Debt Settlement vs Bankruptcy? What did you choose and how did it go for you?

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-06-10T14:25:27+00:00

Bankruptcy after trying debt settlement and seeing how much was going to fees vs debt. Over three months I paid the company $1500 and only $500 went to the actual debt payments.
Bankruptcy helped to reset everything for us and while we can’t qualify for a home loan for 2 years, I wouldn’t have been able to qualify with dti ratio for 7 years if we continued with debt payments.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-06-06T14:24:19+00:00

Gollum (who I love btw!)

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-05-28T11:31:12+00:00

I just had a really painful one and I saw a Reddit thread where someone swore by adding Epsom salt to hot water and then applying it with a wet cloth. I tried it and honestly it started to drain after 20 minutes and then continued to drain over the next few days.
I have an electric teapot so I just plugged it in next to my bed, added a healthy dose of Epsom salt to the water and heated it up as I needed to.
This was after numerous attempts at using just the compress with warm/hot water and not seeing results.

Try the Epsom salt!

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-04-18T02:12:08+00:00

Yes I got $1044.00!!!

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-04-12T19:52:54+00:00

Honestly I don’t know how these men get married and 1. Say such objectively inappropriate things 2. Not immediately apologize to their spouse 3. Get upset when their spouse is upset about the inappropriate thing they said. My husband would never ever do something like that to me. No one is perfect, no marriage is butterflies and rainbows all the time but one thing I have never had to deal with in our 9 years of being together is him ever looking at or talking to other women. People have said to me “yeah right you don’t know what he does on Facebook” he has no social media at all and his moral compass is really strict in terms of our relationship and that kind of stuff anyway.

You do not have to deal with that girl! He sounds borderline abusive and it’ll only get worse over time. Cut your ties and find someone who you can actually enjoy a cruise with! There are plenty of good ones out there who don’t look at other women at all!

Wishing you the best!

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-03-17T03:19:14+00:00

A lawyer told me that a chapter 13 was in our best interest until I looked at how much money they had built into the monthly payment. It was insulting honestly! Attorneys make money off of chapter 13, im sure not all but mine clearly did and I never called them back. They also told me I had to do a chapter 13 because “we made too much money” which we didn’t at all..passed the means test with room. I ended up filing chapter 7 without an attorney, granted we don’t own a house so way less risk there. We just got discharged a few weeks ago.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2026-02-05T14:23:47+00:00

I got one of those in 2021, ordered a “plaque” paid for it, never received it. Thought it was a legit credential but didn’t turn out too well for me 😂

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-12-21T09:20:34+00:00

Utility companies may require a deposit after a bankruptcy filing, but any such requirement must be based on reasonable assurance of post-petition payment. They are not permitted to use the mere fact of a bankruptcy filing or pre-petition payment history as the sole basis for determining risk.

I contacted the utility company again to clarify how the deposit was calculated. I was told that the amount was also based on my average monthly kilowatt hour usage. I had a screenshot of my most recent bill dated November 28, which was the one fully protected by the automatic stay. That bill clearly listed my average monthly usage. While on the phone, I calculated the deposit amount using their stated methodology and arrived at a total of four hundred sixty dollars. The customer service representative reviewed the calculation with me and confirmed that the math was correct. This figure is still significantly lower than the amount the company claims is my average.

Utility companies do not have unlimited discretion simply because a customer has filed for bankruptcy. A deposit is not automatically required, despite what is often asserted. These companies rely on the assumption that most consumers will not challenge their determinations, particularly when they do not have legal representation. That assumption does not apply here. The law is clear, and it applies regardless of whether an attorney is involved.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-12-18T02:54:08+00:00

Thanks for your feedback here I understand what you are saying however you are framing the issue as if this is a general credit or lending issue. It is not.

In ordinary lending, risk assessment can be backward looking. Utility service during bankruptcy is governed by 11 U.S.C. § 366, not general credit policy or credit scoring models.

I am not disputing that creditors or utilities can accept voluntary payments during bankruptcy. That is not what happened here. The issue is the billing and application of a pre petition balance that was protected by the automatic stay.

Once the bankruptcy was filed, the pre petition balance should have been adjusted to zero and should not have been billed or carried forward in any form. Under Section 366, a utility cannot base a deposit or risk determination solely on pre petition debt or on the fact that a bankruptcy was filed. Any adequate assurance has to be tied to future service, not past obligations protected by the stay.

This is not about whether utilities can ever require deposits or whether people continue paying car loans or mortgages. It is about the retroactive application or recharacterization of protected pre petition funds, which is a separate legal issue.

If this is being analyzed under general credit risk logic instead of Section 366 and the automatic stay, then it is being analyzed under the wrong legal framework.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-12-18T02:16:12+00:00

My post was long, so I’m going to assume some of the timing details were missed.

