Update on our dilemma-please read-worse than thought!

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twk001

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Well, last night was the big meeting at Dh’s school regarding consolidation. There are many mixed views, but the basic stance is that the schools will do whatever they need to save money and secure enrollment. The last time a consolidation happened in this state was almost 25 years ago. DH says he just cannot get a feel for what will happen, but I was there, and I’m scared! As many know, we have massive debt from foolish spending (all credit card- no student loans or such) and without his paycheck, i know that we will not make it. Do credit card companies have any sort of hardship payment plans? We have BIG balances on three of them (about 17,000 each) and so our minimum is pretty substantial. but if i could just pay them like 50 bucks a pay period, we’d probably make it ok.

I am very scared. We already have cut back so much in the past year (good thing) to get our debt snowball going, so we’ve paid off some already. We have a basic house phone, a shared cell line (this is due to our traveling as a family- we live in one town, he works in another, me in a third, DD goes to school in a 4th). we have basic cable, and a no-frrills lifestyle. We have the option of counting our tithe towards DD’s tution, which we will do. We don’t buy new clothes, if we buy ANY it’s at the St. Vincent DePaul shop. We DO eat out, probably too much, but that will be ending as well.

The mediator made it very clear that no teacher will be given special consideration and that each job created will be open to ANY person interested in applying-including the new graduates who will take 1/6 of the current pay.

We were not allowed to ask questions, but could submit them on paper for next month’s school board mtg. I’m really scared. there is so much unknown. We will be going to the school board meeting next month, and i ask that you, my Catholic brothers and sisters, please pray for our family. I feel selfish in asking for prayer knowing that there are so many like us out there, but I just ask you for continued prayers over the next few months. I will update…twk
 
You are in my prayers and yes, I would contact the credit card companies right away to get on a debt consolodation plan with them.
 
I’m sorry for the strugles you are going through. I am a former teacher who was laid off and not rehired. It’s definately not easy.

As far as your cc debts go, you may want to get some sort of credit counseling. Check with your local Catholic Charities office. They may have programs to help you, or at least point you in the right direction.

I know things seem bleak and dark, but remember, God does not allow anything to happen to us that we can’t handle as long as we trust in Him.

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they?
– Matthew 6:25-26

God bless and know that you will be in the prayers of many.
 
Does he get to finish out the year? At least you have a little time. When will it be time to apply for the jobs, and when will you find out? I hope you don’t have to live with this for long - not knowing, I mean, it’s frustrating.

You’ll get a lot of responses about debt consolidation here. I have seen many posts from people who really seem to know what they are talking about so if you just hang out for a little while I am sure they’ll chime in.
 
Yes, he will get to finish out the year. everything is completely unknown at this point. what we DO know is that once everhything has been reviewed and put into place, each town will have to hold an election to vote this in. both towns have to pass the proposal with “overwhelming” results. if either doesn’t pass the proposal, it doesn’t happen. the superintendent last night said that this could be at least a year or year and a half off. so we have a little time. we are going to save, hoard, and pay off like crazy during this time, but i still could use some advice on the credit card dilemma. we did contact CCCS last year, but instead decided to go with Crown Financial counseling, which did help, but our counselor gave us this weekly speech about tithing 10% (he was a baptist), which we were pretty sick of hearing. our parish counts our tithe towards DD’s tuition, so our situation is totally different from that aspect. Just would love everyone’s thoughts about what to do now. thanks-twk
 
Yes, credit card companies do have hardship programs, but you may not qualify based on the fact that your husband *might *lose his job sometime in the future. Hardship programs are usually for people who already are in a situation. Also, they are short term programs. And, lastly, the minimum payments amounts are defined by law by the OCC. So, you could not pay just $50 on a $17K balance.

You have a lot of debt. $51K in credit cards is substantial. The only real choices you have are to increase income or decrease expenses, or both. If you have already decreased your expenses to essentials, you should look at ways to increase income for both of you. Get a second job, etc. And, you have your daughter in private school. That needs to be on the table too as far as reducing expenses goes. You say you are at the minimum, but I bet if you put *everything *on the table expense-wise you could come up with more ways to cut and pay off debt.

I really urge you to contact a credit counseling agency. They can assist you in establishing a repayment plan and, depending on the creditors, at a lower interest rate and somewhat lower payment. At a minimum they’ll give you an impartial third party to assess your situation.

Don’t think about what might happen with your husband’s job. If and when that does happen, you’ll have to reassess the situation. But, it doesn’t sound like this will be anything in the immediate future.
 
