I've been unemployed for 8 mo,can't find work anywhere. What happens when you can no longer pay your bills?

Question

Had a well paying job but the market imploded and I was laid off and can no longer find work in my field(16 years). I didn't take unemployment benefits because I thought I could muddle through with some side projects till a new job came along-which has not worked out. I've tried applying for every position from professional to sales and even fast food and department stores won't hire me (over-qualified). My house is going into foreclosure, my car will be repo'ed, all of my credit cards are maxed out and things seem hopeless. Has anyone else been in a similiar situation and what did you do to get out? Is my life ruined?

Answer 1

First off look in your local phone book and apply for emergency assistance, there are funds available for people in your situation. Secondly, talk to your creditors, do not avoid them. If you come clean about your situation they will work with you and may even have programs of their own that might help. Ultimately you will buy some time to get back on track.Also try an employment agency, they are usually pretty quick with finding you work. It also helps to be positive and have a strong belief that you will get through this. Best of luck!

Answer 2

A lot of people are in this position right now, though they may not admit it.....
I was in this situation myself. I actually put my house on the market and sold it. With the equity, I paid off most of my bills and found a rental. I hated doing it, but I did not get any deeper in debt.
My attitude for renting has changed drastically. I do not have to pay real estate tax, maintenance and upkeep, and renters insurance is cheaper than home owners insurance. My rent is cheaper than my mortgage payments, and I am able to pay my bills much easier. By putting your home on the market with a realtor, it will stop a foreclosure for a few months. At least if you sell it, you will have your equity and that helps. If they foreclose on it, you will lose any equity you have built up and it really messes up your credit.
By staying in your situation, you are messing up your credit rating and rebuilding your life will be much harder. I would get out while the getting is good, before too much damage is done.
Is there any way you could start your own business with the experience you have gained on your previous job? I am doing that now.
Also, you do not need to put all your education and job experience on a job application. I eliminated my college education and was hired at a convenience store, after being told by a different one that I was over-qualified. I took over a 50% cut in pay, but any money coming in is better than no money. I am hoping it will hold me over until my business takes off.
It is possible to call your creditors and explain your hardship. Some will work with you.
Another possibility is bankruptcy, with a Chapter 13, you would be able to keep your assets and pay back any arrearages over time. It would stop harrassment calls from creditors. You would have to have some kind of income coming in so that they can see you have the ability to pay. If that is not an option, maybe a Chapter 7, but you would lose your assets.
Most of all, don't give up hope. Sometimes, that is all we have. Your life is disrupted, not ruined. Everyone hits bumps in the road, some bumps are bigger than others, but with a little work we can get over them.
I wish you the best of luck with your situation.

Answer 3

It sounds like you are in a very difficult situation. Perhaps you could still file for your unemployment benefits. I don't know if they pay backpay but it would be worth a try. You can buy some time if you file bankruptcy, but without income, that may not work for you. I would try for any job I could think of to pay the bills. You could deliver pizza's and make about $12/hr with tips. There are a lot of people with good backgrounds who deliver pizza's part time. It isn't glamorous, but would help pay the bills. If you could get some regular money coming in, you may still be able to work something out with your creditors. I don't know whether you have done this or not, but have you sat down and taken a hard look at your personal assets (qualifications) and tried to match them to something other than your previous field? There are some local Chamber of Commerce offices who will help you to find retraining for other positions. Your local State Employment Office would also know about this type of program. You may also check into driving a truck. There are a lot of people from very different backgrounds who have gotten into professional driving. The pay insn't that great starting out, but you can make an above average income after training. The down side is that you will be on the road and away from home for much of the time, but you will be making a good living. There are carriers who will train you with a work committment of usually 1 year. Some community colleges and vocational schools also offer training. I have heard of some states who will pay for your training at no cost to those who are unemployed and finding it difficult to get a job. Again, your local employment office could help direct you. If it is something you are interested there are several websites which list qualifications and where you can check out various companies and what the lifestyle involves. www.classadrivers.com, www.truck.net, www.truckdriver.com are three that I have seen. There are several others, but I don't know their web addresses.

Answer 4

Your life is not ruined. However, you need to take care of your expenses. Either refinance your house or consolidate all of your bills. If you have protection on your credit cards you can freeze your payments for up to a year or longer depending on your credit card company. Most companies charge a fee between 30-40 cents per $100. Having a foreclosure and repo and credit card mess will ruin your credit report like no other. Speak with a credit consulidating firm. They will be able to help. In the mean time a little prayer might help find out a job!

