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In case you’ve been living on Jupiter for the last 30 days, here’s a reminder – Halloween is tomorrow.
I typically don’t dress up for this holiday (something about being over the age of 12 – the official last year a person can dress up without feeling silly), but my brother is throwing a Halloween party and I’m fairly certain he would kick me out of my own home if I didn’t at least smudge on some black eyeliner.
I don’t have the desire to spring for a $75 polyester outfit with less fabric than a string bikini so I’m wearing something I already own…
*Cue Rocky theme song*
My kickboxing gear from college.
This will serve dual purposes:
1.) A free costume.
2.) A deterrent for potential toilet paperists who are angry over the lousy Chiclet gum selection since we can’t afford the good candy this year.
Have a good and safe holiday.
I’m reminded that Christmas is just around the corner.
Perhaps it’s because my husband is blaring Amy Grant’s ‘Tender Tennessee Christmas’ in the other room.
No. I’m not joking.
His happy-go-lucky Pollyanna ‘I love the earth and all holidays’ attitude is for the most part a wonderful thing…
But thoughts of Christmas in October simply make me (and anyone within 50 yards of his subwoofer) suicidal.
I have to give him credit… it is an important reminder that we have to start thinking about Christmas gifts now. Since I’m broke and can’t spend 50 bucks on the last remaining blockbuster gift card in the Vons checkout on December 24th, I’ve got to make my plan of action. I’ve got to start taking left over change from payphones, digging through the neighbor’s garbage for recyclables, or compiling leftover foil for a life sized foil ball. Because if there’s one thing I’ve learned in my 29 years on this earth, it’s the fact that everyone needs a foil ball the size of a Honda.
No?
Hmm. Well, what was the best low (or preferably) no cost gift you ever received?
Last year my siblings and I compiled letters from us to our parents telling them how much we appreciated and loved them and had them printed and bound at Shutterfly.com (Walmart.com also provides the same photo type books we used). But I’m out of ideas! Help!
Southern California residents have suffered through some pretty hefty water rate hikes. It seems like every bill has a brand spanking new price tag.
Residents in our area are often sent letters asking to reduce water use. Thanks to ‘Navy showers’, reduction in roommates, and landscaping akin to the dust bowl, we personally cut our water usage by 50%. According to water company reports, our fellow residents cut their water usage by nearly 10%.
I received a letter titled ‘Water Rate Increase’ with my bill. The water company is raising rates in part because of… get this…
Lower water sales.
Um. Didn’t you ask me to stop using water? And now I have to pay more because I actually stopped using it?
Our 50% reduction in water usage resulted in… a bill that was 5.5% less than last month’s.
Striking oil in California won’t make you rich – but striking water just might.
It’s times like these that you just have to laugh.
My husband and I sat down with sharpened pencils and sketched out a plan of action. We would have sketched this out earlier but we just received the unemployment numbers on Friday.
The big question…
How long can we hold on without my husband’s job?
Our initial numbers (without unemployment benefits) put us at 8 weeks. Our reductions to debt paired with our cash in savings and unemployment benefits put us at…
9 months.
Had this happened before we had taken control… had this happened before we made the decision to live below our means and reduce debt… we would have made it through a month, maybe two tops.
But now, we’re looking at 9 safe months. 9 months to find a job before things get hairy. Sure we won’t make progress other than minimums and we certainly won’t eat anything other than Ramen noodles but, we can hold on.
I have four words to say –
Thank. You. Dave. Ramsey.
I learned a lot about the Making Home Affordable/Home Affordable Modification Program (HAMP) in my 2 hour call with Bank of America.
1 – If you are hoping for a huge change… this is not the answer. Not all changes are permanent and/or large. Some adjustments may last as little as 3 months.
2 – Loan modifications are not quick. If you can’t wait the standard 9 weeks for the review of your file and another 5-9 weeks for paperwork processing, you don’t have enough time and you may want to move forward with other options like a short sale or foreclosure.
3 – Give an accurate listing of all your expenses. Don’t exaggerate but don’t minimize either. Have a good understanding of exactly how much you are paying. Keep this information available for when you call the bank.
4 – You will be rejected if you have recently made large purchases or if your credit score is low. You shouldn’t be making large purchases anyway so I can’t say as if I blame the banks for this stipulation.
5 – If you have a second mortgage with another lender, they will likely require you to get approved for the Making Home Affordable Program on your first loan before they will consider a change to your second mortgage. If you are accepted for the program on your first loan, it’s easy to submit the same paperwork for your second mortgage.
6 – This should not be your only option. It’s worth a try, but don’t fool yourself into thinking this will solve your problems.
7 – If your home is not a Fannie Mae/Freddie Mac mortgage, this program does not apply to you… BUT some lenders are still willing to modify other types of loans.
8 – This is a voluntary program. No one HAS to help you. Sure it’s good business sense to lessen foreclosures on the banks part, but if you are a problem child, don’t expect any help. Banks don’t want to keep you as a customer anyway. Be kind, courteous, and polite even if you are frustrated.
According to the bank’s calculations, my husband and I qualify. We are now in the first 9 week waiting period while they review our files. We have stellar credit scores and we haven’t made large purchases in a long time. We are good candidates for an interest rate reduction from the over 7% it is currently, down to the market rates of 5-6%.
Do I really think it will really happen?
No. But it’s worth a try.
If you are a resident of a ‘Daylight Savings’ state, this week is your last week to enjoy daylight after you get home from work.
I’ve been embracing this as my last chance to go running after work and have been pushing harder than usual. My poor dogs are tuckered out. I have a feeling they are ready to welcome winter as a reprieve from my shouts of ‘Run!’
Enjoy these last two days of ‘summer’.
Go for a walk. Let the sun kiss your face.
Make sure you give summer a proper goodbye.
I really appreciate the advice my readers gave about health insurance. I’m going to research the COBRA assistance program (I didn’t even know it existed). I also didn’t think about getting health coverage through his school. After some research, I discovered his school does cover basic medical services, radiology, laboratory services, injections, prescriptions, physical therapy, and limited urgent care at a greatly reduced cost (we pay a fee with his tuition for this service but have never used it). A hearty THANK YOU for the ideas!!!
We should be able to qualify for the COBRA assistance based on the requirements of the layoff date and I’m hoping to be able to combine this coverage with the reduced cost services at his school.
If in the crazy event, the COBRA assisted coverage doesn’t work out. We’ll have to go without. As I said before, the money simply isn’t there – but we are fortunate to have at least something through his school. Yes, my husband could possibly suffer an illness not covered by the student hospital that could cost thousands of dollars but if we chose to pay for health insurance and skip our mortgage payments we would SURELY default on our loan and our home value is 135K less than we could sell it for.
Possible health problem OR definite mortgage default and foreclosure resulting in a 135K shortfall.
At this time…it’s an easy decision.
Thank you Gina for the reminder. The student hospital will really help us in the event something happens. And thank you to those who opened my eyes about the COBRA assistance. I had no idea!!
About This Site
My Debt
- Original Debt: $38,495.86
- Added Debt: $1,781.50
- Total Debt: $40,277.36
- Paid: $36,084.36
- Remaining: $4,193.00
- Broken Down
- Auto Loan 1: $0.00
- Credit Card: $0.00
- Student Loan: $4,193.00
- Auto Loan 2: $0.00
- Vet Loan: $0.00
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