What are you doing w/ your credit cards

[vavivo]

Sorry, I wasn't sure where to post this.
I noticed a lot of people saying they stopped paying their credit cards, because of course the house payment has to come first. Has anyone been able to get your credit card companies to work w/ you? I was trying to get mine to lower my interest rates while I was going through my mod, and nobody would budge. Now that I got my mod the credit cards are more affordable but I'm still behind and it's hard to catch up when they won't work w/ me. Any suggestions?

[ama125]

I read the thread name "what are you doing with your credit cards" and was going to reply burning them LOL! I haven't gotten a mod yet, not paying on most credit cards, some have been handed off to collection agencies who call every frickin' day several times a day. Sometimes I answer and I tell them all that we are trying to get a loan mod so I'm not paying them until I do. I did not tell them that we may end up filing BK and we still may even if we do get a mod. And the cards themselves, I will let my four year old son use them for play!

[BadBobMo]

If you can't pay your 1st Mortgage then you can't pay your cards and you also should not pay your 2nd if you are underwater.
(1) Card=Charge-Off=Neg. W/Lender to pay-off or BK
(1) 2nd=2MP or BK
look every one knows and I mean every one in the Gov. & also all of the Lenders know the pecking order, for us to try and save our homes and "The Good Old USA".
If our Great Leader had not turned tail and run from the bankers, I would have this B.S. done with and moved on. What A Cluster F_ck!
P.S. pay our 1st and keep-up the fight!

[daglo]

Originally Posted by BadBobMo

If you can't pay your 1st Mortgage then you can't pay your cards and you also should not pay your 2nd if you are underwater.
(1) Card=Charge-Off=Neg. W/Lender to pay-off or BK
(1) 2nd=2MP or BK
look every one knows and I mean every one in the Gov. & also all of the Lenders know the pecking order, for us to try and save our homes and "The Good Old USA".
If our Great Leader had not turned tail and run from the bankers, I would have this B.S. done with and moved on. What A Cluster F_ck!
P.S. pay our 1st and keep-up the fight!

Not pay the second if you are under water?? We are drowning, but we are still getting calls from our lender Threatening foreclosure because we are not paying our second. We got a loan mod on the first, but cannot afford the second. Can't they foreclose?

[nativelasvegan]

Guess who will be next to ask the government oh wait I mean us taxpayers for a bail out? Like this modification is not a "trickle down" of things to come? I borrowed off my BOA credit card to pay the mortgage. I will stop paying Skank of America credit card payment. Same company, right? Had they offered me the modified terms when they told me they would in July, I would have been able to afford the credit card payments. When the debt collectors call, I like to hand the phone to a 2 year old and tell him "it's for you!" The conversation is very entertaining. Making my mortgage payments using the same company who is refusing to modify my terms... "priceless".

[MyHAMP]

Originally Posted by daglo

Not pay the second if you are under water?? We are drowning, but we are still getting calls from our lender Threatening foreclosure because we are not paying our second. We got a loan mod on the first, but cannot afford the second. Can't they foreclose?

Yes, they can - but if you owe more on your first than what your property is worth, why should they? They won't collect a single penny...

[daglo]

Originally Posted by MyHAMP

Yes, they can - but if you owe more on your first than what your property is worth, why should they? They won't collect a single penny...

What will happen then? Will they try to take the house?

[MyHAMP]

Originally Posted by daglo

What will happen then? Will they try to take the house?

No, they can't. If they foreclose, they have to pay for the foreclosure AND the house goes to the lender who is holding the first lien. That's what I meant with "they won't get a single penny."

You would certainly owe the money they lost (and also the difference between the balance on your first mortgage and what the house sold for at the auction, plus the expenses for the foreclosure) - but in reality, do you have that money under your pillow? I guess you know the answer - and so does the lender.

[daglo]

Originally Posted by MyHAMP

No, they can't. If they foreclose, they have to pay for the foreclosure AND the house goes to the lender who is holding the first lien. That's what I meant with "they won't get a single penny."

