How to dig out of the hole without getting dirty?

[Anonymous]

I'm trying to dig myself out of a deep credit hole with the least collateral damage possible 

cards

cap qs 1 2k limit 2k balance

cap qs 2 3k limit 3k balance

cap psn 600 limit 600 balance

chase freedom 500 limit 500 balance

chase amazon 500 limit 500 balance

boa travel 1k limit 1k balance

best buy 500 limit 500 balance

first national 350 limit 350 balance

first savings 350 limit 350 balance

surge 350 limit 350 balance

merrick bank 1100 limit 1100 balance

credit one 350 limit 350 balance

amazon store 1600 limit 1600 balance

target 1100 limit 1100 balance

walmart 1300 limit 1300 balance

matrix 350 limit 350 balance

fingerhut 2500 limit 2xxx balance

hccredit 3k limit 2500 balance(least worried about this was 1 time purchase so available credit means little on this)

gamestop 750 limit 750 balance

hsn 3k limit 2k balance

wards 450 limit 450 balance

gettington 400 limit 300 balance

barclays 1k limit 1k balance

suffice to say i dug myself a big hole but if i make it out of this my credit will be splendid

im struggling to meet the minimum plus handle life (a couple annual fees hit at the worst possible time and threw off the budget a couple of months)

i will be able to pay the minimum on these all this month and will have an influx of 1200ish coming in so what would be the optimal way to utilize that 1200 to reduce my mimimum payment cost while i try to stabilize things.

[FireMedic1]

Yikes! Debt consoldation loan? Pay them off, then dump half of them so you wont get back in the hole? IDK

[sarge12]

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@Anonymous wrote:

I'm trying to dig myself out of a deep credit hole with the least collateral damage possible 

cards

cap qs 1 2k limit 2k balance

cap qs 2 3k limit 3k balance

cap psn 600 limit 600 balance

chase freedom 500 limit 500 balance

chase amazon 500 limit 500 balance

boa travel 1k limit 1k balance

best buy 500 limit 500 balance

first national 350 limit 350 balance

first savings 350 limit 350 balance

surge 350 limit 350 balance

merrick bank 1100 limit 1100 balance

credit one 350 limit 350 balance

amazon store 1600 limit 1600 balance

target 1100 limit 1100 balance

walmart 1300 limit 1300 balance

matrix 350 limit 350 balance

fingerhut 2500 limit 2xxx balance

hccredit 3k limit 2500 balance(least worried about this was 1 time purchase so available credit means little on this)

gamestop 750 limit 750 balance

hsn 3k limit 2k balance

wards 450 limit 450 balance

gettington 400 limit 300 balance

barclays 1k limit 1k balance

suffice to say i dug myself a big hole but if i make it out of this my credit will be splendid

im struggling to meet the minimum plus handle life (a couple annual fees hit at the worst possible time and threw off the budget a couple of months)

i will be able to pay the minimum on these all this month and will have an influx of 1200ish coming in so what would be the optimal way to utilize that 1200 to reduce my mimimum payment cost while i try to stabilize things.

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I have no idea what is your pay as compared to minimum payments. If all you can manage is minimum payments and a consolidation loan is not possible, you will never be able to get out of debt that way. If consolidation is not an option, and minimums are all you can manage, bankrutcy may be your best option. While I do not like recommending this, once you have dug that hole deep enough, it is sometimes not just the best choice, but the only choice that will get someone out of the hole in less than 20 years. Once DTI reaches a certain level it becomes almost impossible. Making only minimum payments barely covers interest, so your debt load never drops. The 1200 dollars you mentioned may be best spent on a lawyer.

[FireMedic1]

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@sarge12 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I'm trying to dig myself out of a deep credit hole with the least collateral damage possible 

cards

cap qs 1 2k limit 2k balance

cap qs 2 3k limit 3k balance

cap psn 600 limit 600 balance

chase freedom 500 limit 500 balance

chase amazon 500 limit 500 balance

boa travel 1k limit 1k balance

best buy 500 limit 500 balance

first national 350 limit 350 balance

first savings 350 limit 350 balance

surge 350 limit 350 balance

merrick bank 1100 limit 1100 balance

credit one 350 limit 350 balance

amazon store 1600 limit 1600 balance

target 1100 limit 1100 balance

walmart 1300 limit 1300 balance

matrix 350 limit 350 balance

fingerhut 2500 limit 2xxx balance

hccredit 3k limit 2500 balance(least worried about this was 1 time purchase so available credit means little on this)

gamestop 750 limit 750 balance

hsn 3k limit 2k balance

wards 450 limit 450 balance

gettington 400 limit 300 balance

barclays 1k limit 1k balance

suffice to say i dug myself a big hole but if i make it out of this my credit will be splendid

im struggling to meet the minimum plus handle life (a couple annual fees hit at the worst possible time and threw off the budget a couple of months)

i will be able to pay the minimum on these all this month and will have an influx of 1200ish coming in so what would be the optimal way to utilize that 1200 to reduce my mimimum payment cost while i try to stabilize things.

