has anyone actually declared bankruptcy?

[greenbriar]

we did years ago when we were in college. Spouse had a major medical emergency which required two major surgeries. NO INSURANcE


boom all money gone

[Career Prole]

1. About four years ago.

And oh, the credit card offers we get now.
Who says no one will loan you money after a bankruptcy? Why, they're trampling each other to try to get us back into debt. A-holes.

[ChoralScholar]

2. a bankruptcy makes you a better credit risk

than those with just bad credit. Very ironic.

[Just Me]

3. Yep. Job loss. I actually cried at the hearing.

Two credit card representatives were present: one had been a vicious ass, the other willing to work with me even after the hearing. I contacted the reasonable and supportive company when I got a job to pay down my previous debt and they helped me re-establish my credit.

[Quakerfriend]

4. No, but I know plenty of good people who have

all have been related to divorce, and/or medical problems.

[Syncronaut Seven]

5. Yes

and one credit card company shifted $5000 in debt and tried to make it appear as "new" debt.

Also, ford motor credit went over the car they got back with a fine tooth comb and submitted an unauthorized claim against my auto insurance.

If you give back a car, call your agent and tell them "NO CLAIMS unless they come from you directly. Sneaky bastards

Run a credit check with all 3 agencies to verify that accounts reflect accurately. 3 years after we filed we ran our credit check and found roughly 15 accounts reporting delinquent and unpaid.

Did it matter? I found allstate was charging me %30 more because of the "delinquencies" After a great deal of screaming and knashing of teeth I got allstate to refund $243 for the policy period after we fixed the reports. my estimates? they owed an additional $1500 I'll never see back. Funny thing was, I new my insurance was too high, but every time I went shopping for new insurance they all ran credit for the quote, after a dozen quotes ( all within $20 a year)I just gave up.

Had no clue it was the credit report untill we tried to rent.

[Just Me]

9. True. It does seem the credit and insurance people are in cahootz!

Personally, I HATE insurance companies,...I really do. They are the most egregious profiteers off human suffering and misery and loss on the face of the earth!!! :grr: In my opinion, they are the "commies" we should all oppose 'cause they control our economic destinies way, way too much!!!

[NMDemDist2]

6. i'm in chapter 13 right now

waiting for the final hearing

hubby in telecom, job outsourced. I'm self employed and while the biz is recovering there were days last fall we didn't know from one day to the next if we could afford to open the store

we cashed in tens of thousands of IRA's and 401k's and finally there was no other way

so now, 50 years old, no retirement $$$ no job security and no credit

LOL

what is funniest is our life is better now than 3 years ago when we were making $100k a year and chasing the next "thing"

[Just Me]

11. I admire that you have managed to not only cope with tough times,...

,...but also rediscover a whole new "happiness" in spite of it all.

You are not only strong but inspiring as well!! :bounce:

[NMDemDist2]

23. LOL thanks, but ya know the old saying

when they hand you lemons.....

[Love Bug]

34. When life hands you lemons...

... make some Tom Collins!

:beer:

[AP]

13. It's ridiculous that you worked 3 decades to make telecoms execs rich

and you're headed towards retirement with nothing more than "I'm happy I'm not chasing the next thing."

People should be happy AND have security in a society like ours that manages to create so much wealth.

[Just Me]

15. Right-wing corporate HOG machine says their SS plan is good for the poor.

It is IMPOSSIBLE to swallow such hog-wallowing, profitteering bullshit when any common American citizen faces reality.

I am in complete awe and disgust at the unleashed evil exercised by individuals who are supposed to be representing the best interests of their supporters. These HOGS are advantaging themselves of their positions and usurping/sucking every fucking drop of blood and nickel/dime/penny of every American citizen.

DAMN!!! The ABUSE OF POWER is incomprehensible!!!

[Deja Q]

21. Should, yes. Now only if more people would look as to why it is not.

Instead of only 'should be'.

[NMDemDist2]

24. yes, the injury was getting laid off, the insult was when

a "contractor" company called my hubby not TWO HOURS after he was laid off to come back and do the EXACT same job in the exact same place for no benefits and half his salary (after he worked for the company 19 years)

[bonito]

7. Yes my wife became ill in 97

still is today, it is I that takes care of her. thats 2 incomes. against all odds.

[Just Me]

12. Must be difficult.

I hope you have a network of support/ers.

