Credit Card Debt By Age

A week or two ago, when congress was still debating this "credit card bill of rights", there were stories on the news featuring people who had massive credit card debt. There was one story I saw about a woman who got a credit card at age 20 and by age 22 had amassed $30,000 in credit card debt that she had no ability to pay off. The story wanted us to be sympathetic to the woman.

Why should we feel bad for people who rack up tens of thousands of dollars in credit card debt? How is that related to sneaky practices by the credit card companies?

I don't think we should feel bad for them. I am one person who has a TON of credit card debt, its my own fault, and I in no way expect anybody to feel bad for me! Its my own fault and I will get out of it. The thing that I do expect is that there be some guidelines for credit card companies in which they aren't allowed to treat me unfairly because of the situation that I am in as long as I am paying them each month, at least the minimum (although I pay significantly more than that), and I don't make payments late. Some credit card companies have adjusted their interest rates to unreasonable amounts and people can not get ahead. That isn't fair to people, and I do feel bad when they have done NOTHING wrong and were paying all payments on time, making progress, and then the credit card company increases their rates just because they want to pad their income more!

2009-05-26 14:25:55 by agactual

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I received a letter at my mom's house saying that I have to appear in court next week for an old credit card debt from Filene's or I will be arrested because there is now a warrent for my arrest. When I was only 17 they mailed me this credit card in the mail and allowed me to activate it without ever checking my age. Now, I am 25 years old working two jobs to take care of a 3 year old all by myself who has Autism. Can I use the fact I was a minor when the card was issued to get out of this debt? How can I prove it?

If you used the card after you turned 18 then the fact that you were 17 when you got the card is no longer a valid argument.

When was your last payment? There is the Statute of Limitations which is the legal time period they have to file a suit against you. Depending on your state this is 2-6 years from the date of your last delinquency. If they filed after this time, the judge will throw it out because the SOL has expired. So they need to prove the date of your last delinquency is within the SOL.

This "letter" you received could be a concern. Is it an actual summons from a court, or is it just a letter from a collection agency. If it is a letter from a collection agency, they have violated the Fair Debt Collectors Practices Act(FDCPA). This states that debt collectors can not threaten you with things like arrest or jail time for not paying your bills. If they do you can file a suit against them for $1000 per violation. If it is an actual summons then you do need to go to court, as the judge has made it a requirement for you to show up.

2007-08-21 08:37:07 by Nicki R

Price: $13.00

First I just want to say that I made a very big mistake in trying to save a business & jobs of my employees by using all my credit card limits.

I now have insurmoutable debt & now I lost my biz.

This is all credit debt...I have no real hope in paying it back. I am trying to rebuild my life.

I sold EVERYTHING I own to pay off as much debt as possible. I own a 150k home which has 35k in equity in it.

I am struggling to keep it, and I am only surviving by help from relatives for food and transportation while I look for work.

I am over 90 days late on these credit cards, one is 28k. They are threatning me with a "lawsuit".

Please someone tell me what can they ACTUALLY do to me???

I have no job, no assets (other then the 35k of equity), no furniture and I am at an age (50) that I cannot afford to loose what little I have left in my home.

I do not want to claim Bankruptcy.

If I simply default and not pay, can they sieze or put a lien on my home?

Help!
By the way.....I live in Canada so I think most of the laws are different.

I would never advicate skipping on a debt...but in this case, I am making this decision in order to save my future from absolute ruin.

I am most concerned about my 35k equity in the home. As I said this is the last thing I have on this earth and paramount to my eventual recovery.

Some have suggested above that they can take everything but my home. If that is the case good. I have already sold EVERYTHING else I owned and used that money to pay off other debts.

If I could afford to see a lawyer to answer this question I would, but I have barely enough money to eat.

My preference would be to wait out the 5 - 7 years and rebuild my credit. If I go bankrupt it will cause more problems than not. Bankrupcy stays on record forever...and costs money to go through. Charge offs are definately gone in 5 - 7 years.

