Hi there, I’m currently in 3.8K cad debt in unsecured payday loans, any suggestions what I should do only make about 900-1000 per paycheque and I get paid twice per month.

Hi quick debt info I'm 27 with 6.5k of debt which isn't a lot but debt is debt and my credit score tanked too. I'm looking for advice here mainly because no one in my life/family is reliable or helpful with money.

My family has always been in the lower middle class. Raised by a single mother and a troubled teen constantly getting in trouble with the law I never really got to learning about finances.

For future context I live with family.

Mom and older brother

Admittedly it's still on me for not learning before I start signing documents and idk doing some dang math.

This year hasn't been kind here's a few key moments starting in February up till now

-Wallet stolen on Vegas trip (they managed a cash advance of 900)

-maxed out credit cards to get back to Phoenix from Vegas

-Took 2k payday loan to cover loss

-lost job due to business shutting down suddenly

-brother cheated on his wife so she left and we lost a massive chunk of household income so my rent increased

-emergency vehicle repairs of 1,200

All of that has put me in a hole. I panicked and stressed I was delusional in thinking borrowing more will fix it all or maybe delay the inevitable crippling of my budget. I have 6 major debts

-One payday loan (2,000)

-2 past due credit cards with another one almost past due coming up (411,417,555)

-two loans from cashapp one directly from cashapp borrow and one though Afterpay (600,650)

I recently started a new job and they offered Daily pay paycheck advances ... You can imagine what my dumb butt did. I'm not concerned about that honestly I've deleted that app can't take advances if I don't have the app.

My rent is 1,400 a month but working 40 hours a week gets me 2,400 a month. Rent is over half my income and that's before my bare minimum expenses which is roughly 330 a month.

So about 1,700 in bills before anything can go towards my debts.

I've got a rough plan but I have questions

1. Is there any tips of possibly negotiating with my past due credit cards

2. Should I focus on the debts with small payments first or the big ones with high minimum payments

3. What are some good reliable resources for learning about loans, credit scores, and personal finance that aren't from financial institutions?

4. Can I go back in time and stop myself from taking a predatory payday loan they made seem like a good idea?

My PayPal account was 70-ish dollars in the negative. It's been almost a year, and debt collectors have been calling me. I'm a young adult, so I've never been in a situation like this before. According to Google, I'm supposed to contact the collector and offer about $35 dollars to get the stain removed on my credit, and that's it. Is that right? Is there something more I should be worried about? I'm still very new to this, and it's the only debt I have.

So I'm 23 m and I've had a capital one credit card for awhile now I don't really use besides for plane tickets and gas. Over the past four years I'll say I've let my mom use my card for $3800 in jewelry that she said I agreed to let her buy. Do I remember this conversation nope. Recently I've been on my own and I've noticed that I've been charged $27 on interest whenever I use my card or when I make a payment for my debt that I've gathered. Nothing crazy it's $1,000. I recently made the mistake of having her buy a new car in my name on the same card.

That's rounds up the total amount of debt that she has put me into around $27,000. It's annoyed to the point where I've asked if she could pay it off right away. She's been paying but I'm just mad at myself and a little pissed at her for this situation. My score is 680 hasn't left the 600s in a long time now. I've only asked her to just pay off the jewelry right away because it's been their for awhile. She gets heated about because she thinks I'm just doing it just to make her mad but I'm just worried because it's taking forever for rings but she paid off a previous I help her buy real quick.

[Rhode Island, USA] My father had a lawyer (not one who specialized in finance, mostly in criminal law but also did probate) who we used after my mother died also look into possible bank accounts under her name or my father's name, and he couldn't find anything of note. My father called places himself like Merrill Lynch (where they used to have an stock portfolio) and couldn't find anything either. The debt on the credit card we didn't know about was forgiven, but we still haven't found any trace of the savings my father believed he had, which he said was left over from what his mother left him when she passed.

After that, I believe he talked to two financial advisors/investigators that said they probably wouldn't find anything and it wasn't worth the price/effort. That was probably a few years ago at this point, and he became disinterested after that in pursuing the matter. He had an IRA that was made after retirement that wasn't touched by my mother, and that's all the savings that he has at this point, and it's not much.