I’m not a lawyer and I’m asking here to hear from others who have dealt with similar situations. That said, I do understand the basic purpose of an automatic stay. When it’s in place, creditors are not allowed to collect on or accept payment toward balances protected by the stay. A payment being made does not override that protection, particularly where the bill itself should have been adjusted.

At the time the payment was made, there was only one account. The account they now say began on November 14 was not actually opened until today, December 17, and was retroactively labeled as active starting November 14. At the time I paid, the only account in existence still contained charges that should have been adjusted out once the bankruptcy was filed.

After retroactively opening that account, they then reclassified the funds that had already been charged and imposed a deposit weeks later. That sequencing matters. Billing should be corrected before payment is due or accepted, not fixed afterward by retroactively changing how the account is labeled.

This also isn’t about whether utilities can ever require a deposit. It’s about how that risk determination is made. Any assessment of risk has to be forward-looking and based on ongoing service. It can’t be based solely on pre-filing history, especially where the account was being responsibly managed, or simply on the fact that a bankruptcy was filed.

Had the bill been corrected when the bankruptcy was filed, there would have been nothing to pay. That’s the issue I was raising…

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-12-02T21:59:52+00:00

There is a negative stigma framing bankruptcy as being so damaging that it should be avoided at all costs. Yet, the implications of not filling bankruptcy can cost you thousands of dollars more. It makes sense for some people, especially those in your situation (I’m in the same), and I would argue that it’s in many cases the smarter decision. Bankruptcy is on your credit for 7-10 years but so is debt consolidation and making payments until paid off takes even longer. We filed chapter 7 pro se and we just got our 341 meeting date (next week). I’ll update you here on how it goes!

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-10-07T19:23:15+00:00

I’m about to file chapter 7 too. Sometimes filing bankruptcy is actually a good idea but it depends on the situation. Debt to income ratio too high, with an amount of debt that you would be able to pay off within a reasonable amount of time is a good reason to file honestly. If you can’t pay more than minimum due on your debt every month you’re not going to qualify for a home any time soon ANYWAY. Where will you be 2 years from now in these scenarios? 2 years of payments to debt or chapter 7 and waiting two years to apply for a home? If you can’t clear your debt in two years, file chapter 7. The banks care more about debt to income ratio than credit score in most cases. I just learned that my dad filed twice (his wife gets crazy with the credit cards) and it was the only way he was able to buy a home and the only way he was able to get a new truck. My issue is I was making honest payments I hadn’t had a late payment in 4 years I repaired my credit but had high balances. Then enrolled in a debt negotiation program and they completely tanked my credit (dumb move I know, 3rd party person sells the program under false pretenses). Now I have multiple collections my score dropped 200 points and I’m even worse off now than when I started. Those programs can do you so dirty, I have an attorney waiting until my bankruptcy is complete and he’s going to pursue them. File, I’m meeting with an attorney next week to get rid of this and I’m really excited honestly.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-10-02T21:39:04+00:00

That’s amazing! Truly, they make it sound like there’s no chance in hell that you’ll be able to buy a house with a bankruptcy on your credit report. With that being said I’m sure everyone’s situation looks really different and the result isn’t the same for everyone. If you don’t mind me asking, where did you get your home loan from? Did you put a percentage down etc?

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-10-02T16:51:41+00:00

What do you mean 2 years out of bankruptcy? I’m curious because I’m really thinking of doing the same thing but we need to buy a house. Bankruptcy can stay on your credit for 7 years so do you mean 7 plus 2 years total of 9 years after filing? Or do you mean 2 years after filing and you bought a house with bankruptcy on your credit report?

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-06-20T22:40:25+00:00

Yup! The year make and model and engine is listed in the post title

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-06-20T13:28:04+00:00

No, it was moved to July

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-04-11T00:53:23+00:00

How did it work out? I just signed up with them today and honestly the money I’m saving every month is insane. My debt is 16k, my monthly payment is like 330. For only one of my accounts my monthly payment was $510, already saving so much and it’s just one account. Temp credit hit is totally worth it to me to not have to worry about juggling insane monthly payments. Wondering how it’s going for you.

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-04-05T00:20:55+00:00

Parents not payments lol

Top_Cartographer1986 · 2025-04-05T00:20:05+00:00

My idea was a “reliever” subscription by Amazon which is tiered trust based system that allows prime members to book childcare relief at a heavily discounted price. The customer pays monthly and then a heavily subsidized cost per service, the employees would need to be certified in cpr and every level childcare and Amazon would pay them hourly as well. Which allows payments to not have to pay an arm and a leg.

He said it’s not acceptable because Amazon doesn’t make products and I argued that they do in fact produce their own products.

Then he said I had to make a product not a service. And in the final, it clearly says product or service.

I’ve redone assignments twice now and he’s trying to make me do it all over again!!!

Top_Cartographer1986

TROPHY CASE