"Hi I work for a Debt Agreement administrator. There are 3 ways to end a debt agreement, you pay it out in full, you can apply to have the agreement terminated (however interest backdates from the start of your agreement), or you can offer to make a…"
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So, I am considering Bankruptcy...
Hi everybody... :)
I just came across this website today while looking for information on becoming Bankrupt- the pros and cons and if there are any other options for me.
I am 28 years old and have been living in debt since I was about 18.
When first acquiring credit, I had all intentions to pay it back and be responsible, but it all went down the gurgler when my plans were not to be. All my own fault. Of course.
I went and saw a financial counseller for the first time yesterday. She steered me in the direction of Bankruptcy. I guess as an 'easy way out'... I was actually quite happy with this- as I had considered it before, but not looked into it, nor did I even know how to go about it. BUT, when I told my Mother, she said my debt seemed too little to go bankrupt over and now, I am doubting it... But in all honesty, I see no other option.
Right now I am about $15,000.00 in the red. And this is after orginally having 2 personal loans at $8,000 each, a credit card for $1,000 (though pretty much always maxed out + some) as well as a store card for $800. This lines of credit were all from before I was 20. So, 8 years ago or thereabouts. I have been paying money on them... though when it all become too much, I would default and my debt would be sold to a new company... Eventually I stopped opening my mail and never answered the phone. Up until yesterday, I was averaging about 18 phone calls a day.
One thing my finacnial counsellor did mention that was if I had made any payments on my debts, I would have started the 'time' again (ie: no longer eligle for the statute of limitations). Wish I had known that before. I would get a call, saying I owed x amount, they would offer me a payment plan which was undo-able... but to shush them I would make a payment then and there, which was actually just retstarting the time :(
I thought, going to the counseller would have given me a better outline of where I sat financially, but really I am still in the dark- for the most part. See, some of my debts (2 I think) actually have 2 different companies after me... so, I dunno.
Anyway, sorry I am babbling...
I have no assets. No home. No car... Nothing. So, I am safe from anything being taken away from me. My income is under the threshold, so I will be able to continue my lifestyle as it is now, and maybe, just maybe be able to save a little each payday.
The counseller barely even mentioned a debt agreement... though she did say she wouldn't bother calling the companies as they wouldn't reduce my amounts enough for me to be able to pay. She also said that the blemish on your record is akin to Bankruptcy, so going bankrupt is the better option, as you don't pay the money back. If, my debt is 15,000, I could spend 400 a month in repayments (not even including interest) and be 'finished' in just over 3 years and still have a blemish on my record... or I could go Bankrupt, keep my 400 a month, and be discharged in 3 years... (plus the extra 4 still on the database). She also said, if I don't go bankrupt and a company really goes after me, I could end up with a judement on my name, which stays on your record for 15 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One of the debts is CBA... I had a personal loan with them, and my credit card. I have literally been paying this off since the beginning. I feel as though I have paid it, time and time again. But, STUPIDLY, I have no actual proof of this... like I said, the companies are always changing and I didn't know which way was up :(
At one point, I asked my boss to help me. He is a solicitor... I just wanted a payment plan. But, instead he PAID my debt and I had my wages garnished for a long time. My finacnial counseller said that was stupid- as I literally have no idea what that debt was for... Grrr.
Sorry, all I am doing is goingh aroundin circles... Right now, it feels like there is no point fighting the debts (even though I feel like I am being ripped off)... The financial counseller said after 7 years (3 bankrupt and the next 4 still on the database) that I would have a 'clean slate'... I don't knwo if I believe this. I am not really interested in having a credit card or store credit ever again... but one day, I might want to buy a house, or a car... Am I ever going to given credit, if I have been bankrupt??
Should I even go bankrupt??
I just came across this website today while looking for information on becoming Bankrupt- the pros and cons and if there are any other options for me.
I am 28 years old and have been living in debt since I was about 18.
When first acquiring credit, I had all intentions to pay it back and be responsible, but it all went down the gurgler when my plans were not to be. All my own fault. Of course.
I went and saw a financial counseller for the first time yesterday. She steered me in the direction of Bankruptcy. I guess as an 'easy way out'... I was actually quite happy with this- as I had considered it before, but not looked into it, nor did I even know how to go about it. BUT, when I told my Mother, she said my debt seemed too little to go bankrupt over and now, I am doubting it... But in all honesty, I see no other option.
Right now I am about $15,000.00 in the red. And this is after orginally having 2 personal loans at $8,000 each, a credit card for $1,000 (though pretty much always maxed out + some) as well as a store card for $800. This lines of credit were all from before I was 20. So, 8 years ago or thereabouts. I have been paying money on them... though when it all become too much, I would default and my debt would be sold to a new company... Eventually I stopped opening my mail and never answered the phone. Up until yesterday, I was averaging about 18 phone calls a day.