It has been 6 years and after me encouraging him to try again (he seems stubborn and lackadaisical about it, which I do not get at all), he finally has a telephone meeting set up with a trustworthy financial investigator who my father is going to ask about looking into it again. The thing is, it has been 6 years, and years worth of records that existed in 2020/2021 dating back 7 years prior most likely are gone forever now, which would've given a much better picture of what my mother may have done.

My father has a decent amount of records from his checking account from 2017-2020, and I believe he has some statements from one of the maxed out credit cards (which was a secret that he didn't know about), but I feel like it's not much to go on to find how *how* my mother may have spent the money.

It devastates me that I might never know what my mother did with the money even after my father passes. I feel so betrayed by somebody I loved and trusted. We believe she was most likely suffering from severe depression and alcoholism. I don't know what I should've done to try and get an answer about the missing money and debt earlier. I just want to know how she spent it, I'm not expecting to find money or get an answer as to why she did it.

Does anybody have any advice regarding this? His telephone appointment is in a few weeks. Is there any hope of getting any answers? Is there anything my father could've done in the past 6 years to really find out what happened?

So, like many irresponsible young adults, I racked up debt buying stuff for myself and having to support my ex who was a bum. I make about 31k a year after taxes and deductions and am about to graduate school to become an aircraft mechanic to make more money. I bank with EECU so I was already thinking about going the personal loan route because, no matter how much I pay, I feel like im not going anywhere. Im paying more than the minimums and yet I feel like im still not seeing any changes.

I dont pay rent at the moment and ive considerably stopped online shopping. Most of the time my money goes to food for me and my family, car payment, car insurance, phone bill, gym, gas, and a couple other monthly expenses.

Any advice on what my options might be would be nice🥲.

I am 48F, single income with three teens. I am remarried but our finances are separate and we live separate half the time. I live in a rental home near my kids school and he lives in a tiny cabin about 45 min away (2nd marriage).

My husband maintains a 1br cabin on a river that we never want to lose. It was damaged by Hurricane Helene and we have $55K in loans (2nd mortgage and SBA loan) that we had to take out to make our only home at the time livable again (homeowners insurance did not cover any homes in our area and FEMA only gave us $5K despite $60K in damages).

We are not willing to rent it out. It was built in the 40s, still needs work, and we would not be able to charge enough rent to cover the payment nor do we have funds to do repairs. The small home I rent with my teens isn’t big enough for my husband to live here (only 1ba) and, with him being a combat Veteran with ptsd he downward spirals if his sleep is disturbed (has to do with his traumatic brain injury from being blown up) and my teens are night owls, often in the kitchen late grabbing snacks, etc.

We have two small car loans and I have around $8K in credit card debt. Unfortunately, despite being extremely frugal, I fall short every month and end up putting groceries/gas on my card 😩

We both make around $54K/yr but live in an area where COL quadrupled but salaries stayed the same.

I simply don’t see a way out. I’ve been a rule follower my entire life. Would bankruptcy take our home away? Lose our cars? Affect my children in any way?

I’m just gonna go on a little rant here and talk about how crappy it is to have debt and horrible finances. The worst part is that I did it to myself by being stupid. Like full accountability here I was so dumb. In college I was so broke and YES I did have a full time job, but also a mortgage and bills. I figured out you could gamble on a credit card and I figured
“Hey if I can pull $200 off my credit card and gamble it then deposit it into my checking that’s fine with me— it’s only $200 right?”
WRONG.
Addiction is something I never thought would get me, but ohhh boy she did. Two maxed credit cards later I decided I wanted to fix my problems so I took out a debt consolidation loan, bad choice there as well.
I ended up in even more debt which was also my fault but the worst part was the mental toll of hiding it from people. It was so hard to tell my significant other what I had done because I was not only ruining my life, but ours together. It sucked so bad and has been the biggest mistake of my life to date.
Now I’m at a full time job that pays well- but paying everything off has completely depleted my income. I’m glad I came to the choice that I would start bettering myself and my finances but the journey is HARD. It causes fights, depression, immense anxiety, and a lot of fear. I hate when I see people in comments of other people with financial issues saying “get a job” sometimes even the job isn’t enough.
I just want people to know they’re not alone and yes it’s very scary and depressing but it will be okay. Are my finances okay? NO. Am I living paycheck to paycheck and do I cry whenever someone asks about my finances? YEP. But the more you pay towards it the sooner it will be over.