You would certainly owe the money they lost (and also the difference between the balance on your first mortgage and what the house sold for at the auction, plus the expenses for the foreclosure) - but in reality, do you have that money under your pillow? I guess you know the answer - and so does the lender.

I get it, I hope they do!

[daglo]

Will they still do this if the lender holds the first and the second?

[I'mSickOfThis]

Originally Posted by vavivo

Sorry, I wasn't sure where to post this.
I noticed a lot of people saying they stopped paying their credit cards, because of course the house payment has to come first. Has anyone been able to get your credit card companies to work w/ you? I was trying to get mine to lower my interest rates while I was going through my mod, and nobody would budge. Now that I got my mod the credit cards are more affordable but I'm still behind and it's hard to catch up when they won't work w/ me. Any suggestions?

Hi,
We have four credit cards and a personal loan with BAC. I called and tried to be proactive and begged for a reduced rate. They wouldn't budge. The guy was as nasty and snarky as he could be. My interest rates were very high - like 21%. So I stopped making payments. Two months later, a very nice woman called and asked if I'd like a 2% payment until the balances were paid off. And no late fees. Ever.

Then I tried to call on my business credit card to see whether I could get that card down. NO! Ok-lesson learned. Wait for them to call you.

Two months goes by - another nice woman calls. Would I like a 3% rate on my business card? Get the picture.

I'm wondering if this is the new BAC philosophy.

So now I'm working on my loan.

By the way, this worked with all my credit cards. I've been paying these high interest rates for years, and my balances haven't moved. Now, with this new plan, they should all be paid off within 5 years.

Citibank gave me a zero interest on my outstanding debt. The only catch is - if you're late paying them they'll rescind their offer. So I'm very careful to pay them on time.

I hope this helps you out.

[calgirl67]

Originally Posted by ama125

I read the thread name "what are you doing with your credit cards" and was going to reply burning them LOL! I haven't gotten a mod yet, not paying on most credit cards, some have been handed off to collection agencies who call every frickin' day several times a day. Sometimes I answer and I tell them all that we are trying to get a loan mod so I'm not paying them until I do. I did not tell them that we may end up filing BK and we still may even if we do get a mod. And the cards themselves, I will let my four year old son use them for play!

As for the collection agencies calling night and day, know your rights. All you have to do is send them a letter telling them they can no longer contact you by telephone and all future communication must be in writing. By law THEY HAVE TO STOP CALLING.

[davephx]

The telling them to stop calling only works on personal accounts not business.

In my mess I have about $250,000 of cc debt - had high credit and never paid anything late in my life till early 2009. My main concern is them going after judgements which can make life miserable. That is when I'd have to move on BK but am hoping to delay it as long as possible.

My hope i after charge off the look at my credit report and realize it would be a waste of legal fees to go after me, but I can not count on that.

[nativelasvegan]

The FDCPA (Fair Debt Collections Practice Act) states that third-party debt collectors can call past-due debtors from the hours of 8:00 am until 9:00 pm. If a call takes place outside of these hours it is a violation of the FDCPA. Any violation of this law makes third-party debt collectors subject to fines and penalties and even legal action. If a debtor's employer does not allow them to receive calls at work the debt collector is not allowed to call once they have been told to stop by the debtor.

[Kimbly]

We are still paying on our balances but have closed the cards we had with our first and second mortgage companies (BoA and HSBC). We are not trying for a mod, we are intentionally walking away since we are so far upside down, our neighborhood is declining, we drive too far to work and we don't want to live in AZ for the decade(s) it will take to get out from under this house.

We have no intentions of filing bankruptcy and, for us, the right decision is to pay these cards off as originally intended. However, credit card companies tend to be willing to negotiate the balance at a reduced amount if you are in default on them. From my research and experience, they will not do so if they are open or if you are trying to keep them open or if you're paying on time.

I'll be curious to see what happens with our cards; I wonder if they will be closed due to our drop in credit. In the end, I don't really care much but I do need to have a credit card for business travel. Worst case scenario, I'll take the mortgage $$ we're banking right now and buy a prepaid visa.

