| financial diff. due to full time college |
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barb27
New Member
Cash: $ 0.85
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Joined: 08 Apr 2006
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| financial diff. due to full time college |
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Hi...this is my first time posting here. I am seeking some advice about my financial siuation. I am currently attending college full time, and I am 40 yrs old, married with 3 children. I did not realize the extent to which my not working full time would affect our finances. We are having an extremely difficult time keeping up with our bills. We have about $10,000 in credit card debt, and all the other regular bills including a mortgage of $1200/mo. Is there any assistance out there for this type of situation? If not, then could someone assist me in how to manage this situation? We are currently 30 days overdue on our mortgage and i am stressing big time. I do not want to drop out of college...this is not an option!!! Any advice would be appreciated!! Thank you.
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Sat Apr 08, 2006 1:32 pm |
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rockhound
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Joined: 03 Feb 2006
Location: West Virginia
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| Choices |
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I'll never make it as a politician because I don't have any easy answers. In retrospect, it sounds like it would have been wise to plan ahead for going back to college by paying off the credit card debt, and experimenting with how to compensate for the loss of your full-time income. Although that's in the past, it may still come to that. Although I admire your spirit in drawing the line in the sand that dropping out of college is not an option, surely that would be preferable to losing your house or declaring bankruptcy. It may be that you will need to learn from this experience to pay off that debt, and take another run at college next year.
However, it might be possible to salvage the situation if you accept some drastic hardhip measures. All spending except for absolute bare living necessities must stop immediately. Bare necessities include the mortgage payment, utilities to take a shower every day and to run the refrigerator and stove, and enough food to subsist on 1500-2000 calories per day. As Coaster suggested, this must involve the kids, which may be hard, but will mean no iPods, no $60 jeans, no eating out, no cable/satellite TV. Cancel cell phones (unless that results in a cash penalty, otherwise just switch plans to the emergency-only 911 calls). Coaster's advice to cut back on expenses reflects Ben Franklin's strategy in Poor Richard's Almanac that "many small leaks will sink a large ship." After that, start selling things. It's early in the month, so you have time to post things on e-bay for a week, or plan a garage sale. Clean out the attic and basement of books, hub caps, knick knacks, jack stands, stereos, cameras, etc. These are only stopgap measures to get you through this month. Also, if you have more than one car, consider selling one, unless you are already down to low-value cars. If you have motorcycles (not used expressly for driving to work), ATV's, boats, and other toys, sell them and pay off the credit card balances.
For the longer term of the next few years, I would agree that it would make sense to refinance your mortgage to a 30-year fixed. This will result in paying more money in the long run, but will reduce your monthly payment. There is the hope that when you finish college in a few years and start working again, that you can then refinance back to a 15-year mortgage and get back to paying off the house. If you can't continue at a full-time job while school is in session, at least pick up a part time job at 10 or 20 hours a week. During the summer you can still work full-time.
My biggest target is usually the credit card balances, but unfortunately, it sounds as though you will just be surviving on the single income, and may not be able to reduce that debt until you go back to work. The best you can do is not add to the balance. With luck, you may be able to cut enough spending to find some extra money to pay extra on the credit cards. The $10,000 probably at 18-20% is killing you.
Good luck, and I wish you the strength to persevere.
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Sat Apr 08, 2006 4:53 pm |
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barb27
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Joined: 08 Apr 2006
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| thanks for advice |
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Yeah, I know i should have planned better, and i did try actually. We only had about $5000 cc debt before i started school, but it went up while i've been in school...i have one more year to go ( I am going for elementary education) I will be working full time starting Sept. 2007. We do have a 30 yr mort. but i live in NY--and we have really bad credit too. (My husband was laid off after we bought the house, and things have never really recovered since then) My kids don't have ipods or cell phones, and i have never bought a pair of jeans for more than $40, believe me, we don't splurge and we have no toys . We really can't afford to enjoy life, which is so frustrating and one of the reasons i am going to college..I don't want to live like this anymore!! We do have two cars, which is one area where we were already thinking about changing and probably will. THanks for your help, i guess i am just a terrible money manager. I know i need help with it. I am so sick of it. I will check out that website to see what that's all about. Thanks again.
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Sat Apr 08, 2006 8:22 pm |
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barb27
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Cash: $ 0.85
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Joined: 08 Apr 2006
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| another question |
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How can i change my user name? I tried to edit the profile, but it doesn't work? Do i need to re-register? 