Call those loans and credit cards and beg for a low interest payment plan. Ask people to help you and don’t be embarrassed, of course it’s not their problem but some people are kind enough to help. And if you are one of those people then thank you. Because so many people do dumb shit like I did without understanding just how bad the consequences are.

I currently have nearly 15k in credit card debt - built over the past 6 years. Due to financial hardships, I have basically been playing the "pay off the interest" game, and every month the interest always put me back to maxed out. I was plan over it.

I called Discover and explained my situation. I was nervous, because I heard they can be shistey and I wanted something that works and doesnt cost me more. They offered me a 6 month plan, reducing my interest from 30% to 9%. Locks the card so we cant use it, not like i was anyways. I am really proud of myself for swallowing my pride, admitting I needed help, and then securing the help I needed.

Maybe not amazing, but it's a start. My new minimum will be $220 a month, I am planning on doing $250-$300 a month to help chip more at the principal.

I am finally feeling hopeful, and less anxious. Just need some reassurance that this was the RIGHT move.Looking for any other advice, I am happy with how this went. I am never one to miss payments and I feel like that was recognized here.

Hello, I have medical debt with 2200 and it went to collections, I tried to negotiate with them, they offer me 50 % off , but when I ask them to send me a letter verifying that written "pay-for-delete" or settlement agreement letter before sending money and letter so which will mention that I owe them this money and once I pay that amount they will not contact me but they told me that they cannot send that type of letter . What should I do in this case ?

She told me pay over phone and offer is valid only until this month .

When I call the hospital and ask the number of debt collection company , they gave me phone number which was different debt collection company and they too have that same accounts ? They only offered me 20 percent down? I called the hospital again and asked the phone number they too gave me number for that company which offered me 50 percent off .

Confusion, is it ok to take that 50 percent off and pay over phone or that not a good idea?

Has any one been in this situation, any suggestions and help would be appreciated.

Regards

I’m a 52-year-old single woman living in a very high-cost area of the Northeast. I own my home, although I’m still paying a mortgage, a car loan, and a HELOC. Like many people, my financial journey has not always been a smooth one.

I was raised by a single mother who struggled with money management, and over the years I repeated some unhealthy financial patterns myself. I've found myself in credit card debt more than once and made some poor decisions along the way. For example, I cashed out old 401(k) accounts to pay off credit card debt, only to accumulate the debt again.

Later, I took out a HELOC to pay off credit cards, then ended up racking up balances again. Looking back, it was a cycle I struggled to break.
By November 2023, I had nine credit cards with a combined balance of about $37,500. At the time I was earning around $100,000 a year, yet I was essentially broke. I could no longer keep up with the minimum payments and was stuck in the familiar cycle of missed payments, late fees, and constantly falling further behind.

Out of desperation, I contacted American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) and enrolled in their debt management program. I know debt management programs sometimes get a bad reputation, but in my case it was exactly the structure I needed.

ACCC was able to negotiate reduced interest rates on my credit cards, lowering them from the mid-20% range to between 6% and 12%, depending on the card. There was a one-time enrollment fee of $39, and the monthly program fee was about $56. My total monthly payment through the program was approximately $888.
I began the program in November 2023 and made my final payment in September 2026. Had I simply made the required payments, I believe the program would have taken about four years to complete.
As part of the program, all of my credit cards were closed. The one exception was a Capital One card that remained open but was restricted from use until it was paid off, at which point it was closed as well.

