Debt Dumpers - 2016

[Eureka]

We have been spending money like crazy this weekend. One kid needed new soccer shoes, I needed new sneakers (have put it off for months but my new office has a small fitness room so wanted to leave my old pair there), we went out to eat with the kids last night, and we had no meat left in the freezer so stocked up at the store. Good things though: used a $20 off coupon at Dick's sporting goods, used a $5 coupon at the restaurant, and got a free full size B&BW item that I'm putting in DH's stocking when I went to pick up a $1.75 hand sanitizer for work (I had a coupon but thought it was for a trial size item!) Other good news is that even though this weekend we are "borrowing from ourselves" (from money in the checking account I earmark for upcoming planned spending) as I call it, overall we have been able to sock away some short term savings we haven't needed to touch. We still have not been able to put back into our nest egg/ER what we took out when I was out of work, but hoping first of the year will change that since right now I am essentially putting half my paycheck into my retirement fund until the end of the year to still max out even though I didn't work for 3.5 months. In January the clock resets (plus then I will qualify for my company's 10% match).

 

[arlinar]

Stressed out to the max. Car troubles between me and SO left me without a job now making bills stressful. Luckily I got food stamps and medicaid today but looking into possible cash assistance. Tomorrow is my 3rd interview and hopefully I will have a job this week.

Paid off my Discover credit card with my paycheck which is awesome. We also saved money for our vegas trip this weekend so we aren't to strapped for cash. I'm starting to drive for Uber and Amazon delivery to get some money in the meantime.

Put some toys for my son on layaway at toys r us and just waiting on Black Friday ads to leak more before I finish my shopping list.

 

[Ngwira]

Wish I were debt dumping for the past few weeks but sadly,not the case. I have been "travel hacking". Hoping to get enough points for round trip flights and hotels to Europe for my family of 4 in 2018. I had to spend about 7k to get there. Although I haven't acquired any new debt, I haven't been saving either due to meeting minimum spend on two credit cards.
Now that I'm done with it, I'll go back to saving and trying to get rid of the window loan. There is no interest on it and we've paid off more than 2k of a 7 k loan in 5 months.

I have paid off both new cards so no interest, but I had to take 1k from savings to do it. I prepaid a few bills, bought some Disney gift cards for our trip next year and Christmas spend is done right now. I also put all bills and expenses on the cards as living in New Jersey is expensive and that added up easily! In other words I didn't spend on things I didn't need or had no use for.
I'm just so glad to be back on a budget and plan to stay there for the next few months at least!

 

[PrincessKymm]

Made the appointment for DS's braces.

Not super thrilled with the office, when I made the appointment I was told "a little down" and a little each month. When I called to verify the amount I was told 50% down. I balked at that and told her what I was told before and so they agreed to 12 monthly payments equaling my entire FSA which is $2600 so I need $550 down by Dec 27. Ugh. At least it's 0% interest.

I know I'll make progress next year but with birthdays and Christmas and now braces I feel like I will never get anywhere. I just need January to roll around so I can make a larger payment again!

Oh and we got rid of my garage here at home so I actually saved $10 a month by signing my lease. I'm adding a moving fund to my goals next year. I need to get out of this place even tho I love my apartment.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Made the appointment for DS's braces.

Not super thrilled with the office, when I made the appointment I was told "a little down" and a little each month. When I called to verify the amount I was told 50% down. I balked at that and told her what I was told before and so they agreed to 12 monthly payments equaling my entire FSA which is $2600 so I need $550 down by Dec 27. Ugh. At least it's 0% interest.

I know I'll make progress next year but with birthdays and Christmas and now braces I feel like I will never get anywhere. I just need January to roll around so I can make a larger payment again!

Oh and we got rid of my garage here at home so I actually saved $10 a month by signing my lease. I'm adding a moving fund to my goals next year. I need to get out of this place even tho I love my apartment.