Yes, it really is happening soon. DH just called from school and the superintendant informed teachers this AM that the vote will likely appear in a special election in May. As far as the schooling goes, i have already stated that our tithe pays her tuition. it is sort of like “if you go here and you give an envelope, any envelope, you don’t pay tuition” issue. I am inquiring about hardships and such so we can actually PLAN and have a PLAN in place if this goes down. I am a planning person and it helps me to not feel so completely lost and out of control during this type of situation. twk
 
twk, if there are going to be a bunch of teachers out of work, and you are afraid your husband will be one of them, then I would think he would be applying right now for a contract in an adjoining school district, to get ahead of the rush.

If the entire state or a region in it is consolidating, then I would look at private schools.

Figure out ways that you can take charge and make your own path instead of just waiting to see what happens.
 
Do you realize that God is giving you a great blessing by letting you have a “heads up”?

I walked into work one day, after just being honored at a national level by corporate, and was told they were shutting down everything in my state. That was in May of this year. Looking back, I see now that I missed the nudges God gave me before that came.

You have time to prepare. You have rec’d a big flashing neon sign.

Look in the mirror every day and say “they cannot take away my Jesus”. Know that you can lose every single possession, and you still have Jesus. This world is not our goal, getting to heaven IS our goal.

Keep that in your mind, and stay calm and plan with your brain, not in an emotional way.

You said that you need to stop eating out, I will agree with you! For three people, you likely spend close to $20 at a fast food place - if you do that 5 times each week, you are talking about $400 each month in food. That is a huge chunk of change.

Please, look at Veritas Financial Ministries. They have a CATHOLIC outlook. veritasfinancialministries.com/

Your DH has started looking for a new job, right? That should be the number one priority. Community colleges, private companies, look outside the box. Are you willing to relocate to another part of the country? If so, expand the search to nation wide, heck - what about international?

Can he start tutoring on weekends/evenings? As the end of the year approaches, students are hyper focused on grades.

Is there something you can do to bring in more $$ - babysit on weekends, get a job cleaning houses, putting together resumes?

As wisely stated above, look hard at cutting out the tuition payment. Yes, it is 10% of your income, but, you could be putting that money in savings now for a rainy day. Add in the savings of gas, and other school fees as well.

Remember, you can live through this. Stay close to Jesus, and don’t ever panic.
 
You said elsewhere that the teacher’s unions for the two schools would be “dissolved.” That sounds like something only the union can do - not the school board.

In general I’m no fan of the NEA, but y’all should get them on the bandwagon now. They *may *be able to do something about the hiring process to keep the longer-term teachers from being discarded. For instance, something pro-active about age discrimination, and being laid off to avoid paying retirement benefits.

Praying for you,

Ruthie
 
twk001 said:
Yes, he will get to finish out the year. everything is completely unknown at this point. what we DO know is that once everhything has been reviewed and put into place, each town will have to hold an election to vote this in. both towns have to pass the proposal with “overwhelming” results. if either doesn’t pass the proposal, it doesn’t happen. the superintendent last night said that this could be at least a year or year and a half off. so we have a little time. we are going to save, hoard, and pay off like crazy during this time, but i still could use some advice on the credit card dilemma. we did contact CCCS last year, but instead decided to go with Crown Financial counseling, which did help, but our counselor gave us this weekly speech about tithing 10% (he was a baptist), which we were pretty sick of hearing. our parish counts our tithe towards DD’s tuition, so our situation is totally different from that aspect. Just would love everyone’s thoughts about what to do now. thanks-twk
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Are you still with Crown Financial? I suggest that you stick with the payment program (whether it be Crown Financial, CCCS or Veritas Financial Ministries) and tell the counselor of any financial change you have.

My husband and I have been with CCCS for a little over three years. We pay them directly, and they disburse the payment among the credit cards. Sticking with the payment plan is very challenging, but well worth it!👍
 
Yes most of the credit card companies do have help available-but you cannot use the credit card any longer while you are on their program. The best credit counseling service available is cccs…consumer credit counseling services and it is free…don’t go to a debt consolidation/counseling place where you have to pay. CCCS has been around for many many years and it is an excellent program. Also with them you cannot use the credit cards anymore either, many times they can reduce the interest where as with the others you are still paying interest & penalties-be careful there are some companies with similar names.
 
Lainey63 said:
The best credit counseling service available is cccs…consumer credit counseling services and it is free…don’t go to a debt consolidation/counseling place where you have to pay.
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The counseling services are free, but if a person goes on a debt management program, there is usually a monthly fee involved to cover the costs of administering the program.
 
Be very careful with the various credit counceling companies out there. Check them out on the internet, read about them ahead of time. Some of the programs try to settle your debt, which sounds nice, but what really happens is that they set up an escrow account and you contribute towards it every month. Then when that account has enough in it to fully pay off a card, you are responsible for making that payment. Meanwhile the card is many, many months past due. I would advise against that kind of repayment plan.

I know it seems dire. But even if you had to file bankruptcy, there would be a light at the end of the tunnel. And maybe that’s an option you should explore with a lawyer.
 
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