What to do?

[Temporaryname]

So, this is obviously not my real name, but I'm so embarassed to be in this situation. I'm a single mom, and while I make enough money to meet my basic needs, I haven't been able to get ahead. This month I had some huge unexpected expenses, that I won't go into, they are already paid and I have no ability to "unpay them". Suffice it to say that I don't know that I'll have enough money to get through and I hope that someone has a creative solution for me.

Here's my situation.

I don't have any credit cards with money left on them.

I have $1868 in the bank

I have $1785 in rent payment that was due at the beginning of the month, which I haven't paid yet.

I have a $25 bill on my 7th grade daughter's pay as you go phone bill, which I feel like I need to pay by Tuesday or she'll have no service, and thus no phone/texting capability when she's home alone after school -- this would make me very nervous, as you can probably imagine. We're new in our area, and she doesn't have any neighbors she knows who she could go to for emergency help.

I have a $75 car insurance payment where they will terminate my insurance if I don't pay it on by the 26th.

Half tank of gas in the car.

No food in the fridge (we had a multiday power outage and lost everything a week ago, and I haven't stocked up since)

I have paychecks coming on the last of month, which would let me get basically back on track, as in I could pay March's rent and have food money. I have a few other bills due in March like electricity that might have to wait for the 15th.

I got a prepaid credit card application in the mail (I hate credit), which if I got it and was approved I could probably get back on track by the 1st of the month (e.g. pay March's rent out of the first and not the 15th).

I have a couple of things I might be able to sell on Craigslist, but not sure how to go about it.

So, what would you do? What would you pay first? Would you pay a partial rent payment with an IOU? How would you sequence things?

I'm afraid of being evicted, but I don't know if that's a real threat with being one month late.

 

[RitaE]

Call your Landlord, explain the situation, and ask if you can make a reduced payment now ($800 or so) and then at your next paycheck catch-up

Buy food

Fill up the car

get the smallest card you can for the pre-paid phone and forbid her to use it except for an emergency.

Then comb through that budget like crazy. Sell anything that isn't vital and isn't nailed down. Put up a flyer in the grocery store offering yourself and your daughter as weekend babysitter or whatever. Get caught up and then get a couple of hundred into a savings account and start adding to it whenever possible, even $5 at a time.

From now on nothing gets paid before

Housing
Utilities
Food
Transportation and Childcare
Communication

nothing

 

[Gr8t Fan]

I agree with RitaE's advice. Call your landlord and them know what's going on. Eviction takes way longer than 30 days, but explaining the problem and making a partial payment should buy you some time. Good luck and god bless!

 

[mjkacmom]

Pay the car insurance! I once missed a payment (must've lost the bill), and the day after my coverage lapsed, my agent called me and said oops, sorry, but you now need to pay the highest rate, and because of the laws here, no other insurance company would touch us, because our coverage lapsed. This little mistake cost me about $1000.

I agree with talking to your landlord - from what I hear, eviction is a long process.

 

[mjkacmom]

I live in a very high COL area, and your rent seems high to me. Can you find a cheaper place?

 

[Temporaryname]

I rent from a large company, and no way to reach them until Tuesday due to the holiday. Should I drop a check for partial payment into the box now, or wait until Tuesday to talk to them?

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

I would start by checking your state's eviction laws, just to educate yourself on the process and time line. It will either give you a little peace of mind while you buy some time until your next paycheck, or it will help your prioritize where you put your limited funds.

I would look up information on your energy company's website (or call) and ask if they have a policy for reimbursing food costs in the instance of power outages of that length. I've heard that some companies do, but I don't know how long of a process that is. If you have renter's insurance (which, if you don't, is usually pretty cheap and you should consider getting it once you get past this financial setback), you might be eligible for food reimbursement after a power outage.

Does your DD have money to pay the cell phone bill this time? She is in 7th grade and I personally don't feel she should help pay all the household bills, but this is her cell phone and maybe she can pay it on occasion. It will teach her some financial skills also.

I think in your situation I would:
-See what is on sale at the store and only buy what you need to get through the week. Oatmeal, rice, and beans are cheap and filling.
-Contact your landlord and explain the situation. See if you can work out a payment plan like paying half now and then half with your March rent in 2 weeks.
-Pay the car insurance so it doesn't lapse.
-Keep driving to an absolute minimum so you can buy as little gas as possible.
-Go to www.llnoe.com and register for free. Read up on the Dave Ramsey steps so that you can build an emergency fund and pay off your CC so you can prevent this situation from happening again in the future. I don't know what circumstances led to this, and I know it can happen to anyone, but it sounds like you are a few more setbacks away from ending up in an even more difficult and embarrassing situation.
-Look into a cheaper rent if at all possible. I used to live in NYC and I think your rent is quite high and cheaper options are probably available.

As for the card...it's so tempting, but I don't recommend you get it. My opinion for that comes from this sentence you wrote: "I don't have any credit cards with money left on them." I think if you get another credit card, you will come to rely on it as a back up and it will eventually get filled up like the others, which would end up digging a deeper hole.

