Debt Optimization - Student Loan debt vs. Mortgage debt?
I recently graduated from grad school, and I have my share of student
loans. I also am in the market to buy my first home. I have a decent
sum of cash saved to put toward a down payment. However, I'm wondering
what the smartest thing to do with my savings would be: 1) Pay down
some of my variable interest rate private student loans or 2) Apply the
savings to a downpayment. Essentially, it's just a trade off between
having student loan debt or having mortgage debt. I'm going to buy a
house regardless, but it's a question of whether I have less mortgage
debt or less student loan debt. My instinct would be to apply the
savings to the student loan debt since it's interest rate is NOT tax
deductible like the mortgage debt would be (I make too much money to
deduct student loan interest). The variable APR on my private student
loans is hovering around 7% right now (Before you ask, I have already
consolidated my federal loans). What would be the smartest thing to do
in this case
A: Having mortgage debt is better since its tax deductible.
Debt - Can you clarify the Statute of Limitations?
I had a Credit Card become delinquent due to my Disability. This debt
is over ten years old meaning the Statute of Limitations has expired
because I made no pledge that I could or would pay. The debt was transferred to a Collection Agency that was unable to collect on the debt either. Now, some 10+ years later, the debt has been turned over to a Law office who want to get a "judgment" against me. The real question is; did the Statute of Limitations start when I originally stopped paying on the debt or when the Collection Agency who purchased the debt did? I need to know so I can give the Law Firm a legitimate answer. I've heard of the Statute of Limitations being "renewed," but I do not know if that requires a Court Action or even if a Collection Agency can renew it. The debt doesn't even show up on my Credit Report, so I'm assuming it's ran out. Thanks.
A: They are screwing with you. The statute of limitations in most states
begins when you last made a payment on the account. You can google
"statute of limitations consumer debt" and put your state in the search and you will find many websites that will list your state and the laws.
Next time you hear from these clowns tell them you will be happy to meet them in court to have their case thrown out because the statute of limitations has expired. They won't waste their time on you if they know that you know!
Debt Collector Problem, How Can I get rid of Debt Collectors?
7 years ago I emigrated to America to get away from debt problems after
my business went bust, I never went Bankrupt, but the debts were over
50 thousand pounds. I recently returned for a year to visit Family and opened a new bank account at my Parents House, I just got a letter from a Debt collection agency saying that COOP Bank sold them my two thousand pounds debt two years ago and they want me to contact them to arrange repayments on it, two days later another letter said as I had not responded so of their agents was calling to my parents house and I could be taken to court and be made Bankrupt. Is there some limitatioin law that stops them from pusuing old debts over so many years? what shall I do to get rid of them? I have no intention of paying them and I am leaving the UK in 3 months, I just want to get rid of them so my Parents don't get hasslled by the Debt collectors once I have left as there are many other collectors that could surface as a result.
A: If you were incorporated and the debt was tied to the corporation then
you should just close the corporation and seek debt management counseling.
Debt management - do these companies hurt your credit?
I've got about $63,000 worth of debt between 1 credit card, a car loan and school loans (mostly school loans) and am struggling to pay the credit card. mostly, because at 15.9% and paying the minimum, it's not going down. I've been told that debt consolidation is not the way to go and to check out debt management. My questions:
- If you go through a debt management company, does this impact your credit score?
- Debt Counseling Corp. claims to be free but I'm skeptical. Are there hidden fees with these places? They say they're non-profit.
- I don't want to pay for seminars, books, Website access etc. like Dave Ramsey's site only to find out I've thrown more money away and am no closer to being debt free then I was before shelling out the cash.
- Has anyone undergone or is currently using debt management (lowered APR's) and can recommend a reputable company? I know many aren't legit.
This is my first step in figuring it all out - research. Any help would be great.
A: You won't be able to make any headway paying the minimum on credit cards, and the credit card companies love this fact.
In order to knock out the credit card debt you WILL have to send more than the minimum payment. That is the only way to get the balance down. Dave Ramsey's book The Total Money Make Over is a good start, and it might be a free option for you. I have seen the book in many libraries. I would definitely recommend reading it. It doesn't offer any quick fixes or magic formulas. It is really all about cutting back and intensely focusing your efforts on knocking out your debt. Because the only way to get rid of your debt is to spend less than you earn, and send the extra to the debt.
The issue I have with debt consolidation is that even though you may consolidate all your debts in to one payment with a lower percentage rate, the debt is still there and usually the lengths of your loans are extended. That is why the monthly payment goes down. So instead of a 4 year loan they may extend it out to 6 years and lower the rate a bit. The problem is the debt is still there, and there has been no change in the behavior that got you in debt in the first place. Before you can make a change in anything, there has to be a shift in behavior.
Again, I recommend you tackle this issue yourself. Once you have that behavior shift you can do anything.
Fiancee has too much debt?
Right now I make more money than my fiance. My fiance's debt is more
than double my TOTAL debt. My total debt is around $25K which includes
my car, student loan and credit card debt. I am not a home owner.
My fiance currently owes over $50K in debt which includes his car, personal loans and credit card debt. If you add in his student loan debt his debt goes up even more. He is also a home owner. When I add in how much he owes on his home his debt goes up even more than that.
We have a plan to pay off all of our debt (except for his home and his student loan) before we are married. I should also add that part of his 50K debt includes a balance of $2500 on my engagement ring.
I do love him very much.
Here is my question. Am I being selfish to think he owes way too much money and it is causing me to have second thoughts about our relationship? Is it wrong for me to resent that I will actually help him pay off the balance on my engagement ring?
A: Red flag! Girly, put the brakes on NOW. You're walking right into trouble. Apparently you've been fairly responsible with your debt - 25K, including a student loan, isn't bad at all. Looks as if you're stable, but he's sorta teetering.
I learned the hard way that certain people who are what is known as "over-responsible" (OR) seem to attract others who are "under-responsible" (UR). It's a match made in hell. Sooner or later the OR gets tired of bailing out the UR, and the UR gets tired of being nagged by the OR. This isn't affecting you yet, likely, because your guy's behavior hasn't put you in the middle YET. He appears to have no real plan other than using you as a temporary shelter from his reality.
What happens when he continues to spend irresponsibly, and the phone is ringing off the hook from his creditors? That affects YOU and YOUR peace of mind, too!!! What happens when he flakes on his share of household responsibilities? Are you gonna sit around with no electricity or gas, or will you fall into the trap of, "well, I can take care of it THIS time, it's not really that bad", and "THIS time" starts to become "EVERY time"? Come on now.
It will be 100000% more difficult to work this issue out if you get married first, and worse if you have children or other mutual responsibilities and it's still not worked out.
If you are wondering enough to even be asking here, something's not quite right. I admire your courage and I wish I'd have been asking the same questions once upon a time. Yes, you love him. But sometimes, someone who is good TO you isn't necessarily that good FOR you.
Don't be afraid to say "NO"!!! You might need some work (like me) in getting your own needs met.
I am reading a most wonderful book now called "Loving Choices" by Dr. Bruce Fisher. I just got it, and it is filled with great inspiration on how to love one's SELF without feeling selfish, and how doing that better actually prepares us to make better choices in what we do with our relationships. A must-read.
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