[Do not want to lose it]

I stopped paying my all my credit cards months ago with the exception of one-Capital One card. So I figure it will be 7 years until they are off my report.
3 months later I stopped paying my HELOC.
I switched to Vonage with a new house phone number to stop the harassing calls and to save $$.
The day my cell contract expired I changed my cell provider to a cheaper one-I was SHOCKED that T-Mobile approved me with my credit so shot!
Now it is quiet. They all have to mail me if they want something now.
I block my number when I call EMC.
I may be wrong but unless your credit cards are under $2000. (Thats each individual balance) they can not take you to court. If the balance is under $2000. Then they will take you to small claims court. Small claims courts MUST be jammed everywhere.

[ABC123]

I stopped paying them all to keep the house, I had lost my job and then took a 30k pay cut. Finally I just ended up filing Ch7 on them! They werent willing to work with me so I am not willing to work with them. Now they got nothing! Should have taken me up on my offers early on!

[caldwellb02]

If my minimum credit card payments would pay my mortgage, I would not be paying my credit cards. But that's not the case, so I am trying to keep current.

[whirlingbirdie]

I stopped paying one. The rest I am staying current on for the most part because there are very low minimum payments. I don't have a huge amount of debt but it's enough. Doing what I can, paying what I can, saving what I can. We went through all our savings after I got a pay cut in Feb and the final straw was our township double billing our property taxes and they raised our payment because of the escrow. Trying to get a mod now.

[Believe]

Originally Posted by caldwellb02

If my minimum credit card payments would pay my mortgage, I would not be paying my credit cards. But that's not the case, so I am trying to keep current.

That is my plan, too. Glad to hear someone else say this. It's what makes sense to me.

[indeep1959]

Stopped paying credit cards a few months ago,after not paying my mortgage since Jan.
Got accepted for a loan mod trial,so now paying mortgage instead of cards.
Paycheck to paycheck it's never enough it seems.
No way in heck I could pay my cards even if I wanted to and not live on the streets. So I guess they wait,charge off,send to collections,whatever.
I love my home and I'm not going anywhere God help me.
I'll do a BK if I have to,don't care anymore.
Funny though,called one credit card in July (GE Money) when I knew that it would be tough to make that next payment,especially since it was after an 18 month 0% intro on some appliances I bought on this home. Asked them what could I do to avoid the avalanche of interest that would become due after that rate expired (21% or $4000 or so!) He was very rude and said nothing we can do,sorry. So I didn't pay,get my next statement and of course all that interest was there.
Missed really just one payment and the next month I got a collection letter,seems like they sent it to collections after only 1 missed payment!
Anyway, just the other day I get an email from them saying they will waive the interest if I just settle for a reduced amount (about 60%) in full.
I can't so I won't but that's what has to happen to reason with these people.

A tip for everyone getting harassed by these card companies,get yourself a different phone number,like Google Voice,Skype,Gizmo, whatever and then go online to each of your cc's and change your contact number to the one you just got. No more harassing phone calls to your house or cell phone,they all go to a number that can be set to never ring you.

Only way to get some peace while you figure things out!

[MyHAMP]

we stopped paying the CCs years ago (I think sometime in 2007) and the CR shows the majority being charged-off with a $0 balance. I'm curious how they want to calculate a DTI...

[MyHAMP]

Originally Posted by indeep1959

A tip for everyone getting harassed by these card companies,get yourself a different phone number,like Google Voice,Skype,Gizmo, whatever and then go online to each of your cc's and change your contact number to the one you just got. No more harassing phone calls to your house or cell phone,they all go to a number that can be set to never ring you.

Only way to get some peace while you figure things out!

Or if you have more creditors than friends, change your number and hand it out to your buddies and family - that's what we did..

[indeep1959]

Originally Posted by MyHAMP

Or if you have more creditors than friends, change your number and hand it out to your buddies and family - that's what we did..

Haha,very funny.

Sad but true!!

[indeep1959]

Originally Posted by MyHAMP

we stopped paying the CCs years ago (I think sometime in 2007) and the CR shows the majority being charged-off with a $0 balance. I'm curious how they want to calculate a DTI...

They've stopped coming after you?