In short, I don't think there are any creative solutions. I think it's just going to take some time to work it self out by keeping spending to a minimum and building up emergency funds and paying off your credit cards so you can free up those monthly payments.

Good luck to you.

 

[Temporaryname]

I live in a very high COL area, and your rent seems high to me. Can you find a cheaper place?

Not by the end of the month.

I live in a very high COL area, I could find a cheaper apartment, but not in this school district, nor as close to work. Putting my kid, who has been through a lot, through another school change, and another hour alone after school, is something I am very hesitant to do.

The difference in rent payment would likely mean about a year before I'd caught up with the moving costs.

Given all that, moving is a last resort from my point of view.

 

[mickey&minniealways]

Go to a local chuch. They may be able to help with some food. Forget pride you need take care of yourself and your daughter. Register with a church you might like to attend. Don't know if you are catholic but most catholic churches have an emergency fund for parish members for situations like yours. In our town we have something called warm homes which will make a one time fuel delivery. If your heating costs are included or part of your electricity an orginazation like that may help with some partial payments. Also if your daughter is not already getting it you may be eligable for low cost or free lunche at school. Some districts will even offer a breakfast to kids in school. I know ours does. This would help some. There is also a group out of a local community center that has a food coop here. You can go and get some free groceries mostly fresh. They only ask that you give some services hours somewhere in the community. You fill out the paperwork. It is on a trust basis that you did the work. Many towns have this ask at the town hall. There is alot of assistance out there you just have to go looking sometimes. Hope this helps. Let us know how you make out. Meanwhile I am sending a hug and will say a few prayers along with a little pixie dust.

 

[Temporaryname]

As far as credit cards, I didn't have one for all of my adult life. However, with this move (precipitated by the end of my marriage), I got one for emergencies. With no credit the limit was low, and I've used it a few times and payed it back 100%. Ths month I will only pay the minimum, but in April I should be able to pay it back 100%. Just wanted to be clear that this isn't a situation where I'm underwater due to huge credit card debt.

As far as my daughter she's 11, having skipped a grade, so doesn't have a way to earn money. I could give her an allowance, and then take it back as phone payment, which is a good idea, but won't really result in a change in my bottom line.

 

[Mrs. Sojourner]

Are you a member of a church? If so, I would talk to your Pastor. If not, I might still go to a local church for help. I would hope that they would make an effort to help you. Praying for you.

 

[SunnieRN]

Talk to your landlord Tuesday. Tell him/her what happened in general terms, ask for an extension for whatever portion you can't afford to pay Tuesday.

I agree with your daughter needing a tool for communication, but is testing already part of the plan, or is it an extra cost? If it is extra, drop it, until you are on your feet again.

Groceries are a necessity. They also save you money over going out to eat. Gas is needed to get to work, to pay for groceries, housing, etc,

I agree that your rent is VERY high! Is there another option available to you? It is too stressful to be 'house poor'. Is the 2800 your total income, or for just part of the month?

Another site, in addition to llnoe, is Savingadvice.com. It is also forums with tons of great information!

I was a single parent to two, and I understand how hard things can get sometimes!

 

[Temporaryname]

Go to a local chuch. They may be able to help with some food. Forget pride you need take care of yourself and your daughter. Register with a church you might like to attend. Don't know if you are catholic but most catholic churches have an emergency fund for parish members for situations like yours. In our town we have something called warm homes which will make a one time fuel delivery. If your heating costs are included or part of your electricity an orginazation like that may help with some partial payments. Also if your daughter is not already getting it you may be eligable for low cost or free lunche at school. Some districts will even offer a breakfast to kids in school. I know ours does. This would help some. There is also a group out of a local community center that has a food coop here. You can go and get some free groceries mostly fresh. They only ask that you give some services hours somewhere in the community. You fill out the paperwork. It is on a trust basis that you did the work. Many towns have this ask at the town hall. There is alot of assistance out there you just have to go looking sometimes. Hope this helps. Let us know how you make out. Meanwhile I am sending a hug and will say a few prayers along with a little pixie dust.

A few things.

I am not Christian, and would feel not comfortable implying that I would become a church member.

She does get breakfast and lunch at school. Not through FARMs, I pay, but before I knew about the expense I put $100 in her account, so she can eat both of those meals at school until March when things get better. That's only 5 days of school because of Monday's holiday.

The issue isn't really that I don't make enough money. My salary is decent. It's that the process of separating/moving/etc . . ate up any cushion in regular savings (ironically, my kid has things like a college fund, but they're tied up so I can't touch them), and I thought I'd be able to rebuild easily. However, before that happened, this unexpected expense that is my ex's fault came up, and suddenly I'm stuck for this one month. Once March hits I can start saving and things will be OK. I'm convinced of it.

So, I don't feel good taking things like utilities assistance when there are families who need that money long term. I work in social services and can see how this is a temporary crisis, not the long term grinding poverty that many of the families I help face.

 

[manning]

Dave Ramsey!!!!!

 

[Where'sPiglet?]

Not by the end of the month.