[RoBear]

8. Had my hearing a week ago.

Waiting for discharge. Appreciate the warning above about credit ratings etc. What a mess. All part of W's "recovery."

[madfloridian]

10. We know a couple who have serious medical problems.

One of them has insurance, the other doesn't. They are in real trouble financially. I remember when hospitals used to work with people, but they do not seem to do that very much now.

[southlandshari]

14. Last year - unsurmountable medical expenses

I had a serious and rare neurological syndrome a few years ago when my child was still a toddler. The week I got out of the rehab hospital and was still in a wheelchair my husband fell off our roof and suffered a serious and permanent back injury as a result.

Less than a year before all this happened, my employer switched from a nationally known and pretty decent health insurance provider to a managed care corporation that fought us every step of the way on services and tests we clearly needed. In the end, even with a family plan health insurance policy, we owed thousands in medical bills alone, on top of our other debt. We had just bought a home and a new car (our first in years). We carried a moderate amount of credit card debt on which we had been slowly but surely paying for a couple of years. The combination, however, was overwhelming.

Then I unexpectedly lost my job (I was the breadwinner in the family, and I worked for a nonprofit, if that tells you anything). We struggled along for more than a year, cashing in our modest retirement savings (and suffering major tax penalties as a result) and ultimately losing our home to foreclosure and moving in with my parents.

My husband had been urging me to consider bankruptcy for months before we finally talked to a lawyer. I was stubborn and didn't want to do it. When I finally agreed, I broke down in tears in the lawyer's office after he explained the process to us. I'll be honest - I felt some guilt at the thought of having debts we had incurred wiped off the books. I was not out to be "let off the hook" or to "take the easy way out". For us, though, there just was no other way out. Our lives had become consumed with trying to find ways to pay a mountain of debt that we would never be able to overcome.

You can't imagine the viciousness with which our creditors were pursuing us. The ones that really got to me were the callers who were obviously much younger than me and who were extremely snotty in their approach. I had more than one creditor give me a false name from a movie or tv show when I asked them for their name and number. They pushed us relentlessly to set up payment plans, always beyond what we could actually afford, and for a while, we were so scared (and so determined to meet our financial obligations) that we would agree to their impossible terms, making things worse in the end. I would tell callers repeatedly that what they were asking was not within our means, but they would not give in. They called my mother at home, my father at his office, and my sister (who has a different last name and lives several states away) to harrass them about our finances. They called my employers past and present (though I know this is not legal, they did it anyway). It was a nightmare.

We just recently got our discharge notification in the mail after appearing in bankruptcy court late last year. I am breathing MANY sighs of relief tonight. We were never looking for a free ride, just some way to get back on track. I know we are not alone in our story. Sigh.

[Just Me]

16. As you were dealing with tragedy, the VULTURES were at your heals.

I remember having almost daily conversations with the collection VULTURES and repeatedly explaining that, I simply could NOT pay them.

It was horribly distressful.

In your heartbreaking circumstances,...I just cannot imagine.

Assholes. Screw 'em. If they can't respect or appreciate hardships beyond human control,...their company doesn't deserve repayment. Besides, companies are never held to the standards/ethics/morals that they demand and control over others.

You are right!!! YOU ARE NOT ALONE!!!!

[southlandshari]

17. Your experience

You said you had two creditors show up at your hearing. None showed up at ours, and if they had, I don't know what I would have done. I was shaking on the stand as it was. Even though the questions the judge asked us were similar to those he asked those who went before us during the session, it was still nerve-wracking and embarrassing.

There is deep guilt involved with filing bankruptcy for many of us. Many of us fight the inevitable - filing - because we are trying to be responsible and honest citizens in the face of ruthless and unethical corporations. Which is why the assertion that bankruptcy is widely abused and those who file are slackers, moochers or scam artists is particularly offensive.

Unfortunately, "there but for the grace of God go I" doesn't seem to resonate with the religious right like it used to.

[blondeatlast]

18. I had "almost" a heart attack at 39.

Admitted to the hospital, cleared by the insurance company for the surgery I needed. Fine, right?

Wrong; six months later we get a call from the hospital about settling our account. We figured it was maybe a couple of hundred dollars.

More like $66,000--hubby's employer was no longer paying the premiums.

The insurance company told us they were willing to cut a check as soon as the premiums got paid--no such luck and the hospital would no longer wiat.

Note that nobody in this thread racked up insane credit card balances, went on expensive vacations, spent it on liquor, whores, and gambling. All hard working folks financially devastated through virtually no fault of their own.

