![]() |
All About Debt Relief |
|
|
Hide That Car! Fighting the Repo Man
Vehicle repossession may appear justified in circumstances where a person is generally being irresponsible and otherwise able to meet this financial obligation. However, what about that hardworking guy or gal who paid their automobile note dutifully for three years, and missed one payment? Why should their car be repossessed? Basically, the lender owns your car until it is paid in full. Therefore, one missed payment is considered a breech of your agreement. It gets worse. After they take your car, they can sue you for what is called deficiency. Deficiency is any amount still owed on your contract AFTER your lessor sells your repossessed vehicle at--let's say--an auction. Often they sell the car for less than they expected you to pay to get your car back. What do they care if they are going to sue you for the difference anyway? I'll explain it this way: Imagine paying $18,000 for a vehicle over time with maybe $5,000 left before the car is yours. You lose your job and fall behind a couple of months with the payments. Your vehicle gets repossessed. Now you must pay triple the amount of the two months you were delinquent because of added repossession and storage costs. You cannot come up with the money, so your car is sold at an auction for $1,500. The worst part: you are sued for the remaining balance of $3,500, plus the repo costs! What is the point of this? If they are going to sue you for the unpaid balance anyway, why not just give you the opportunity to pay the bill? Wouldn't they come out better in the long run? Duh! The repo man doesn't care that your finances are in limbo because you have recently divorced or that your employer informed you in the eleventh hour that you were being laid-off. The repo man only cares about the fees that they will receive once they recover your vehicle. So, you must protect yourself. Here's an old fashion remedy for fighting the Repo man: If you know you will be able to come up with the money needed to pay your outstanding car note in a couple of months or so, switch cars with a friend until you get your finances straight. Better yet, HIDE IT in someone else's garage for a while. Make sure it is someone you did not list as a reference on the credit application because the Repo man will definitely check their addresses in search of your vehicle. I know a guy who switched cars with his brother who lived in a different state. Within three months, he straighten out his finances and paid his three month delinquent car note to date, plus late fees. He saved himself the high cost of repossession and storage fees, deficiency costs, and the embarrassment of having his car repossessed (neighbors do watch). The trick is to stay a step ahead of the repo man. Know their moves before they strike. This will help you prevent repossession, and the expense that goes along with it. A. M. Harris is the author of The Broke Man's Survival Guide: 50 Clever Strategies to Use When You Are Unemployed, Underpaid or Just Dead Broke and Can't Pay Your Bills. For more information visit http://www.brokemansurvivalguide.com or call 1-888-340-4433.
MORE RESOURCES:
Debt-Relief - Google News |
RELATED ARTICLES
Learn The Five Key Debt Reduction Steps You Must Take Immediately! Step 1. The purpose of this first step is to bring you back to reality. Corporate Debt Management - Perspective on the Why Entrepreneurs have a tough time in their formative years. They try too many things to get a foothold on this competitive business climate, and that too they try them too soon. Should You Join a CCCS - Consumer Credit Counseling Service for Debt Relief and Financial Freedom? Do You Need to Join a CCCS - Consumer Credit Counseling Service?Are you in a "debt hell"? If you are unsure, ask yourself these questions:Do you have bill collectors calling you and home and at work, leaving annoying messages?Are you afraid to open the door in the morning because you are afraid that the Sheriff's office has left a court goody for you?When the phone rings, do you get butterflies in your stomach?If you answer the phone and it's a bill collector, when they ask for you, do you reply "He/She's not in right now", or even just pick up the phone and then hang it up without saying who is on the other end?Do you go for days on end without checking the mail because there are only bills there?When you finally do get the mail, do you just throw it in some random location for weeks or even months without ever opening it?Are you paying one credit card company's bill with another credit card?Are your credit cards riddled with over the credit limit and late fees?Do you only receive high interest credit card offers?Have you applied for credit cards or car loans and been told that you had been denied because of bad credit?Does your credit report show a lot of late payments, charge-offs, bad debt, 30 60 90 or 120 days late entries listed?Does filing bankruptcy seem like your only way out? If you related to at least two of those items, chances are you would benefit from a consumer credit counseling service.Believe me, I know what you are going through. How To Avoid Medical Collections With medical collections costing doctors millions upon millions of dollars in unpaid bills and collection fees, many people have just one question: Who are these people who are trying to stiff the doctors who delivered them from great physical pain (or the flu, hypochondria, not-so-white-teeth, or a nose that didn't look enough like Brad Pitt's)?Well, I'm here to tell you who these people are, or at least some of them.They're me. Going Bankrupt in the World It all starts by defaulting on an obligation: Money owed to creditors or to suppliers is not paid on time, interest payments due on bank loans or on corporate bonds issued to the public are withheld. It may be a temporary problem - or a permanent one. What Does A Bankruptcy Trustee Do? Once you file bankruptcy a court appointed bankruptcy trustee will oversee your case. The new law also requires that the bankruptcy petitioner to take a debtor education course and receive credit counseling from a U. The ONE Law You Should Be Breaking There is a law all smart people break.Parkinson's law. What is Debt Settlement? Debt settlement is the process of negotiating with your creditors so that you are able to pay off a certain percentage of the debt amount that you owe. A debt settlement company will use different types of strategies to negotiate with your creditors so that you get the best outcome. Fast Track Out of Debt You go to the mail box and scan - a couple fliers (nah), your magazine subscription (yes!) and bills (groan). Every month the bills show up and as you sigh and take out your check book you wonder if you will ever be free. Bankruptcy, Is It A Way Out Negotiations with creditors have failed. Repossession is imminent and foreclosure proceedings have begun. Bankruptcy: What You Need to Know Personal bankruptcy is a legal way to give people with overwhelming debt a fresh financial start. Many people do not realize that there are five types of bankruptcy options available under the U. Currency Trading Fee Concept Troubles with Global Economy; Do you see future problems with our global economic plans to make a one world system, where free trade and prosperity can rein the world over. Many world leaders have agreed a one-world system is best for all. Five Major Ways to Save Money There are two main roads to improving your personal finances: increasing income, and cutting costs.Increasing income is the harder road to travel. Debt and Financial Optimism in the UK Continue With £1.3 trillion pounds worth of debt in the UK, Scotland's Citizens Advice Bureau has welcomed a new Bill to regulate lenders and protect borrowers from creating un-repayable levels of personal debt. Debt Validation: Do you have to pay ? It happens all the time. Debt collectors try to collect on debts that consumers have no knowledge of or never owed in the first place. Dealing with Thingitis Debt is quickly becoming an epidemic in America. However, through the past 50 years, America has not seen such large domestic growth. Do It Yourself Debt Relief With mounting bills and unforeseen hardships, you may be considering some form of debt relief. There are many options to help you, but the best may actually be you helping yourself. Bankruptcy As An Option If your financial worries are preventing you from sleeping at night, then you may have considered bankruptcy in hope of a little relief. Usually, consumers only turn to bankruptcy if there is no other hope for them to get out of debt. Your Secret Weapon... A Budget For many, the word 'budget' immediately sends shivers down the spine. Why in the world would anyone need or want to budget their money?First off, budgeting your money does NOT mean you are poor, or are in need of financial assistance. Help for the Single Mother with Managing Credit and Debt Today's consumers benefit drastically from the usefulness of credit. Credit cards are especially useful for large purchases, emergency situations, making reservations, identification, and protection from fraud. |
| home | site map |
| tons-of-articles.com © 2006 |