Best way of handling large amounts of credit card debt
HI Terry – Due to mental health issues with one child and physical health issues with another, we now are experiencing a large amount of credit card debt (six figures – gulp!). I am 68 and my husband is 76 and we both are still very much full time employed. My husband and I both have term life insurance polices we don’t need and I have tried to sell them off to life insurance settlement companies to generate some cash to pay down our debt. Because we both are in good health, these companies have either offered zero cash or less than 10 cents on the dollar. We already have a HELOC, that is closed to being maxed out. I get numerous offers from lending companies for debt consolidation. Are these companies legit? Would you recommend going that route? Neither one of us has hopes of retiring for at least 5 years.
Terry Says
No, these companies are neither legit nor helpful. Immediately contact the National Foundation for Credit Counseling at 800-388-2227. That will connect you directly to the nearest local member agency. You can trust them. They are typically free or very low cost. And they will work with your creditors to deal with lower repayments, lower interest rates, and re-aging your debt.
We just finished taping a podcast with the head of the NFCC, recognizing that seniors are the fastest growing category of debtors. It will show up on www.FriendsTalkMoney.org in a week or two. But don’t delay in contacting them directly now.
Bankruptcy might be your best option — depending on the laws of your state, which may or may not protect your home. So you need good, legal and local advice.