[banana republican]

19. An Urban Legend; NOT

Unfortunately it is true.

I worked for a major defense contractor that is now located in Chicago.

My wife of about 3 years had Juvenile Diabetes.

Unfortunately this was before the family leave act and I had to take time off to take her to the doctor. The company did not like this.

Just after Ray-Gun took office My wife was laid off since she could not physically do her job(she was a Jailer at the juvenile court).

We applied for the Social Security Administration for disability which is *specifically* covered under the Social Security Act..

On the day her Brother died (also of diabetes) we received our rejection notice for social security benefits..

Avout 5 months later I received my layoff notice.

Fortunately we had been thinking about starting or buying our own business. So we purchased a dry cleaners and got taken to the cleaners.

About 30 months later my wife died.

Unfortunately in that time the grocery store company that I have been leasing my my business space from had been sold. Sold to Thomas Stewart of Vashon Island. Mr. Stewart is/was a good friend of Mr. Trent Lott. In Fact Mr Stewart paid for the annual Washington State Republican Party's annual picnic (he owned a food distribution company). Mr. Stewart was investigated a few years ago for charging political contributions to the US Government. In any event Mr. Stewart decided to cancel my lease which had options for another 10 years.

In addition Mr Stewart spread rumors that I was going out of business. He provided the food for some of the hotels that I did the dry cleaning for. He claimed he wanted to put in a fish market. In reality he was in the process of selling off all of the stores he had purchased to the store managers. If they didn't buy the store they were laid off. He only wanted the food distribution system NOT the grocery chain that he purchased.

I began loosing clients and took a job at the company I had been laid off from.

Later I filed for Bankruptcy

********************************************************************
Think about it; A republican creates a situation in which you have to file for bankruptcy and then tries to collect on amounts that you owe

.

[Skittles]

32. *sniff*

so sorry, banana, what a terrible time you must have had. My sympathies to you.

[hector459]

20. Yes, i did for my 94-year old God-mother who was taken by credit card

swifties and a person who used her identity to run up credit card charges in her name. She was a 94-year old who survived on her Social Security income of about $960 per month, had no other assets, and was living in a subsidized senior home at the time. She was faithfully trying to pay the bills that came to her because she didn'twant to have (get this) "bad credit." She had been paying those bills and running a deficit every month and was asking to borrow money from me to pay for prescription drugs and food. That's how I found out about the credit card charges. She told me that she didn't remember making those charges but assumed that she had because she was receiving the bills. The short of it is that it cost $250 to file the bankruptcy papers and two visits to the bankruptcy courts. Things will never be this easy again.

[beyurslf]

25. My granma filed bankruptcy for almost the same thing.

She got confused about all these telemarketing calls and bought all sorts of stuff and got credit cards and other things. She had no idea what was going on and this was before my mom started taking care of her bills for her. She had a great credit rating so she was a prime target. We didn't know what was going on until her checking account was garnished for a non-payment and the bank started calling to ask what was going on. We found out she had like 30,000 in debts and lived on something like 800 a month in SS.

[BamaGirl]

22. Yep

We had a baby w/no insurance, a minor surgery, and dh got off active duty in the middle of the last recession. (Did I just say last!? In 2000 anyway.) We paid off a chpt 13 about 9 months ago. I swear the day after it was discharged, we started getting credit offers. I shred at least 3 a day between cc, equity, and refi offers. No way in hell. I managed to pay off a personal loan, 2 cars, and buy a house before that crazy year in 2000 that blew our credit to hell. Now we're paying extra on the mortgage. I want to be completely debt free. I'm sure I'm their worst nightmare lol-someone who doesn't want credit.

[WMliberal]

26. my parents in 2001.

My mom had some serious intestinal surgery. Cost even with insurance: $20000. Couple it with my dad having to take a new job with a $30000 pay cut and we won ourselves a Chapter 11.

Aw fuck it. Let me throw some red meat at the trolls. What we really did was buy furs for the two girls. We'd go on cruises twice a year. My dad developed a taste for Dom Perignon. I had a coke habit and needed cash all the friggin time. :silly:

[Lydia Leftcoast]

27. Yes, as detailed on another thread

A couple of years after going into business for myself, I lost the customer who had been providing half my annual income. I had used credit cards to finance my startup as a translator (stupid, I know, but the banks couldn't get their conventional little minds around what I was doing), and so I was stuck with a) a balance larger than my new, reduced income, b) monthly payments that had been just doable on my old income, now unsustainable, and c) taxes due on my previous, higher income.