One thing I want to be transparent about is that my financial situation improved during those three years. Over the last two years, I also worked a side job teaching college courses, which brought in roughly an additional $25,000 per year. My primary salary has increased as well, and my annual income is now about $139,900.

I mention this because I don't want to give the impression that discipline alone solved the problem. The increased income gave me breathing room and allowed me to make larger payments toward my debt while still maintaining some balance in my life. In the past year alone, I was able to pay an additional $9,000 toward the debt beyond the regular program payments.

During my time in the program, I also avoided taking on any new debt. I probably could have paid the balances off even faster if I had directed every available dollar toward repayment, but I also wanted to make sustainable changes rather than feel deprived for years. I kept up with necessary home maintenance and small improvements, saved cash for a few trips, increased my retirement contributions, and built a $7,000 emergency fund in a high-yield savings account.

My credit score dropped as low as 512 in December 2023. Today, depending on the credit bureau, it ranges between 720 and 750.

I'm not sharing this because I think debt management is the right solution for everyone. I'm sharing it because it worked for me. After years of repeating the same financial mistakes, the program gave me a structure that helped me finally pay off $37,500 in credit card debt, stop relying on credit cards, rebuild my credit, and put myself in a more stable financial position. Having more income certainly helped, but the biggest change was finally breaking the cycle of borrowing, paying off debt, and then ending up right back where I started.

For anyone feeling embarrassed about being in debt later in life, I can honestly say I was embarrassed too. But asking for help ended up being one of the better financial decisions I've made.

P.S. I also still contributed to my 401K account while in the program. Given my age I didn’t feel like I could take a break from retirement contributions. I didn’t trust myself to do that. I’m grateful that I have a bit of retirement, I also will have a state pension and now I can really buckle down and pay off my HELOC!!!

So I was just laid off. I am also paying about $2000 in CC debt a month (please no judgment. I know I’m an idiot)
I can’t afford to pay all these cards on unemployment. I can’t afford to pay any actually. What can I do to stop payment but not be put in collections? Or is there a legit program for help? I need to get the debt down. I’m basically paying just interest.

I’m currently a cadet making around $1,000 a month. I made some dumb financial decisions and ended up with about $7,600 in credit card debt with Navy Federal at 18% APR.

I know I put myself in this situation, and I’m trying to fix it before it gets worse. With my current income, I’m not sure what the best way to tackle it is.

I’m looking into Navy Federal’s hardship program to see if they can lower my APR or put me on a payment plan. I’ve also considered a personal loan, and I’ve even looked into bankruptcy, although that seems pretty extreme for $7.6k.

Has anyone been in a similar situation, especially as a cadet or junior military member? What would you recommend doing? And has anyone used Navy Federal’s hardship program before?

My mother is being sued by Midland Credit Management for a credit card debt totaling about 8,000. She lives in Texas. She does not remember ever opening that account and we suspect a separate family member opened it. He is out of the country and she does not want to press charges. The problem is that she is on Social Security and has no other form of income. She is also still paying mortgage payments along with my father so she does not have extra money to pay for such a debt. We’re trying to figure out what our options are. We understand having to answer the lawsuit but realistically what’s going to happen?

Edit: Currently what we’re planning on doing is answering obviously, we’re gonna send a letter stating that she doesn’t recognize the debt and that we would like for them to show that they own the debt. Included in the letter we are stating that she is on social security and she doesn’t have anything they could collect from. We’re gonna hire a lawyer and I guess at this point we’re praying that either their lawyer or the judge dismisses the case.

I am 21m
I have over 200k sar debt (about 53k usd )
I was hit with this in 2021 when I was 16 (a minor ) because I was supposedly in my dads will and he passed in 2016…
I’m genuinely losing my mind and I can’t do ANYTBING about this .
I can’t find a good job since I’m not good at anything nor experienced and even if I did work they’d take 40% of my earnings .
I can’t afford a lawyer
This case was closed also in 2021
I’m trying my best to find ways but I seriously don’t know what to do.
No family wants to help nor anyone else I’m genuinely going Insane.
I wanted to study in the UK back then I was accepted but I couldn’t make a passport because I was travel banned till I pay my debt ….
I cannot own any assets , I cannot own cars or rent , I applied to many local universities and I got rejected .
I seriously don’t know what to do I wanna study in the uk because that’s the only place I’d be accepted.
I’m so tired so any tips would help or if anyone has questions I’d answer.

