I have always been living paycheck to paycheck with no room to breath. I don't go out (except if I visit a friends house which are all within 5mins driving), I buy the cheapest foods, havn't bought clothes in over a year. I have credit card debt from my wisdom teeth (no insurance), when gas spiked way up, and from college when they didn't allow enough $ for art supplies. I have student loans my monthly payments are almost 1/2 of what I bring home. My car completely died (transmission) and I had to get another one which made my car insurance go up. I got sick a couple times and being I don't get sick time or vacation time I took no pay. This put me bhind my bills. I really don't know where to turn. I'm behind on payments and there's NO way I can catch up. I have no savings and my bank account is very low. I still live with my parent's THANK GOD I can still do that(I'm 24). My parent's don't have a lot of money and are paycheck to paycheck as well. I don't want to do a forbarence on my loans b/c I know I won't be able to pay them afterward (they'll be a higher payment after from interest). I NEED any and all opinions on what to do. I'm stressing so much I swear it's making me sick. Is bankruptcy the only option? What will happen to my car (the only property I own)? What student loans would tat cover? ( I have a career training, consolidation and federal). help please...thank you in advance.

I'm so sorry to hear you are going through such a hard time. As for advice, you should know that you can pay a very small amount each month and then cannot be "chased" by your creditors. I suggest calling those you owe, telling them your situation and telling them what you can afford. Tell them "I can only pay you $25. a month, but I will do that every month." By facing things head on and taking matters into your hands, you won't feel so powerless.

You do have your parents and that is good. I have my 28 yr. old living with us and are happy to be able to offer that, your parents probably feel the same. Know that there are thousands of people who are out of work and going through hard times now - you are not alone.

First of all....take a deep breath, and know that you are not the only one in America in this position. (Not by a long shot!)

Have you talked to a non-profit credit counselor?

Have you considered talking to a lawyer? Many will do the first consultation for free, and let you know what would happen with much of your loans. Remember...filing bankruptcy is not something that prevents you from ever paying your bills, should you ever have the opportunity down the road, should you need to file.

Also, if you are worried about your credit score, I suggest letting that worry go. A good credit score is great, but it is not a measure of the kind of person you are. We heap a lot of pride and guilt into credit scores in this country, but they are fickle and never tell the WHOLE story. They also make people focus on perfection in their financial lives...a perfection that is extremely difficult to maintain and remain in today's financial reality.

There are professionals out there (the credit counselors, the attorneys) who can give you the legal advice, but I am here to tell you that it's ok to be where you are. Make a list of your debts, make a list of any assets, and go see a credit counselor or attorney. You'll be glad you did.

Not to be a Debbie Downer but bankruptcy will relieve you of student loans. They cannot be defaulted on. Maybe see if your family qualify for public assistance. My husband and I were on it (food stamps) for about a year while I was in school, working part time. It really helped.

Also, what about the job you are working right now? Can you ask for a raise? Are there any higher up positions that you could apply for? Could you be making more money someplace else? Are you where you wan to be-what can you do about it?

I lost my job last year and one way that we keep our bills low is to get rid of everything extra. We do not have cable, internet (I'm at the library), land-line phone. With all of our expenses, housing-electricity-medical-food-gas-insurance-etc, we spend $1400 a month. Start by writing down every penny you spend. You may be surprised where you can cut back.

Even though we live very modestly already, I learned a lot of tricks from "America's Cheapest Family Gets You Right On The Money" and "The Cheapskate Next Door." See what resources may be available to you for free at your local library. OH-and the cheapest food can be even cheaper-especially this time of year. Look for great coupons in the Sunday paper and match them with grocery store deals. There really is a science to this-I just bought an entire grocery cart FULL for $15 today. If that's even too much, what about local food pantries? Or Angel Food ministries? Great program.

Good luck, we are all struggling but by networking out ideas, we can get by

Have you tried to get a deferment on your student loans? If you can show financial hardship, they will either greatly reduce your payment, or defer them altogether for a while. We had to do this when my husband first got out of school because we had just had a baby and his first job did not pay well at all.

It sounds like you are a really good candidate for bankruptcy. It is NOT the end of the world and you will feel much better without the stress of so much debt on your shoulders. It is okay to have a bad credit score for a while. Trust me there are a TON of people in this same situation right now. You don't need to be embarrassed.

I think you should see an attorney about filing for bankruptcy. Most of them will do an initial 30 min cosultation for free but you are looking at about $1500 to have them take on your case and file.

Student loans will NOT be eliminated by bankruptcy but it will get rid of the credit card debt and medical bills.

Hang in there!

Thank you all for your advice. I did a bills vs. income last night. My bills with student loans, creditcards, car loan, car insurance, food, and gas (NOT including misc expenses like car registration, dr visits, and meds, which aren't every month or the same amount) I came to 1650. The MAX of my income a month is 1600...that's if I'm there 40 hours a week every week and no holidays. Since I don't get sick days or vacation and only some holidays I'm usually not getting the max. So I'm under what I need right there. The 1650 almost 1/2 of that is student loans and the one loan (have 3 different types) isn't available for deferment/forbarance. With the student loans. I'm worried that I won't be able to pay them after the deferment/forbarence b/c with the interest the monthly payments will be higher. Thanks forletting me know about the bankruptcy and my student loans...I have 3different types and the one is a private loan..but it was used for college so I'm sure about that one. The rest are career training and federal loans.
I've tried looking for an addtional job and applied to all local grocery stores, diners, and businesses that were hiring in my area (and some that didn't say they were)....I didn't even get any call backs. There's no overtime or raises in my job. I took over 1/2 of what my boss did when I got hired and he was "stuck" in this position for 15years...unable to move within the company. I'll hopefully be talking to a lawyer after the Thanksgiving holiday. Don't know what if anything can be done but at least I tried.
Thank you all for your advice and input.

