ZT: 0% Balance Credit Cards coming due...can't pay full balance...need advice

http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/messageview.php?catid=52&threadid=823823


Date Posted: Apr/17/2008 3:35 PM
Rating: +6

Not to be cruel, but I love stories like these. It is the reason why the CC companies continue to give me free money. All it takes is one instance such as yours to make more profit for the CC company than the combined loss from 10 properly done AOR's.




Date Posted: Apr/17/2008 3:07 PM
Rating: -2

SUMMARY: I have $58,000 in debt from law school at 3%, which I dont have to pay til, 2009. I also have about $24,000 in credit card debt at 0%. I don't have this money and it is due in 6 weeks. I am currently looking (like crazy) for a job as an associate attorney but have no way of knowing when I will actually get hired. I'm looking to minimize the damage. I already know its a bad situation.


I am a long time reader of fatwallet.com and have put myself in a bad situation and need some advice. I'm the first to admit I put myself in this situation in the first place but I'm focused on reducing the damage by moving the money. I'll elaborate:

I went to law school and graduated in 2006 with about $55,000 in debt, locked in at 3%. Since then I moved to California, rented an apartment with a roommate passed the bar on the first try, and began looking for work. Throughout this entire period, I had about $50,000 in 0% money, which I was keeping in an interest account earning an average of about 4.5%.

After passing the bar, I expected that full time work would be fairly easy to obtain. Unfortunately, it has not been. I have done my best to find short term work, freelance work, and making some money on side projects, but I've still be spending above my current means. At best I was breaking even. About a year and a half ago, I met my wife. During the year and a half before we got married, I spent a lot of money traveling to see her and on the general wooing process. So, long story short, I began loaning myself money out of the balance transfer money, under the theory that everything would work out once I'm a full time attorney (I expect to make $65,000 to $100,000 once I'm working). The problem is here is how I currently sit:

Law school loans $58,000 @ 3% (Don't have to make payments til Jan 2009)
Credit cards @ 0% $24,000 (due in 6 weeks, new rate will be 22%)

So obviously, I can wait on the law loans for a while, but I need a plan quickly for the credit cards. What do you think the chances are that I'll be able to move this to other 0% offers right now? I have several other cards with total available credit in the $50,000 range. I also have a few other cards with smaller limits as well. I should also note that about a year ago I had a deliquincy on my credit report. It was a bad deal, technically my fault, but it was over a total $15 which I never received a bill for after moving.

Sorry if this is a bit rambling overall. I included a summary at the beginning to try to make up for it.


__________________

Date Posted: Apr/17/2008 3:53 PM
Rating: -1

Update:

Don't feel too sorry for me. I ended up making about $5000 off of the App-O-Rama. If I can do this right, the credit card company isn't going to make a dime off of it. (The new one might, if I get stuck paying 3%) As advised I'm going to start checking on the offers on my other cards.

It has been a challenge as an attorney to not find permanent work in a year and a half, but there were many factors at play.
1) I moved to a new area.
2) It is a highly sought after location.
3) The local market is tight.
4) The economy sucks.
5) I got average grades at an above average but not exceptional law school.
6) For much of the time, my mental focus was more on pursuing my wife than finding work.
7) I was also traveling a lot to see her.

However, now that we're married, we're both working our asses off at finding full time jobs. She's an attorney as well, but just graduated. So you can see why I was willing to believe that everything would soon be fine. In all likelyhood, within a year, we'll have a combined household income of at least $150,000. But you can also see why I need to get this debt offloaded--and quickly.

Anyway, thanks for your comments, even the smug and snarky ones.