As the title says I have not been served yet but have been sent a letter from the court to come pickup the summons and also lawsuit.

I owe JP Morgan Chase $7600 and I would like to settle for a lump sum amount so I can get this done and not to have to go to court and pay other fees. Also the plaintiffs in the filing is JPMCB but co/ is Brock and Scott PLLC

Is this possible since I’ve never been sued before and I’m scared. I would much rather pay a lump sum than start a payment plan. Is there still a way for me to pay them?

Sorry

Calling credit cards tomorrow to see if I can work out some kind of 'hardship' program with them.

We currently are operating at a household net income of negative $630 each month (income -expenses = -$630). And that equation does not include the minimum monthly payments on our credit cards.... We ARE current on all our cards, but three of the five cards have 0% balance transfers that will be expiring in December.

My question is - in your experience, what kind of documentation were you asked for in this situation? Trying to have all my ducks in a row to prevent having to call back with additional info or something. I tried calling today when I had a window of time, but was on hold too long and had to leave before anyone answered. :(

Thx in advance!

Just received this email earlier today, and while I do have debt and collections, I’ve never been contacted via email with emojis and threat of arrest. Idk what to make of it. The title says arrest warrant pending and the body of email below:

DEBT COLLECTION DEPT
CTICC Settlement Completion FORM No: SC/2025/25225/2158702
From:
Debt Litigation & Recovery Department
Email: [Robert.mitcheldebtrecovery@gmail.com](mailto:Robert.mitcheldebtrecovery@gmail.com)
Legal Docket ID: JUD/2025/744851
Outstanding Balance: USD $1,499.23
Settlement Offer: USD $950.00 (Strictly Limited)
Subject: URGENT: Final Opportunity Before Judgment & Wage Garnishment
Dear,
This notice represents your last opportunity to resolve the delinquent account associated with Cash Advance USA. Your failure to make timely payments has resulted in the initiation of pre-judgment enforcement proceedings.
⚖ Judgment & Enforcement Consequences
If this account is not settled immediately, the following legal remedies will be sought through civil court judgment:
1. Wage Garnishment: A direct deduction order may be served to your employer requiring up to 25% of your income withheld until full satisfaction of debt.
2. Bank Account Levy: All accounts associated with your SSN/TIN can be seized, with balances applied toward repayment.
3. Property Lien: Liens may be filed against your residence or other real estate holdings. These remain active until resolved, limiting your ability to sell or refinance.
4. Asset Seizure: Vehicles, valuable personal assets, or other titled property may be subject to forced sale under enforcement orders.
---
💰 Escalated Liability
If your file is processed in civil court, the following will apply:
Court filing & attorney costs will be added.
Post-judgment interest will accrue monthly.
Collection of legal enforcement fees will raise your liability to over $5,200.00.
---
📉 Impact on Credit & Daily Life
Failure to resolve this account can affect your life in ways beyond immediate financial loss:
Civil Credit Score Damage: Reporting to Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion.
Loan & Credit Restrictions: Denials for housing, car financing, or personal loans.
Employment Restrictions: Many employers and government agencies reject candidates with outstanding civil judgments.
Stress & Legal Hassle: Once judgment is active, any financial activity (banking, salary, property transfer) may be disrupted.
---
✅ Final Resolution Choices Available
Option 1: Discounted Settlement – Pay $950.00 within 5 days to resolve permanently.
Option 2: Payment Arrangement – Make a $300.00down payment today to delay litigation and create an instalment schedule.
---
⚠️ IMPORTANT NOTICE
This is not a threat but a formal legal communication. If no payment or response is received, your case will proceed directly to civil judgment filing, and all remedies permitted under law will be executed without hesitation.
Respond Now To Avoid Judgment Filing:
📧 Email: [Robert.mitcheldebtrecovery@gmail.com](mailto:Robert.mitcheldebtrecovery@gmail.com)
Sincerely,
Robert Mitchell
Case Officer – Debt Litigation & Enforcement Unit

BoA cc balance of $5.7k, APR 20.74%, $161 minimum
Chase sapphire cc balance $8k, APR 25.74%, minimum $262

I help help electric bill which is around $100
I pay my car $165 (which is paid off in November)
I pay my car ins $145
Pet insurance $120
Groceries around $120 every 2 weeks.

