Ton of debt crashing down!

Just a little advice from someone who has some good debt...

Keep Flying! Just reduce your time a bit. But keep paying off that debt... I agree with the folks that say get a second (third might be pushing it a bit with a family, ALWAYS MAKE TIME FOR YOUR FAMILY) job. That's essentially what I'm doing. (CFIing IS my second job). Shop wisely and avoid "luxuaries". Use the money you would of spent on the extra lesson per week and use it to pay off some bills.

Have you ever heard of Snowball debt payoff idea... basically, find one bill (usually the highest interest rate one) and pay it off as fast as possible (make the max amount you can afford on the other payments in the meanwhile always paying at least the minimum), then take that payment and add it to the next debt and pay it off, then the next and the next... and eventually you'll be paying a huge chunk on your biggest debt and it will all be payed off... it'll take a little time, but you'll be paying it all off ALOT sooner. That's what I'm doing right now!

Is there anything really holding you in Jacksonville? If not, move! Do some research on where there are some good paying jobs and GO! There is ALWAYS a flight school close to EVERYWHERE! Go to were the money is!


TAKE CARE OF THE FAMILY!
 
Grabo! Been listening to Dave Ramsey?
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Good show!
 
Thank you all!

I appreciate all the good advice! I am at least planning to go ahead and finish my CFI,CFII,MEI at All ATPs here in Jax.

I need it to receive my 4 year degree at Embry-Riddle (extended campus). I think my job prospects will be better having the degree in my pocket! I should graduate in August.

I can complete my ratings in around 3 weeks or so and then start looking for a real job.

At least, I can flight instruct part time around here and make a few extra dollars plus build some time.

Thanks again for the input! It really helps!

Sincerely,

TL
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P.S. Does anyone teach school during the year and flight instruct during the summer months. I am thinking about this option. What do you think?
 
Ya know, everyone is making bankruptcy out to be this be-all-end-all-your-life-is-over decision. Sometimes it's unavoidable (like you're already behind on your bills and your wife gets laid off TWICE in 6 months and you're making a measily $6.65 at a theme park). That was two years ago, and since then my credit is actually BETTER than it was before I filed. Before I had about 6 deragatories on my report and maybe ONE good thing b/c I could barely afford to meet the payments on my utility bills. Now, the only negative on there is the bankruptcy (which will stick around for a while). This was all BEFORE I started flight training, too. Since the bankruptcy, I've had my car blow up on me, but I was able to get a decent used car loan at an okay intrest rate. I also have gotten student loans to cover flight training at montly rates that I can handle. I have two credit cards with VERY LOW limits. If I get into trouble, I can pay them off quickly, and they're only used in emergencies anyway.

Point is, bankruptcy MAY be a viable option. I would still TRY to go it the other route, but don't make yourself sick or negligect your family.
 
Almost all employers, with more than just a few employees, will draw a consumer report to get an idea of what kind of person they are hiring. Having bad credit doesn't make you a bad person neccesarily, but it may indicate to the employer that you don't take responsibility for your actions and that you may not be responsible with company assets or finances. It is the little things that can make a big difference when jobs are hard to find. Take positive steps to resolve your debt problems and you will appear to be proactive which is a sign of good charcter.
 
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Ya know, everyone is making bankruptcy out to be this be-all-end-all-your-life-is-over decision. Sometimes it's unavoidable (like you're already behind on your bills and your wife gets laid off TWICE in 6 months and you're making a measily $6.65 at a theme park). That was two years ago, and since then my credit is actually BETTER than it was before I filed. Before I had about 6 deragatories on my report and maybe ONE good thing b/c I could barely afford to meet the payments on my utility bills. Now, the only negative on there is the bankruptcy (which will stick around for a while). This was all BEFORE I started flight training, too. Since the bankruptcy, I've had my car blow up on me, but I was able to get a decent used car loan at an okay intrest rate. I also have gotten student loans to cover flight training at montly rates that I can handle. I have two credit cards with VERY LOW limits. If I get into trouble, I can pay them off quickly, and they're only used in emergencies anyway.

Point is, bankruptcy MAY be a viable option. I would still TRY to go it the other route, but don't make yourself sick or negligect your family.

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I know a few people that went te Bankruptcy direction and were very happy with the outcome, and still happy a few years down the road. Can you go into the difference bwteen the forms of bankruptcy for everyone? thanks
 
I belive there are two main types;Chap 7 (or 11) and Chap 13. Chapter 7 is complete bankruptcy, basically wiping the slate clean and starting from scratch. Chap 13 is more of a reorganization of your debt. A bankruptcy judge will work out a payment plan of your debts and you will work towards getting them paid off. You can rebuild your credit with both. I have actually heard some that say Chpa 7 is better because it will aloow you to start building your credit right away where as the othe option you will have the bankruptcy debt with for a number of months that it takes you to pay it off.

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What is a chapter 7 bankruptcy?

Under the federal bankruptcy statute, a discharge is a release of the debtor from personal liability for certain specified types of debts. In other words, the debtor is no longer required by law to pay any debts that are discharged. The discharge operates as a permanent order directed to the creditors of the debtor that they refrain from taking any form of collection action on discharged debts, including legal action and communications with the debtor, such as telephone calls, letters, and personal contacts. Although a debtor is relieved of personal liability for all debts that are discharged, a valid lien (i.e., a charge upon specific property to secure payment of a debt) that has not been avoided (i.e., made unenforceable) in the bankruptcy case will remain after the bankruptcy case. Therefore, a secured creditor may enforce the lien to recover the property secured by the lien.

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What is chapter 13 bankruptcy?