One thing my finacnial counsellor did mention that was if I had made any payments on my debts, I would have started the 'time' again (ie: no longer eligle for the statute of limitations). Wish I had known that before. I would get a call, saying I owed x amount, they would offer me a payment plan which was undo-able... but to shush them I would make a payment then and there, which was actually just retstarting the time :(
I thought, going to the counseller would have given me a better outline of where I sat financially, but really I am still in the dark- for the most part. See, some of my debts (2 I think) actually have 2 different companies after me... so, I dunno.
Anyway, sorry I am babbling...
I have no assets. No home. No car... Nothing. So, I am safe from anything being taken away from me. My income is under the threshold, so I will be able to continue my lifestyle as it is now, and maybe, just maybe be able to save a little each payday.
The counseller barely even mentioned a debt agreement... though she did say she wouldn't bother calling the companies as they wouldn't reduce my amounts enough for me to be able to pay. She also said that the blemish on your record is akin to Bankruptcy, so going bankrupt is the better option, as you don't pay the money back. If, my debt is 15,000, I could spend 400 a month in repayments (not even including interest) and be 'finished' in just over 3 years and still have a blemish on my record... or I could go Bankrupt, keep my 400 a month, and be discharged in 3 years... (plus the extra 4 still on the database). She also said, if I don't go bankrupt and a company really goes after me, I could end up with a judement on my name, which stays on your record for 15 years!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
One of the debts is CBA... I had a personal loan with them, and my credit card. I have literally been paying this off since the beginning. I feel as though I have paid it, time and time again. But, STUPIDLY, I have no actual proof of this... like I said, the companies are always changing and I didn't know which way was up :(
At one point, I asked my boss to help me. He is a solicitor... I just wanted a payment plan. But, instead he PAID my debt and I had my wages garnished for a long time. My finacnial counseller said that was stupid- as I literally have no idea what that debt was for... Grrr.
Sorry, all I am doing is goingh aroundin circles... Right now, it feels like there is no point fighting the debts (even though I feel like I am being ripped off)... The financial counseller said after 7 years (3 bankrupt and the next 4 still on the database) that I would have a 'clean slate'... I don't knwo if I believe this. I am not really interested in having a credit card or store credit ever again... but one day, I might want to buy a house, or a car... Am I ever going to given credit, if I have been bankrupt??
Should I even go bankrupt??
Tags: bankruptcy, debt
Views: 47
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Missy Had on -
continued...
I always want to go on a holiday. I have NEVER been on a holiday. But, if I go bankrupt, maybe I will be denied leave from Australia.
I feel like I have really let myself down… and my family. As many people in debt, I have had really low times… I am really sick of always living in the shadow of my debt and the stupid mistakes I made when I was young. It was so easy to get credit. I want a clean slate but I fear that there is no such thing. Should I just trust what the counsellor said??
Sorry for my ramblings and thank you for reading. Any comments are greatly appreciated, but please do not preach to me about my spending habits. I have learnt that lesson. I learnt it nearly straight after I got my 2nd personal loan (which incidentally was to help pay off my first personal loan). My spending is absolutely minimal now, and has been for many years. I was forced to move back home ages ago. Once with my mum, and now with my Dad, I only make 2000 a month, 450 goes to my rent/board, which included most of my bills… I pay 200 a month for my phone and the internet for the house, and I spend 140 a month on my car park for work, plus petrol and food. Not much left after that. I don’t drink, I don’t go out. I basically have no life. I work, I go home. That’s it.
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Permalink Reply by Keefe on
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Your debt doesn't seem too bad. If your figures are accurate, you should be able to pay it off in less than two years.
You have about $1200 per month leftover after expenses are paid, so that is enough to pay off $15000 worth of debt.
Assuming the debt increases at, say, 20% per annum then that is $250 per month. Of the $1200 you have left over, $250 of that goes to pay the interest and the rest ($950) pays off the principal, so that means you will be out of debt in about 16 months (15000/950=15.8).
Feel free to PM me with any other queries.
Latest Activity
Cliff Mearns replied to Cliff Mearns's discussion Bankruptcy -v Debt Agreement"Ben, let's not lose the loop. How financiers view bankruptcy is not relevant to the discussion of an individual's capacity to pay something. Bankruptcy is being utilised as a means of evading debt obligations. "
Bankruptcy ben replied to Cliff Mearns's discussion Bankruptcy -v Debt Agreement"I agree with the setiment however in reality there's nothing to encourage an individual to make a payment with a Debt Agreement! While technically it's different most financial companies regard it as the same as bankruptcy."
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