“Dear Steve,
HI MY NAME IS KATIA IM ONLY 20 YEARS OLD AND I HAVE A VERY LOW CREDIT SCORE DUE TO A CREDIT CARD I MAX OUT WHEN I WAS 18 . IM LEAVING ON MY OWN DUE TO MY PARENTS MOVING OUT OF THE STATE I BARELY MANAGE TO GET THROUGH RENT AND ALL.BUT NOW IM UNEMPLOYED IM RECEIVING WELLFARE AND I OWN MY PAST CREDIT CARD 2800 DOLLARS AND MY PHONE RINGS NONE STOP IM STARTING TO GET REALLY WORRY THAT ILL NEVER WILL BE ABLE TO PAY IT WITH THEIR CRAZY INTREST RATE I WAS SO IRRESPONSABLE AND NOW I REGRET IT.IM SO INEXPERIENCE WITH ALL THIS TYPE OF PAPER WORK
SHOULD I GO IN BANKRUPCY? OR HOW DO I DEAL WITH MY DEBT?
KATIA”
The Answer:
Dear Katia,
We need to prioritize the situation. Regarding the $2,800 debt, unless you can pay it just stop paying it and let it go to a lawsuit and they will then get a judgment but since you are only on unemployment and/or welfare they can’t take that money.
The real issue here is not the debt, but your lack of income. We need to focus on you getting a job where you can make enough money to take care of yourself. Once you can do that then we can go back and deal with the old debt, potentially settle it if you can save up $1,400 and once that happens then we can start to build a better credit report and credit score for you by using a secured card and paying it on time.
Make a job of getting a job and let’s overcome the income issue first. When the collectors call, just be nice and tell them you can’t make any promise to pay since you don’t have any money. Don’t let them intimidate you, they are just trying to scare you into making a payment you can’t afford.
If you have a credit or debt question you’d like to ask just use the online form. I’m happy to help you totally for free.