In a chapter 13 case you file a plan showing how you will pay off some of your past-due and current debts over a period of three to five years. The most important thing about a chapter 13 case is that it will allow you to keep valuable property, like your home or car, even if you are behind on payments or you have equity not covered by your exemptions. Your payments on these secured debts will generally be your regular monthly payments plus some extra amount if you need to get caught up because you are behind when you file

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Taken From Here:

remove--http://www.bankruptcyinformation.com/faq.htm--remove





I am sure that I missed something, but I believe that is a very BASIC overview of the types available.
 
The only thing that really has us "tied" to Jacksonville is our lease agreement. It would cost us $3300 to break the lease and they require a 60 day notice.

TL
 
In some states, if you have to move more than a certain distance for a job, they have to let you out of the lease with no obligations. Might be something to look into....
 
JEP hit the bankruptcies right on the head. Although, the laws do vary from state to state. It's extremely easy here in Florida though. Just ask all the people the either work for or used to work for Disney. Statistically, one of them has probably declared either Ch 7 or Ch 13. We went with Ch 7 for the re-building credit reason, that and there was no way on my paycheck alone we could make the Ch 13 payments.
 
Don't file for bankruptcy!!!!!

A future employer will view a bankruptcy as a "cop out". It shows your disregard for commitment and financial obligation. It tells a future employer that you are self serving and only interested in personal protection, making them think twice about hiring you.

Be responsible!!!
 
I found out that I can request a 12 month forbearance on my student loans. I may just go that route. At least, that will give me time to get settled into something and relieve the urgency. It will give me time to plan and execute!

Thank you so much for all the info!

I feel much better about the situation now.

Sincerely,

TL
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I'd go the forbearance route. That sounds like your best option.

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A future employer will view a bankruptcy as a "cop out". It shows your disregard for commitment and financial obligation. It tells a future employer that you are self serving and only interested in personal protection, making them think twice about hiring you.

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Okay, not sure about this one. Is this an opinion or do you have first or second hand knowledge of this. SWA checked my credit before they hired me on the ramp, and I had a bankruptcy. They never even asked any questions about it. If you file bankruptcy, and then go right back into bad credit issues, they may have some concerns. However, there are cases where bankruptcy is the ONLY way out for people who have just had a run of bad luck. Any decent employer should realize this and at least ASK about your situation before making a final decision.
 
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P.S. Does anyone teach school during the year and flight instruct during the summer months. I am thinking about this option. What do you think?

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That's what I'm doing now. I was teaching in NC and moved to Florida to fly. Originally, I was flying full time but when the industry went into the crapper I decided to go back to teaching. You can fly more than one would think during the year. I'm at an early start school so I can leave at 2:30 and be flying by 3. Also, if you have instrument students you can often convince them to fly in the evenings since it doesn't have to be daylight. Now that my school is out for the summer I can fly much more until August.

It was difficult for me to come back to teaching. Although I love being in the classroom, I really wanted to follow my dreams and fly full time. However, it was a VERY wise decision to go back to teaching. I was able to pay for some of my ratings as I went and my wife and I have saved enough for a healthy down payment on a house while paying all of our credit card bills along the way. Sometimes it stinks working 12+ hour days 7 days a week, but looking back I'm happy I made the decision to return to the classroom.
 
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Is this an opinion or do you have first or second hand knowledge of this

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Just my opinion, thats all.
 
clrd4takeoff -

If you need to keep flying for your own sanity, keep it in check, and especially look for economical places to do training. You don't need a new 172SP to get your ratings.

Get out there and pound the pavement for work. The best job opportunities aren't advertised in the sunday classifieds or on monster.com. Get as many jobs as you can and still keep your sanity, and be able to spend time with your family. Set a budget for flying, don't exceed that, and take everything else and put it towards bills, one bill at a time.

I LOVE Dave Ramsey! I suggest you listen to his program. His ideas are excellent and his program is inspiring - the people who call in with incredible debt loads he is just so positive with. Give yourself an 'emergency' cushion - a good amount of cash for those rainy days - car repairs, unexpected medical bills, broken refrigerator, etc. Keep this cushion at the same level, and use EVERYTHING else to pay bills. Do his 'debt snowball', paying off your highest interest rate loan first and then apply that minimum payment + the previous amount to the next debt, and so on - the further you get into the snowball, the more rapidly your debt will disappear.

I'm still struggling to finish up student loans, and get rid of a couple of cards. I will pay my car off next weekend.
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I want to head into flying with zero debt and substantial savings. For me, CFI'ing will actually HELP this as I am continuing to work full time.

Good luck and keep your chin up! If you can't listen on a local station, you can get an internet broadcast of Dave Ramsey at www.daveramsey.com You've got to get mad and say "enough" - the sooner you get rid of the debt the sooner you can reclaim your life.

Sarah
 
I have two issues with Dave Ramsey.

One is that paying of your mortgage early, or debt with a rate lower then around 6% will be the best way to go in the long-term. You are better off investing the money you'd use to pay down that debt in the stock market at an average rate of 11% rate of return since 1929. Moreover, you will lose the huge tax advantage of have a mortgage. So pay down those high interest credit cards and then spend wisely, but leave that mortgage alone.

Second, you don't need to use his "mutual fund" partners. If you don't know or don't care to know anything about stocks the only fund you need is called Vanguard 500.
 
I listen to Dave Ramsey fairly often, I don't agree with absolutely 100% of what he says, but overall, I think he provides some good sound advice.

Suze Ormann, on the other hand, I'd like to strangle at times.
 
True, on a whole lot of things Ramsey has the right idea. And realistically, most people would just spend their extra money rather then invest it. For those people paying down all their low interest debt is a good idea.
 
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