It's a shame they won't let you pay the down payment after Jan 1 since the FSA account will have the full yearly amount available to you then. We held our kids off a few months (Nov - Jan) before going into braces so we could use the FSA for all of it. They let us make payments for 2 years but it was a larger down payment, like $1500, but still we could us the fsa card for that too.
So both kids went into braces the same day with my fsa covering one child and dh's fsa covering the other.
Nothing out of pocket just the fsa deduction from our paychecks.

I don't think we could have done it if we had to scramble up $3k to start them.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

DH and I got back from our Disneyland trip on Tuesday night. We had an awesome time and really enjoyed DL, but we both agreed that we missed many things from WDW. We also went a little over on our budget. DH borrowed about $40 from his fun money for next month. We also spent way more on food at LAX on the way home than I wanted. Everything was outrageous, but we had to eat given our flight schedule. I had to shift a little grocery money around to cover that extra cost, but everything should be fine now. But all in all, it was a great budget trip and I think we both really needed it.

I went to the doctor yesterday morning and they gave me the green light to start the IVF cycle on Saturday. I am feeling tons of emotions right now, including excitement, fear, anxiety and anticipation. Because of the schedule, I may have to miss Thanksgiving at my parent's house, which I attend every year. I won't know until a few days before when they will be doing the retrieval, but it could be the day before Thanksgiving or even on Thanksgiving. My mom keeps bugging me about it, but I keep telling her that I just don't know when the procedure will be scheduled.

DH and I had anticipated our next WDW trip was going to be in 2018, but we have decided to rent our 2016 banked points and go in Feb/Mar 2019 instead. This is based on a timeline where we might have a kid in October 2017, if they do the transfer procedure this January. It seemed better to take a 16-17 month old to WDW rather than an 11 month old. It's all still very speculative, but we had to make a decision now so that we could get a home resort premium for those points.

And finally, we have been doing really well on our debt dumping. DH just got his latest paycheck and it all went straight to the last credit card. That means that we only have $300 left on that card, which I will finish paying off at the end of this month when we both get paid! No more credit card debt is starting to sink in and feel amazing. I love seeing the credit card balance in YNAB with the corresponding savings just waiting to pay off a balance rather than being in a huge hole. We still need to dedicate all of our extra income towards replenishing savings over the next month or two, but starting the the new year, we should be in a very good financial position and will be able to start putting extra towards our auto loans.

 

[DisneyMandC]

DH and I got back from our Disneyland trip on Tuesday night. We had an awesome time and really enjoyed DL, but we both agreed that we missed many things from WDW. We also went a little over on our budget. DH borrowed about $40 from his fun money for next month. We also spent way more on food at LAX on the way home than I wanted. Everything was outrageous, but we had to eat given our flight schedule. I had to shift a little grocery money around to cover that extra cost, but everything should be fine now. But all in all, it was a great budget trip and I think we both really needed it.

I went to the doctor yesterday morning and they gave me the green light to start the IVF cycle on Saturday. I am feeling tons of emotions right now, including excitement, fear, anxiety and anticipation. Because of the schedule, I may have to miss Thanksgiving at my parent's house, which I attend every year. I won't know until a few days before when they will be doing the retrieval, but it could be the day before Thanksgiving or even on Thanksgiving. My mom keeps bugging me about it, but I keep telling her that I just don't know when the procedure will be scheduled.

DH and I had anticipated our next WDW trip was going to be in 2018, but we have decided to rent our 2016 banked points and go in Feb/Mar 2019 instead. This is based on a timeline where we might have a kid in October 2017, if they do the transfer procedure this January. It seemed better to take a 16-17 month old to WDW rather than an 11 month old. It's all still very speculative, but we had to make a decision now so that we could get a home resort premium for those points.

And finally, we have been doing really well on our debt dumping. DH just got his latest paycheck and it all went straight to the last credit card. That means that we only have $300 left on that card, which I will finish paying off at the end of this month when we both get paid! No more credit card debt is starting to sink in and feel amazing. I love seeing the credit card balance in YNAB with the corresponding savings just waiting to pay off a balance rather than being in a huge hole. We still need to dedicate all of our extra income towards replenishing savings over the next month or two, but starting the the new year, we should be in a very good financial position and will be able to start putting extra towards our auto loans.