---

I have no idea what is your pay as compared to minimum payments. If all you can manage is minimum payments and a consolidation loan is not possible, you will never be able to get out of debt that way. If consolidation is not an option, and minimums are all you can manage, bankrutcy may be your best option. While I do not like recommending this, once you have dug that hole deep enough, it is sometimes not just the best choice, but the only choice that will get someone out of the hole in less than 20 years. Once DTI reaches a certain level it becomes almost impossible. Making only minimum payments barely covers interest, so your debt load never drops. The 1200 dollars you mentioned may be best spent on a lawyer.

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#1 $25,000+ if I added it right. JMO. Time for a fresh start.

[Anonymous]

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@FireMedic1 wrote:

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@sarge12 wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

I'm trying to dig myself out of a deep credit hole with the least collateral damage possible 

cards

cap qs 1 2k limit 2k balance

cap qs 2 3k limit 3k balance

cap psn 600 limit 600 balance

chase freedom 500 limit 500 balance

chase amazon 500 limit 500 balance

boa travel 1k limit 1k balance

best buy 500 limit 500 balance

first national 350 limit 350 balance

first savings 350 limit 350 balance

surge 350 limit 350 balance

merrick bank 1100 limit 1100 balance

credit one 350 limit 350 balance

amazon store 1600 limit 1600 balance

target 1100 limit 1100 balance

walmart 1300 limit 1300 balance

matrix 350 limit 350 balance

fingerhut 2500 limit 2xxx balance

hccredit 3k limit 2500 balance(least worried about this was 1 time purchase so available credit means little on this)

gamestop 750 limit 750 balance

hsn 3k limit 2k balance

wards 450 limit 450 balance

gettington 400 limit 300 balance

barclays 1k limit 1k balance

suffice to say i dug myself a big hole but if i make it out of this my credit will be splendid

im struggling to meet the minimum plus handle life (a couple annual fees hit at the worst possible time and threw off the budget a couple of months)

i will be able to pay the minimum on these all this month and will have an influx of 1200ish coming in so what would be the optimal way to utilize that 1200 to reduce my mimimum payment cost while i try to stabilize things.

---

I have no idea what is your pay as compared to minimum payments. If all you can manage is minimum payments and a consolidation loan is not possible, you will never be able to get out of debt that way. If consolidation is not an option, and minimums are all you can manage, bankrutcy may be your best option. While I do not like recommending this, once you have dug that hole deep enough, it is sometimes not just the best choice, but the only choice that will get someone out of the hole in less than 20 years. Once DTI reaches a certain level it becomes almost impossible. Making only minimum payments barely covers interest, so your debt load never drops. The 1200 dollars you mentioned may be best spent on a lawyer.

---

#1 $25,000+ if I added it right. JMO. Time for a fresh start.

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Without knowing his income, I'd be hesitant to say that. BUT, if you can make the minimums now and have 1200 coming up to throw at these, I would recommend knocking out three of the smallest balances, (credit one, surge, matrix) - that eliminates three payments, giving you an extra $75 per month to throw at the next smallest balance. Trim every possible dime from your budget. Beans and rice for the next 6-12 months. Snowball method with the smallest balance to the largest. cut up all of the cards with the eception of the Cap Ones and the Chase cards, maybe the BoA (even though I despise BoA).

[Anonymous]

Essentially you're maxed out, but do not file bankruptcy.

Do as mentioned above. Knock out the smallest & work your way through the largest. 

Cut ties with the shopping cards. Pay them off & close them. Repair the relationship with the bank cards. 

[Teo]

What's the total monthly minimun payments, and what are your scores?

[grillandwinemaster]

You want to get Out w/o getting dirty? 

Hate to break it to you buddy, but your already dirty.  You stepped on sh$&! Now you have to clean it up. 

Bk depends on your income. If your in the 25-35k range, yup I think your bankrupt. If your in the 45k+ range, you can dig yourself out with good budgeting.

You May look at getting a second job and throwing all at your debt.  Like Norman said, the debt snow ball method has worked for many people. 

I know most would disagree with the following advice, but if I were in YOUR shoes, I would close EVERY LAST ONE of those credit cards. History has down that your not ready to handle them. The last thing you need to do is continue to use the cards after you make some progress, which I suspect you would. Your credit is already  "temporarily" trashed, so the fact that your uti %'s are going to skyrocket does not matter.  

When you do pay everything off, you Will have all the history of all the accounts as a plus ( hopefully) if you're able to stay current. Then, and only Then would I entertain the idea of getting new cc's. Only 3 max, you don't need more than that. 

I'm not judging you. I'm not trying to be harsh. I've been in your shoes and managed to pull out. I still have a few bruises as a result. 

Best credit wishes to you!

[FireMedic1]

I understand what your saying Norman. Still no responce on income from the OP. Is that 1200 a one time or monthly income for the cards. Even $25 min per card is 500 a month. G&Wmaster has good points too. Hope the OP comes back and answers some stats. 

[sarge12]

Hopefully the OP's income is high enough to avoid BK. I and many others have been there and done that. What gets really frustrating on these boards is when I encounter people who appear to be headed there, and will not listen to advise about the dangers of credit cards. I have often stated that as a concealed weapons permit holder the most dangerous items in my pocket is a loaded gun and unloaded credit cards. I use credit cards, but I am very aware of how dangerous they can be.