Thanks again...god bless!

If your creditors know that you own your home, they will immediately file in Court so that a "Certificate of Pending Litigation" is placed on your title (in BC, your province may have different wording).

When the time comes to renew your mortgage, your lender cannot give you a renewal with the outstanding debt on your title. When you renew a mortgage, they remove their old mortgage from your title and replace it with a new one. If each of your creditors has placed a "CPL" on your title behind your original mortage, your new mortgage is placed under the "CPL's" . Since your debt exceeds your equity, there would be no way for the mortgage to be secured. You lose your lender, and they demand payment of your mortgage in full. No lender will give you a mortgage.

You need to speak to a Trustee in Bankruptcy. They have options other than bankruptcy. However, based on your debt/no income, bankruptcy really is your only option. Check the yellow pages for a trustee. You have no other choice. If you do nothing, you will not only lose your home, but all of your future assets as well. Bankruptcy is just a word. In your case, it really is the one that matters.

2008-01-23 20:28:13 by Mike

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A Resolution to Limit Credit Card Debt

1.Whereas, Bad debt and bankruptcies damage the economy; and
2.Whereas, Americans are spending more and saving less;
3.Whereas, Credit card companies prey upon the young, the poor and the uneducated; therefore
4.Be It Resolved by the Student Congress here assembled that banking regulations in the United States be
5.changed to provide more consumer protections; and
6.Be It Further Resolved that credit card companies be prohibited from:
7. A) Sending prescreened credit offers to consumers under the age of 21 and
8. B) Marketing on college campuses.

Can I get some opinions/points/research anything on this issue? I've been discussing it with several people and now I'm curious to find more info and other people's opinions.

Thanks

great point wayalook
outlaw credit cards - and put even more thousands of people out of work who work for them.

2009-03-17 23:25:45 by Mike

My husband of 29 years recently walked out on me and our three girls. I’ve been awarded spousal support and child support through the courts. $400 spousal, and 500.00 Child support ( that ends in two years )

Ever since he left, Oct 1st I have fallen behind on all of my bills, but mostly my two Credit cards which are solely in my name. These are in my name because he had a business bankruptcy about five years ago, and was not able to obtain any credit.These cards are both maxed out to a total of nearly ten thousand dollars, and the phone calls have just begun.I try my best to keep my payments up, but I’m not even meeting the minimum.


Yesterday I received a call from a credit bureau over my Sears charge card and found out that they are charging me an $148.00 a month for an Over Limit Amount !


I phoned them and asked them to stop those extra charges and of course they told me no . They also told me to go into bankruptcy. After 2 days of researching the net, and making phone calls, I find that I could lose my home if I do this?? I am quite mystified at the whole process and wondered if you had some sound advice for me? I have just been in touch with a debt consolidation place, but they said that I would have to make payments of $250.00 per month for FIVE years..

That’s over 3,000 more than i owe right now, and if I had an extra 250.00 I’d be making my credit cards payment with that. I am 53 years of age, have been out of the work force for 16 years ever since we got custody of his grand daughter.


I am also leery of leaving my eldest daughter home alone, she is Down syndrome, and we use wood heat to keep the place warm. I am joint owner of a mobile home with my ex husband, and the three girls live here with me. The mobile is paid off now. I cannot risk losing the roof over our heads by declaring bankruptcy, do you see any way out for me? Should I declare bankruptcy, Debt Consolidation or keep plugging uselessly away?

I live in British Columbia, Canada
Thank you for your responses, much appreciated

Look to the government for some support, you're likely able to qualify for food stamps / financial assistance at this point. Call your creditors back and ask for hardship assistance. Tell them that you want to pay the bills off, but at this point if they can't be flexible then you're thinking of bankruptcy. That will get some wheels turning a bit more. Don't be afraid to ask for a supervisor if you don't get what you want, this is your future on the line.

2009-04-05 09:43:24 by Nicki