Glad you had a nice DL trip! I agree about missing many things from WDW. The biggest takeaway for me was that WDW really makes you feel immersed in the Disney bubble, whereas I didn't feel that as much at DL. And agree on the LAX food prices! I swear I saw a ham sandwich in a store for $11!

Best of luck on your IVF! Hoping you have great and quick results!

 

[PrincessKymm]

It's a shame they won't let you pay the down payment after Jan 1 since the FSA account will have the full yearly amount available to you then. We held our kids off a few months (Nov - Jan) before going into braces so we could use the FSA for all of it. They let us make payments for 2 years but it was a larger down payment, like $1500, but still we could us the fsa card for that too.
So both kids went into braces the same day with my fsa covering one child and dh's fsa covering the other.
Nothing out of pocket just the fsa deduction from our paychecks.

I don't think we could have done it if we had to scramble up $3k to start them.

I'm hoping to talk to the girl I really like at the office. She is the one who told me a little down and a little each month. I am praying I can talk her into a smaller down payment and extending the payments to the full treatment cycle.

DS still needs to have his surgery before May 2017 and I'm hoping to be able to use my FSA account for that. The expected cost OOP is $400 deductible plus 10% coinsurance. Last time I paid about $3600 OOP so much less this time around! I love my new job and it's awesome benefits!!!!

 

[Eureka]

DH and I got back from our Disneyland trip on Tuesday night. We had an awesome time and really enjoyed DL, but we both agreed that we missed many things from WDW. We also went a little over on our budget. DH borrowed about $40 from his fun money for next month. We also spent way more on food at LAX on the way home than I wanted. Everything was outrageous, but we had to eat given our flight schedule. I had to shift a little grocery money around to cover that extra cost, but everything should be fine now. But all in all, it was a great budget trip and I think we both really needed it.

I went to the doctor yesterday morning and they gave me the green light to start the IVF cycle on Saturday. I am feeling tons of emotions right now, including excitement, fear, anxiety and anticipation. Because of the schedule, I may have to miss Thanksgiving at my parent's house, which I attend every year. I won't know until a few days before when they will be doing the retrieval, but it could be the day before Thanksgiving or even on Thanksgiving. My mom keeps bugging me about it, but I keep telling her that I just don't know when the procedure will be scheduled.

DH and I had anticipated our next WDW trip was going to be in 2018, but we have decided to rent our 2016 banked points and go in Feb/Mar 2019 instead. This is based on a timeline where we might have a kid in October 2017, if they do the transfer procedure this January. It seemed better to take a 16-17 month old to WDW rather than an 11 month old. It's all still very speculative, but we had to make a decision now so that we could get a home resort premium for those points.

And finally, we have been doing really well on our debt dumping. DH just got his latest paycheck and it all went straight to the last credit card. That means that we only have $300 left on that card, which I will finish paying off at the end of this month when we both get paid! No more credit card debt is starting to sink in and feel amazing. I love seeing the credit card balance in YNAB with the corresponding savings just waiting to pay off a balance rather than being in a huge hole. We still need to dedicate all of our extra income towards replenishing savings over the next month or two, but starting the the new year, we should be in a very good financial position and will be able to start putting extra towards our auto loans.

Yeah ever since I got back to work (same day as your husband), we have had no credit card debt and it's awesome. Good luck with the ivf...I hope you can go to Thanksgiving and that it works first try.

 

[arlinar]

Lender called me and told me they were raising my APR on my car loan from 21% to 30% and going to increase the car loan payments.. I asked them if that was even legal as I pay my loan on time. They didn't answer it but now this ruins my plans of trading my car in. We were going to trade it in after tax time and just pay off the remaining balance on my car. Now my car is extremely underwater. I pay $406 a month for a 100,000 mile 2009 Hyundai Santa fe with a issue that will cost over $1,000 to fix.

I been working so hard on my credit. My mom tells me to just walk away from the car and let it go as I will be paying almost $6000 to have a dealer take it. I'm at the point where I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I need my car as I deliver for post mates and Amazon flex in between jobs but at the same time I don't want to have to pay my entire tax return and possible student loan return on getting rid of the car.