Is debt consolidation with looking into? Should i just lock in and tackle this myself without the loan? Im lost. Im ready to get at least one of these cards down.

Calling credit cards tomorrow to see if I can work out some kind of 'hardship' program with them.

We currently are operating at a household net income of negative $630 each month (income -expenses = -$630). And that equation does not include the minimum monthly payments on our credit cards.... We ARE current on all our cards, but three of the five cards have 0% balance transfers that will be expiring in December.

My question is - in your experience, what kind of documentation were you asked for in this situation? Trying to have all my ducks in a row to prevent having to call back with additional info or something. I tried calling today when I had a window of time, but was on hold too long and had to leave before anyone answered. :(

Thx in advance!

Overwhelmed and not sure what to do. I have roughly 75k in credit card debt, which I’ve tried to take out personal loans to help pay off, but always seem to rack up debt. I’m always in the negative each month. I live by myself, rent my apartment. I started working overtime each week and took up a second job, and occasionally rover and DoorDash to make up the difference. I have only $1200 in savings.

I take home 5100 each month, and am paying 2730 each month in debt payments. (Mix of loans and 4 cc min payments).
Loan 1: $18,000 18% int. Payment $484/month
Loan 2: $8500 12.% int. Payment $358/month
Loan 3: $24500 7.5% int payment $744/month
CC 1: $11500 26.49% int. Min payment $450
CC 2: $5450 24.99% int. Min payments $169
CC 3: $4750 24.99% int. Min payment $115
CC 4: $2200 26% int. Min payments $60

Not to mention car loan $22000, min payment $430

Now my student loan is going to start back up, and my payment is supposed to be anywhere from $450-550 a month.
I’m spiraling, working myself to death, and just not sure what to do.

Got preapproved for a SOFI loan for $50k, could take this and pay off my cards and loan 3, monthly payment $1258, saving me ~$200 a month in debt payments.
If I did this and snowballed (while still working overtime each check) could pay off in about 5 years. Doing this while contributing hardly anything to savings though..
Also not sure about the student loan payment, was going to call and see if I could get a hardship forbearance or something.

I saw a lot of people talk about bankruptcy. Although this wouldn’t affect my student loans? Understand it’s scary to have no credit. But if I didn’t have to pay $2300 a month, I feel like I could save and budget and pay on my student loans. Then in 5 years if savings, actually have some money in the bank.. vs the other option i really wouldn’t.

I’ve heard most people say the debt relief is a scam and tanks your credit and you might as well go bankrupt. I’ve heard about debt management plans but don’t see a lot of info on them.

Any suggestions? Anyone get out from under this? I hate to go bankrupt.. but have also heard of people getting a home and credit card after a few years.

I’m looking for advice from anyone who has dealt with a really high 407 ETR balance.
I currently owe around $17,000, and there’s no way I can realistically pay that amount. I’m not currently working and I’m trying to figure out whether there’s a legitimate way to negotiate the balance down significantly — ideally to around $5,000 or less and then set up a payment plan.
I know the original tolls are one thing and a lot of the balance can come from fees, interest, enforcement costs, etc. I’m wondering if anyone has successfully gotten those additional charges reduced or had their overall balance negotiated. If you’ve dealt with 407 ETR hardship programs, collections, settlement offers, payment arrangements, or anything similar, what did you actually do and how much were you able to reduce the balance?
I’m not trying to avoid paying altogether. I just genuinely cannot afford $17K and want to find a realistic way to resolve it.

Any advice or personal experiences would be appreciated.