Consumer Credit Counseling did the math on trying to see if I could fit into a Chapter 13 plan, and finally concluded that since I could NOT discharge the taxes and certainly could not pay both the taxes and the other debts, I had no choice but Chapter 7.

My attorney warned me that I would be deluged with credit card offers after bankruptcy, because one whose debts have been discharged is unable to declare bankruptcy again for several years. He was right.

I now use debit cards for most things, but I keep one credit card for emergencies like car repairs or office equipment repairs/replacement. (I hate owning a car, but I have to have one here, the major downside of living in the Twin Cities.) I'm carrying a balance now, but paying it down as fast as possible. (Wouldn't you know the car repairs came during a low-income month?)

[fujiyama]

29. Interesting

My dad had a similar experienc.

My guess is that by making it so much more difficult to declare bankruptcy for middle income people (many are small business owners), repukes are destroying any concept of social mobility and even the slightest notion of the "American Dream".

Republicans often speak of entreupeneurship and the little guy making it on their skills, but when it comes down to it...they would just as well have you on the streets...unless your name is Bush, then your daddy can bail you out if things go badly.

[fujiyama]

28. My dad did

a while back.

It wasn't irresponsible spending. He tried starting a company and it didn't work. There was no money coming in. Bills piled up.

My dad paid every penny back, but his credit is messed up for a while.

These republicans really have that "entreupenaurial spirit" don't they?

[Blue_In_AK]

30. My daughter just did...

...divorce.

[conflictgirl]

31. We did two years ago

My spouse got laid off from his job. I was pregnant and had to be on bedrest, so I couldn't work. He was unemployed for almost 6 months and the job he finally got paid almost half of what his previous job had. Sears was one of our creditors because we used their card to finance car tires - they showed up at the bankruptcy hearing because almost all the filers there had Sears cards. The Sears rep was trying to get people to re-affirm their Sears debts and keep paying on them, but he told us we were so poor that he wasn't even going to bother. GM totally screwed us over because we had a lease and turned it in 8 months early because we couldn't pay it anymore, after they told us we would only owe for the remainder of the lease payments. When it hit our credit report, though, instead of being $1800, it was for $9300! And wouldn't you know that one was still on our credit report, being reported as delinquent every month for the past 2 years despite the fact that the debt had been discharged.

Now, two years later, we are buying a house next week. We have one credit card with a very low limit for emergencies that has no balance. We have a year left on a car loan and when that's paid off, we'll never take out another car loan. I learned my lesson - debt that's manageable at one point in time can completely swallow you whole if one catastrophe (job loss, illness, etc) happens. Given the way the country is going, I can only assume that more catastrophes WILL happen and I'm preparing accordingly. I'll never borrow money for anything again except my house.

[Roland99]

33. Unemployment and a new job (after 6 mos.+) at 1/2 the old salary

I had no choice.

But, my FICO score is about 100 points higher than it was a bit over a year ago.

Just be SMART about rebuilding your credit after a BK

[liberalitch]

35. I did... chapter 7...

but because I didn't have a good job my shit is all fucked up again

[kk897]

36. We did. It was the best move financially we ever made.

Seriously. We had been in huge debt with credit cards, and my small salary just about covered the interest. Then I became ill and couldn't work for a period of a little over a year. By that time, we'd been taking out card after card, transferring one balance to the next card to get by another month, getting cash money from the credit account then depositing the cash in our bank account... it was awful. And it's not like we'd been living high on the hog and charging plasma screen TVs or anything. It just got out of control fast, then when I got sick, whammo!

Several years later we're in good shape, and I think next month the bankruptcy comes off our record. We have been able to obtain the things we need thanks to my husband's long employment and relatively high salary, with my little bit I earn from freelancing thrown in. We didn't always get the best rates on things like car leases and mortgages, but we really had few if any negative repercussions.

A warning to those who do go through bankruptcy: be sure to keep checking your credit report a few years down the line. We'd gotten turned down for home loans and such from time to time and couldn't figure out why. Eventually, we discovered that some of the things that had been discharged were still showing up on some credit reporting companies' report (I think there's three major companies, and two of them had incorrect information). Those commercials that say "free credit reports!" probably aren't that far off the mark, as it turns out.