Has anyone ever gotten out of an extremely underwater loan before? I owe $12,000 and car is worth about $6,000.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Lender called me and told me they were raising my APR on my car loan from 21% to 30% and going to increase the car loan payments.. I asked them if that was even legal as I pay my loan on time. They didn't answer it but now this ruins my plans of trading my car in. We were going to trade it in after tax time and just pay off the remaining balance on my car. Now my car is extremely underwater. I pay $406 a month for a 100,000 mile 2009 Hyundai Santa fe with a issue that will cost over $1,000 to fix.

I been working so hard on my credit. My mom tells me to just walk away from the car and let it go as I will be paying almost $6000 to have a dealer take it. I'm at the point where I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I need my car as I deliver for post mates and Amazon flex in between jobs but at the same time I don't want to have to pay my entire tax return and possible student loan return on getting rid of the car.

Has anyone ever gotten out of an extremely underwater loan before? I owe $12,000 and car is worth about $6,000.

How is your car loan 21%? That seems crazy. And whether or not they can raise your rate depends on the terms of your loan, but that seems highly unorthodox to me. It sounds more like you went to a loan shark than an auto dealer. I have never heard of an adjustable rate auto loan and I could not find anything online regarding this, so it seems very fishy to me. Make sure that this was not a scam and call your loan servicer directly. But first, I would contact your state attorney general's office and file a complaint. And consider seeking out a legal aid attorney. Not sure where you are located in AZ, but you might want to find somewhere like this that takes on consumer protection cases: http://clsaz.org/consumer.html.

I found some other information that might be helpful:

https://www.azag.gov/complaints/consumer

https://www.azag.gov/press-release/terry-goddard-issues-auto-loan-mark-alert

https://www.azag.gov/consumer/cars

 

[Dentam]

Yeah, that's crazy for a car loan and it does sound like you have been scammed. I hope the info Jen provided helps you out!

 

[bcwife76]

21% for a car loan?? 30% for a car loan????? The most I've ever paid is 8% and that was a used car, our new car loans have always been 0%. I hope you can find a way to get out from under that - how is that even legal, like you said?

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

I agree with everyone else. Did you actually sign a contract for 21%? Do you still have it? Does it state in there that they can change your rate? Have your payments EVER been late? Whether or not you still love the car is a moot point. You still owe the money unfortunately. Everyone who purchases a brand new car is underwater as soon as it's driven off the dealer's lot. My last few cars were brand new but honestly I don't even keep track of whether I'm underwater or what the car is worth. I buy what I reeeeeally like, pay it off with the shortest term I can afford, try to still pay it off early, and keep it as long as possible.
The key is to only buy something that will last at least as long as your repayment time, but ideally much longer.

Your credit will really be in the toilet if you walk away. The bank would repossess it and you will be without a car and with awful credit history.
I don't ever see how that is sound advice, jmho. If I sign something saying I agree to pay, I keep my word and pay. Simple as that. I may regret it later, but I still pay.

Maybe your mom can loan you some funds so that you're not under water and you can re-finance to a more realistic loan? We paid off dh's truck last year at 4% and I thought that was ridiculous but 5 yrs ago, that was typical. Last February we bought ds a used car at a Toyota dealership (2013) and got 1.99% for 5 years.

Definitely shop around.

 

[Disneyland_emily]

Lender called me and told me they were raising my APR on my car loan from 21% to 30% and going to increase the car loan payments.. I asked them if that was even legal as I pay my loan on time. They didn't answer it but now this ruins my plans of trading my car in. We were going to trade it in after tax time and just pay off the remaining balance on my car. Now my car is extremely underwater. I pay $406 a month for a 100,000 mile 2009 Hyundai Santa fe with a issue that will cost over $1,000 to fix.

I been working so hard on my credit. My mom tells me to just walk away from the car and let it go as I will be paying almost $6000 to have a dealer take it. I'm at the point where I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place. I need my car as I deliver for post mates and Amazon flex in between jobs but at the same time I don't want to have to pay my entire tax return and possible student loan return on getting rid of the car.