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Sat Apr 08, 2006 8:29 pm |
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rockhound
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Location: West Virginia
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| Education |
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I agree with the long-term strategic goal of improving your position with education. I think education is nearly always a good investment. If you've really cut everything that can be cut out, then the choices are even more stark, but at least simpler to make a decision. I don't know how bad things are, but if you're nearing the point of foreclosure or credit card default rates, or have even thrown out the "B" word (bankruptcy) and you need cash or to cut expenses right now, then the major tactical choices to consider would seem to be:
1) sell your current house to pay off the mortgage and buy or rent something much cheaper until your financial situation improves;
2) take a year or semester off school to go back to work full time to get back in control of your financial situation;
3) get a loan (this is my least favorite option, since it seems like getting farther away from light at the end of the tunnel);
4) you and your husband can each try to pick up a part time job, in addition to any jobs currently being worked. if the kids are old enough, maybe they can be pressed into service, too.
Probably none of these options sound particularly palatable, but my favorite would be the "get extra work" one. My father left high school in the 10th grade, and when he was 40 got his GED and then got an Associates degree while working full time at Chrysler on the assembly line. He once told a professor that it was tough to handle going to school and working full time, and the professor just pointed out that it's tough all over, but that it's a character-building experience that will make you better. It wasn't a very sympathetic answer, but probably the most realistic one. Good luck!
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Sat Apr 08, 2006 10:49 pm |
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barb27
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Joined: 08 Apr 2006
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| not that bad yet |
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Well, things are not that bad yet...I just know we can't keep things going like this for long...not being able to pay the mortgage was a wake up call. My plan at this point is to call my credit union to see what options i have for the loan..i think i may be able to pay off the missed payment in installments over a year. Also, I do substitute teach on my one full day I have off, and I will be taking over someone's maternity leave for a month, so that will help. But that is all short term. We are going to sell our two vehicles and buy one, cutting our monthly payment and insurance, as well as gas. I am seriously thinking of getting a part time job at night at a motel desk or something so i can do my homework while i work. I am stressing out as it is with my work load and having a family, and with all the competition out there for teachers, i want to keep my GPA high. Working will most likely bring it down, which worries me. I am also taking 4 summer classes, so i can't work full time over summer---but definitely part time. Kids are great about this and do help out. ( I have been going to school part time and working my whole life---i need to get school over with, that is why i am going full time now, and this part of my education can not be completed part time!)
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Sun Apr 09, 2006 12:15 am |
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Stock Mama
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Joined: 06 Apr 2006
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Budgets are boring, but it may be vital to sit down with your DH and figure out exactly what your monthly income and expenses are. The whole family can get in on the conversation and help decide where you can cut and how to increase the family's income.
This sets a terrific example for your kids. They'll learn that if there's something you really, really want in life, you have to work for it and make some sacrifices for future gain.
Sacrifices may have to include putting that credit card in the bottom of your sock drawer. I know how easy it is to pull it out when there's something you want but you're not sure if you have the money for it right now. "I'm sure I'll have some later," you think and you go ahead and buy.
Will you be buying any more textbooks? Find online sources for them where you can buy them cheap. Do you need your old textbooks? If not, sell them back at the bookstore buybacks, or post flyers to see if you can sell them directly to someone who needs them (if you can sell them for more than you'd get at the buyback, but less than someone would pay for them used, you should be able to find a buyer).
Part-time work is an option, if it doesn't interfere with your school work. Are there opportunities to tutor kids in your area? That would not only bring in extra income, it would give you resume-building experience. Look around for other kid-related or education-related part-time work. Or, as you say, the motel night clerk job would at least allow you time to work on your homework. Look around campus, too, for work opportunities. Many of them go to work study students, but there may be other jobs as well. Businesses near the campus, too, often allow flexible schedules because they employ students.
I teach part-time at a community college while I work on a graduate degree (I'm also employed on campus as a research associate, which covers tuition, so I'm not in so deep a financial crunch as you are). I see many of my students juggling work, family, and school. Some are single parents, and so long as they're willing to work for me, I'm willing to be flexible for them when it comes to deadlines on projects and homework. One woman I had in class is my age, a single mom with multiple health problems, and she just learned to read a couple of years ago. She dreams of going to law school, or becoming a legal assistant. Now there's guts.
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Wed Apr 12, 2006 5:12 am |
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