

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NikJ4 wrote:

Thanks, Had final job interview today so keep fingers crossed. Time now will tell. I sent off the first batch of GW letters this morning. I didnt realize the time it took to get just those 5 done. I feel like i am never going to get it together fast enough. This is so time consuming. Getting in debt was not this hard. I feel like i get consumed when I start doing any credit repair. Any suggestions on how to attack without being overwhelmed. I am an ostrich at times and have no problem sticking my head in sand. I am working on getting out of that practice because it is not helping me achieve my ultimate goal....Credit Revival..

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[Anonymous]

Everyone's pretty much said every thing I would have said!

What I did was sit down with DH, compile all of our bills (rent, utilities, cable, phone, cc's, car payment, insurance), got a notebook just for bills and wrote down EVERYTHING- how much is due, when its due, the min payment, what we can pay, and then keep track of how much we did pay and the new balance. I still do that now to keep track of everything. (we are still in the process of paying down ccs) The worst thing you can do is not pay your bills and AT LEAST your min payment. Paying just 5 dollars over is closer to paying your debt down than just paying the min. (oh and stop using your cc if possible!) I know money is tight for you guys, but if at all possible, try to find a copy of Suze Orman's "The money book for the young fabulous, and broke". It really helped explain ficos and money management in terms we could really understand.

good luck! It takes time!!!

[NikJ4]

Thanks to everyone on the advice. I got approved from my lender for a forbearance plan. I have 9 months to get my act together. I can actually pay it off faster but the set up is for 9 months. Also, during this process, my credit will still suck so my plan is to get out of this situation ASAP. I refuse to refi due to (a) cant and (b) 5.5% interest rate. I start my new job on Aug 11th but I do have a part time that allows me to set my own schedule(working at hospital while trying to get back into school for nursing) Since the DH has crazy job as policeman, I have to juggle with his schedule. Such as life. I have incorporated his fam for some support with kids while i work evening shifts. I will do this on weekends until we are back in the black and out of Red. Now I am just trying to find a bill and get out of debt system that works for ME. I read so much stuff but finding what works best for me is what is hard. I am trying everyone elses "what worked for them" doesnt always works for the next person.I just have to find my groove and my method of paying bills on a bi-weekly schedule which i hate. I am 1st and 15th type girl.