Has anyone ever gotten out of an extremely underwater loan before? I owe $12,000 and car is worth about $6,000.

Um your car at most is worth $4800 and that's in 'great condition ' more likely mid to high 3,000 according to kbb so I'd be figuring something out now. I'd be seeing what the options are because you owe 3x what it's worth...

 

[arlinar]

Thanks everybody for the advice and thank you Jen for the links. I feel like a dumb consumer now and wished I knew about the whole mark up thing before going to a dealer. What's sad is the dealer I bought it from was a trusted and reputable dealer in the Phoenix area which had a bad credit department. After reading everything I'm going to be filing complaints against both the lender and car dealership. I'm looking up other reviews from the bad credit dealer in the last year and see other similar complaints.

21% is crazy and it's terrible to have to pay. My boyfriend went to drivetime with a worse credit score then what I had back when I bought the Santa fe and his APR is much lower then mine. My credit score was about 550-560 last september and about 617 right now. For now I'm going to bite the bullet and continue paying the car loan and hopefully in about two to three months this nightmare will be over when I will have the extra money to either get rid of it or try to bring the interest down on it.

I still have original documents with me from the dealership and will be providing copies to the Attorney General/BBB everywhere to show people to avoid this dealership.

I'm not letting this ruin my credit.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Don't feel dumb; it's just another lesson in life. Maintaining good credit makes so many things in life easier down the road. Might as well make amends now because it really matters if you ever decide to buy a home, a few % points literally means tens of thousands in interest difference.

 

[Jen and Ashwin]

Thanks everybody for the advice and thank you Jen for the links. I feel like a dumb consumer now and wished I knew about the whole mark up thing before going to a dealer. What's sad is the dealer I bought it from was a trusted and reputable dealer in the Phoenix area which had a bad credit department. After reading everything I'm going to be filing complaints against both the lender and car dealership. I'm looking up other reviews from the bad credit dealer in the last year and see other similar complaints.

21% is crazy and it's terrible to have to pay. My boyfriend went to drivetime with a worse credit score then what I had back when I bought the Santa fe and his APR is much lower then mine. My credit score was about 550-560 last september and about 617 right now. For now I'm going to bite the bullet and continue paying the car loan and hopefully in about two to three months this nightmare will be over when I will have the extra money to either get rid of it or try to bring the interest down on it.

I still have original documents with me from the dealership and will be providing copies to the Attorney General/BBB everywhere to show people to avoid this dealership.

I'm not letting this ruin my credit.

You have made great progress on your credit over the past year. I would hate to see that all wiped away because of this loan. Call the loan company and speak with them directly. Let them know that if they raise your rate to 30% that you will be filing complaints with AG/BBB (even if you already did this, use this threat to try to negotiate with them). This might at least keep your rate the same for now. Then I would look at possible refinancing options, so you can at least reduce the amount of interest that you are accruing on the loan. It might seem hard, but you may want to make this debt your number one priority, since the interest rate is higher than most credit cards and put all of your additional towards this loan to eliminate it as soon as possible. Good luck with this and don't lose hope.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

You have made great progress on your credit over the past year. I would hate to see that all wiped away because of this loan. Call the loan company and speak with them directly. Let them know that if they raise your rate to 30% that you will be filing complaints with AG/BBB (even if you already did this, use this threat to try to negotiate with them). This might at least keep your rate the same for now. Then I would look at possible refinancing options, so you can at least reduce the amount of interest that you are accruing on the loan. It might seem hard, but you may want to make this debt your number one priority, since the interest rate is higher than most credit cards and put all of your additional towards this loan to eliminate it as soon as possible. Good luck with this and don't lose hope.

Excellent advice! I agree 100%.

 

[ruadisneyfan2]

Just stumble onto this, perfect timing. HTH

https://www.chase.com/news/083116-car-refinance

BTW, I do not work for Chase nor do I get any incentives from them except the credit card rewards all cardholders receive.
Feel free to shop around at any bank. I'm only posting because it sounds like good advice.