Discouraged.

[RPMS]

Hey, guys.

 

I've got the engine, I've got the tranny, I've got almost everything I need for a conversion save a driveshaft and a harmonic damper, and I'm going to have to put my conversion on hold for another year or so. I've been looking forward to this for a couple of years now but now I'm having to put it on the back burner, and I'm bummed to say the least.

 

The bills have been mounting since I had to change jobs last summer, yet I've managed to maintain the fantasy that I'll be able to finish the job on my current salary. But finally, I've had to admit defeat. The final straw was finding that my v8 will probably have to be installed into our truck to get it to pass emissions (it's doing a fairly passable imitation of a mosquito fogger, lately) and it looks like I'm going to have to get a second job to keep my house out of foreclosure. There goes any spare time for working on the car. Not only that, but I may well have to sell the Z to bring in some money to pay the house taxes.

 

I'm so poor that if it cost a nickel to take a dump, I believe I'd have to throw up.

 

*sigh*. I used to think life would get easier when I was "grown up", but it never improves, does it? I mean, I can do lots of things now that I couldn't do then, but overall it seems that there's always something to worry about, always something sort of imminent financial crisis on the horizon.

 

Okay, I'm done now. Any advice from the collective wisdom?

[spotfitz]

Don't sell the Z!

What kind of extra work would you like to get into. I may have some leads for you.

BTW, I feel your pain. I'm now late on my daily driver payment and my Z is in no condition right now to take it's place, if the unspeakable happened. Ah yes, the choices in life sometimes. Should I make my car payment or eat the next two weeks?

[VRJoe]

Hang in there guys, I've been through some tough times and the best advice I can give is don't let it get you down. Don't get rid of the Z, use it as a goal, look at it and tell yourself that you'll get it running once you've cleaned things up. If you have to swap the V8 into the truck, you've now got a block from the truck that can be bored, stroked,.... THEN put in the Z. I hated the statement "When you get lemons make lemonaide" until I figured it out. If you want to have a little fun, take the collector who's bugging you the most and find a way to pay it off, but over pay it by $10 then call them every day until you get it back One key is to make a payment plan, if you stick to it they can't bother you.

 

There are some good books on getting out of debt, check the library (it's free), you can always buy a copy later.

 

I hope that helps.

 

- Joe

[Guest Thurem]

Call one of those debtconsolidation things that are always on tv. That way you can prolly cut down on the creditcard payments. Consider getting rid of the car that has payments and get a cheap beater. (I got a Geo Metro for 300 bucks, I have now put 10k miles on it). Monthly payments are the ones that get you, cable tv, phone, cellphone, internet, creditcards. cut them down, get rid off them or get the minimum service, ie no call waiting, or moviechannels. Unless you went from ceo to nightshift at 7/11 you should be able to pull it off.

Thure

[DavyZ]

Try to keep from selling the car if you can, Scott. I'd sell my stereo, dog, and clothes first!!!!!!!!

 

"You do what you gotta do..."

 

Hang in there,

 

Davy

[Pop N Wood]

"If you are going through hell, keep on going"

[Sumo]

Ya know, i just heard of a guy who basically F'##d around last year with their credit to the tune of over a couple of hundred grand and this year they spent around $1500 to just declare bankruptcy. I asked the lawyer if this was legal and he said 'apparently there are a lot of people right now declaring bankruptcy and doing what they are doing' The excuse is bad economy, no job, bla bla bla and get this, they are not liable and after a couple of years it's not even on the credit history. Seems it's a going trend and legal as long as you dont have anything significant in your name.

 

By the way just keep the Z and park it in a corner. Do you realize how hard it is to find a nice donor car right now? I'm looking for one for a friend of mine and they are either too much, rusted, gutted out etc...

So just keep it for now and wait, things always have a way of turning around, and judging by the amount of work you indicated on your website, id keep it.

[Dave240Z]

Something to consider about debt consolidation and bankruptcy. In the eyes of credit agencies, they are just about the same thing. They stay on your credit report for 7 years and can severely hamper your ability to buy a house or refinance, let alone get good interest rates on car loans, credit cards, etc....