Answer 5

Wow. First of all I am sorry to hear of your rut. I've been there and its no fun. The job markets in some areas are awful...take that into consideration.
A few things you could do are (and I hate to say this) redo your resume. Have more than one infact. If you're applying at places like Best Buy simmer it down a bit. Don't look so experienced. Its lousy that we have to do things like that but companies worry that if you have too much experience they will lose you faster.
I'm not sure where you are but try staffing agencies. Lots of them have permanant positions. Appleone is amazing (appleone.com) and so is Kelly services.
Borrowing money from friends and family isn't fun but if you are able, I suggest doing so.
Whatever you do try to keep your spirits up. Its a New Year...things are bound to get better.

Answer 6

(1)Try to find a full-time (in the meantime) job to gain valuable experience and pay your bills.

(2) Call the Department of Labor- you may still be able to collect unemployment benefits.

(3) Put your house up for sale before it is foreclosed.

(4) Your life is NOT ruined. Have hope and reach out to local organizations for assistance. Your situation is only temporary and you WILL get through it.

Answer 7

Have you looked for jobs overseas? It pays great and they are looking for experienced people every where. Lots of people don’t do this because they don’t want to uproot there family. Well when you consider the alternative uprooting the family dose not seem to bad. Think we are the only country that uses a credit report so take off get a job and save up for the future. What ever you owe on your credit cards and things will still be there but wait till you have a lump sum you can pay while you are living overseas and call up the creditor and find out how much they are willing to come down if you pay it off. Example: If you owe $10,000 on a credit card and they handed it over to a collection agency call them up a few years down the road and they will more then likely settle with you. They might ask for $5000 depending on how much of it was just in interest. Once you pay everything off your credit score will probably be poor but more then likely you will be between poor and fair or just fair after you pay everything off. If you like it overseas keep working overseas plenty of people have been in that position that I have met and turned to overseas employment to get a job. A good number of them ended up paying off there bills and retiring after just 10 to 15 years. I know many people who are in there thirties and retired.

If you make $40,000 a year in the U.S. you could be looking at making $90,000 - $120,000 overseas depending on your skill level and background. You get a pretty good tax break if you live and work overseas as well. I think the First $80,000 you make is nontaxable. You still pay into social security and things like that but that is $80,000 non taxable that helps a lot especially if you are at that $80,000 a year mark. Now if you are making $120,000 a year if it is a job that can be taken a year at a time work for a year then take a year off then work for another year. If you work the job half of one year and half of the other you only have $60,000 on one year and $60,000 earned the next year so each year you fall into the nontaxable category. This really pays off when you get up to the $160,000 a year price range. If you get a good reputation you can end up making that much within a few years.

Remember though the days of being loyal to a company are over. Work with one company and get experience and after six months or so start looking for more money from someone ells. Companies do not promote from within like they used to so if you feel you are ready for a higher position look to change jobs. You will notice that people who are hired new will come in making more then people that probably have been with the company for a number of years. If that is how the companies are going to do things take advantage of it and Jump around. It dose not seem to bother companies that I have worked for that my resume shows different employers. Just try not to break any contracts if you can. Now if you are making $70,000 a year and get offered a $140,000 a year job take the higher paying job. My experience of working overseas has been great. By changing companies I make 400% more money then I did just 5 years ago and I started out at a pretty decent salary. If you are not used to making over $100,000 a year I recommend once you start making about $100,000 - $120,000 you buy a few suits and a good pen.

Answer 8

First of all - it depends what state you are from? You should find the local One Stop or Workforce Center in your area. They can help you check to see how much you have in Unemployment wages and they can also show you how to apply. They will then work to qualify you for any assistance available to you and you can ask them to meet a job developer who is tasked with marketing you to potential employers as well as updateing your resume and applications. Good Luck!!!

Answer 9

My brother who was a big shot in electronics design couldn't find a job "over qualified" he took a job for $8/hr at the store selling Tvs and modified his resume so he no longer was over qualified. He finally found something in another city.
Its not ruined its stressed enormously.

Answer 10

Apply for unemployment before these things take effect. You are entitled to payment based on the years of service. You deserve to be paid.