It sounds like you need to look for a better job, one that pays more and has room for advancement. Don't quit the job that you have, just start trying to find a better one.

A lot of my friends have gone back to school part-time, even if it's very limited part-time, because they don't have to pay on their student loans while they're going to school, so it gives them some breathing room while they wait for the economy to improve and better jobs to be available.

Beware of non-profit credit counseling. Most of them are in cahoots with the credit card companies. You are better off calling the credit card company and seeing if they can do something, anything, to lower your monthly payments. Stress to them how seriously you CANNOT make your payment. Some of them see some payment as better than no payment and will try to help you out.

If you file for bankruptcy, it WILL NOT discharge your student loans. It is very easy to apply for a deferrment on your student loans, with no payments for 6 months to a year. Yes, the interest will keep on accruing, but it may give you enough time to get caught up on everything else. And your payments may not necessarily be highter right off the bat. Mine did a thing for me where the payments were very small for the first two years, and increased over time to help us out during difficult financial times. Even if one can't be deferred, it may help.

I'd look for a second job. Work two. Clean houses, something to bring in extra income. If you're young and healthy and without any kids, that sounds like the fastest way to dig out of your hole. I know the economy is tough for finding work right now, believe me, so good luck and Godspeed to you!

I've been there, and on top of all the other advice you've been given I would say just don't pay on your credit cards for now. If you literally don't have the money coming in to do it, then don't. They'll call you and harass you and say they're going to sue you but it will be a long time before they get around to that.

I only mean this in the short term. This is while you are doing everything you can to get your income high enough to cover your $1650 monthly expense. Then when you do raise your income you can worry about credit cards again. Right now, think survival.

I don't want anyone to think I'm saying don't pay your bills, cause I'm not. I'm just saying that right now while less is coming in than going out, prioritize, and Visa and Mastercard should be the bottom of the list.

Your credit will be ruined if you simply stop paying your credit card bill. Call them and try to work something out.

I want to thank you all again...I am submitting paper work to defer my student loans (2 of the 3 b/c one is ineligible) and will go from there. That's a hug chunk of money that will be going toward other bills...like my creditcards. We'll see within a year what the payments will be like when they come out. Gotta take things one at a time though.
Thanks again.

www.daveramsey.com

the man is a financial GOD!!!!!!!!!

filing for bankruptcy will KILL your credit score - especially at such a young age.

If I was you I would start by selling the car. Take the bus, even if it is a long trip. You are young, no kids, no house, etc--you can do it. You have to remember it took you a long time to get yourself into this situation, it won't be an easy fix to get out of it.

We have lived below our means for 23 years, meaning we always spent a lot less than we brought in. We raised 2 kids and bought property and a house on one small income. If we did it I know you can do it too.

There are plenty of ways to make extra money even in a bad economy. There is always someone that needs their house cleaned, their shopping done, their dog walked, their kid's babysat, etc, etc, etc. We did everything from chopping firewood to detailing people's cars. I even wrapped Christmas presents one year for a busy company that didn't have time to do it!

The age you are and the fact you are able to live at home means you can work a lot, probably more than you think you can. When your first job is finished for the day it is not unreasonable for you to be working just as many hours on something else to pay what you owe. Don't just riffle through the classifieds looking for a conventional job--think! What do people need around you? What kind of niche can you fill? What do you hear people complaining about or wanting?

Whittle your list down of what you spend even more. Go over it with a fine toothed comb. Keep track of every cent you spend, down to a pack of gum. You may be surprised at what you can eliminate and then send that money to your creditors instead.

Just an update...the paper work for my loans are done and I have an interview for a second job...it would work out perfect it's down the road from my work now and ends 1/2 hour before the other starts. The interview is on Friday so all I have to do is nail that and hopefully get back on track. Thank you all for your encouaging words and helpful tips.

that's a great start

All the best for tomorrows interview. Try to relax, be your wonderful self. I agree whole-heartedly with indebi www.daveramsey.com We took his course (you can learn it all from his website for free, though) and got out of debt, got rid of student loans, and last year paid 1/2 cash for our latest used car! We contributed to 4 of our kids weddings in 3 years and still went on a vacation. If you invest in learning dave ramsey's advice now, it will SERIOUSLY help you out for the rest of your entire life. He's wonderful, he's on tv, and on the radio, and check with your library to see if they have any of his books or cd's or dvd's so that you don't have to buy them. Good luck, let us know when you land that 2nd job! Keep smiling.

Well...I got the part time job. I'll be working at my normal day job from 8am-4:30pm (not including travel time) Monday through Friday and then 3 days a week over the weekend I'll be a baker at Panera doing the over night shift from about 9pm til 7:30am. They said I'll be given a phone call this weekend about the definately shift days and time for the following week. I'll be relaxing all this weekend b/c I'll never have another one to do so...at least until at least 1/2 my debt is gone. Both jobs are in the same town which helps alot and having weekends will hopefully help with me not getting burnted completely out during the week. I hope everything works out and I can handle it.

Hey Congratulations on landing the 2nd job!!! that's awesome news. At least THAT paycheck will help you realize in your spirit that YOU CAN DO THIS!

Sleep...what's sleep...... ...been there....done that!

Hey! Congratulations, and all the best. Take vitamins, and get as much sleep as possible during this time of your life. Just remember that it's not forever, just for a time. Way to go!

You're an amazing person, taking care of this head on! Good luck with everything!