 

If you have a lot of credit debt, the first thing I would do is stop using the cards. The second thing I'd do is discuss payments with each credit card, to see if they can lower the interest or whatnot, making it easier to pay off some of your debt.

 

Since you have a house though, the pickle jar gets a bit more crowded. Foreclosure on a house is a very bad thing in the eyes of creditors and can hurt your future prospects of getting back into another house, severely. I recommend you do everything possible to keep the house, including a second job and/or selling the Z. I know it sounds harsh, but you have to do what you have to do. Having a house and paying off debts is far more important than a project car. Besides, once you straighten out your finances, you can always get back into another Z.

 

Have you looked into refinancing? It may be worth checking into. Of course your property taxes will be reassessed among other things so it's not a simple decision.

 

Whatever you decide, I wish you the best of luck. We're all in rough financial times, but if you can keep bailing the water out and stay afloat, you'll be poised to take advantage of things once the economy turns around.

[spotfitz]

Being that I have a friend who went through either Chapter 7 or Chapter 13(can't remember which one) I have some advice here. Either one will take you the same amount of time to clear off your record. One you pay off the debt and it looks alittle better then the other on your report.

Debt consolidation(which I'm doing right now) is basically the same thing(as stated in above post). It shows up the same way, but the funny thing is, the company that you go to actually can't help you unless your behind on payments, just like bankruptcy. They actually will tell you to stop paying your payments until they work something out with who you owe. If you do decide to go this route, get one that is close to home. I have had problems with the one in Florida(while I'm in Texas), in which they make a settlement with the card co. and then I don't get this info until my next mayment is already sent off, which isn't the right amount now. This went on for several months. Due to the amount owed increasing with each non-sufficient payment, my monthly payment kept going up. I'm now paying almost asmuch as I was sending in the minimum. The length of time that it was suppose to take to clear the debt has now lengthened, but I WILL finally get it all payed off, which will be a great thing.

Due to the fact that atleast 1/3 of my credit card debt is from my Z, I don't see any sense in me getting rid of the Z to help pay off the debt. I have seen that several times on this board and others. I have already gotten rid of the "creature comforts" around the house though. It helps out.

Scott, you may want to consider renting out a room for about $100 a week. I actually had two rooms rented out at one time and was living high on the hog for awhile. I really should have considered saving some of it instead of putting it in my Z

[Mikelly]

Don't sweat the bankruptsy. Not condoning it, as I have never done it. However, My wife's Ex filed in 2000 and he is building a new house this summer.

 

You can repair your credit in much less time. Weigh your options, but don't go too far in debt with the CCs... not fun.

 

Good Luck.

Mike

[RPMS]

Thanks for the replies, guys!

 

Spotfitz, I'm looking for ANY sort of part time job that will allow me to still work my primary job, which is M-F, 2-10pm in North Richland Hills. I'd prefer something that would allow me to stay clean, so I didn't go into work el-stinko in the afternoons. There's a dry cleaners I passed by the other day with a "help wanted" sign in the window. Maybe they need someone in the mornings.

 

The really ironic thing is, I'm making enough to JUST pay my bills, but I'm a month behind on my mortgage, so they apply each payment to the overdue balance, then hit me with another $40 late fee each month. If everyone would simply add the amount currently overdue to the back end of the note, I'd stop accruing debt. The fact that my credit is shot means that nobody is likely to refinance my house at a reasonable rate.

 

On the positive side, I haven't used a credit card in the past two years, and everything is now CASH. I have no car payments, and my dogs are paid for. In short, there's nothing for anyone to reposess.

 

I think I'm going to call for a meeting with a debt negotiation company. It sounds like they *might* be able to reduce my credit card payments somewhat. I don't mind eating beans and rice two meals a day, as long as I feel I'm actually whittling away at my debt. Spending everything I make paying off interest is extraordinarily unpleasant. Kinda like getting kicked in the crotch every morning as soon as you get out of bed - you finally stop wanting to get out of bed!

 

Scott