I live in a very high COL area, I could find a cheaper apartment, but not in this school district, nor as close to work. Putting my kid, who has been through a lot, through another school change, and another hour alone after school, is something I am very hesitant to do.

The difference in rent payment would likely mean about a year before I'd caught up with the moving costs.

Given all that, moving is a last resort from my point of view.

Fair enough. A cheaper place is most likely not as safe and your DD would be home alone even more, so probably not an acceptable option then.

As far as credit cards, I didn't have one for all of my adult life. However, with this move (precipitated by the end of my marriage), I got one for emergencies. With no credit the limit was low, and I've used it a few times and payed it back 100%. Ths month I will only pay the minimum, but in April I should be able to pay it back 100%. Just wanted to be clear that this isn't a situation where I'm underwater due to huge credit card debt.

As far as my daughter she's 11, having skipped a grade, so doesn't have a way to earn money. I could give her an allowance, and then take it back as phone payment, which is a good idea, but won't really result in a change in my bottom line.

With this added information, then I probably would get the CC offered to you to bridge this gap. My advice in my previous post was based on limited information and some assumptions on my part. It sounds like you've had a rough time recently with some big life changes.

I threw the cell phone payment out there since some kids have a fairly large stash of money from things like birthday gifts and allowances, and if she had that, it could help you make it through this rough patch.

I don't post much on llnoe.com, but I do like to read there. I don't post much because I find it a little too gazelle for my taste. However, between that forum and this Budget Board, I get a lot of ideas and encouragement for stretching dollars.

 

[Mickeyflower]

The first thing is ALWAYS PAID before anything else is rent. Always keep a roof over your head.

Call your car insurance company and talk to them about splitting your payment up. I've been unemployed for over a year and I've had to call my ins. company a few time to explain the situation and they were more than happy to help me out. They even looked over my policy to see if they can reduce it in any way.

As for the gas, can you maybe call in a favor from some coworkers, and see if you can car pool to work temporarily until you are able to gas up? Selling stuff on Craigslist or Ebay may also help you get some gas/food money.

Have you thought about looking for a neighborhood food bank or church group that can maybe help you with food? Not anyone's first choice I know, but since you have a daughter, do what you need to do.

I agree with a previous post that you shoud get the lowest amount of minutes possible to avoid the phone geting cut off and tell your daughter that it is only for emerg. and you will add more minutes next month. It might be a good idea to get to know your neighbors and see if there is any babysitting or yard work she can do for them to earn a little extra phone minutes money. That is what we did for my nieces.

Good Luck!

 

[Temporaryname]

Talk to your landlord Tuesday. Tell him/her what happened in general terms, ask for an extension for whatever portion you can't afford to pay Tuesday.

I agree with your daughter needing a tool for communication, but is testing already part of the plan, or is it an extra cost? If it is extra, drop it, until you are on your feet again.

Groceries are a necessity. They also save you money over going out to eat. Gas is needed to get to work, to pay for groceries, housing, etc,

I agree that your rent is VERY high! Is there another option available to you? It is too stressful to be 'house poor'. Is the 2800 your total income, or for just part of the month?

Another site, in addition to llnoe, is Savingadvice.com. It is also forums with tons of great information!

I was a single parent to two, and I understand how hard things can get sometimes!

The pay as you go company on the phone has unlimited texting on all the plans, so she has that. I don't think I could turn it off and save it, but if we did her minutes would go up since she usually uses texts for all her communication with me (Mom, I'm home. Mom, what does it mean "complimentary angles", it's in my math homework etc . . . )

I don't work too far from home, so the gas I have should last, especially since I'm only working 5 of the next 10 days. I'm more worried about getting food than gas.

 

[tlbwriter]

Call your CC company and ask for a limit increase?

How long have you lived in your apartment? If you've been there a while and have been paying on time, there's a good chance they'll excuse one late payment.

 

[Marionnette]

So, this is obviously not my real name, but I'm so embarassed to be in this situation. I'm a single mom, and while I make enough money to meet my basic needs, I haven't been able to get ahead. This month I had some huge unexpected expenses, that I won't go into, they are already paid and I have no ability to "unpay them". Suffice it to say that I don't know that I'll have enough money to get through and I hope that someone has a creative solution for me.

Here's my situation.

I don't have any credit cards with money left on them.

I have $1868 in the bank

I have $1785 in rent payment that was due at the beginning of the month, which I haven't paid yet.

I have a $25 bill on my 7th grade daughter's pay as you go phone bill, which I feel like I need to pay by Tuesday or she'll have no service, and thus no phone/texting capability when she's home alone after school -- this would make me very nervous, as you can probably imagine. We're new in our area, and she doesn't have any neighbors she knows who she could go to for emergency help.

I have a $75 car insurance payment where they will terminate my insurance if I don't pay it on by the 26th.

Half tank of gas in the car.

No food in the fridge (we had a multiday power outage and lost everything a week ago, and I haven't stocked up since)

I have paychecks coming on the last of month, which would let me get basically back on track, as in I could pay March's rent and have food money. I have a few other bills due in March like electricity that might have to wait for the 15th.

I got a prepaid credit card application in the mail (I hate credit), which if I got it and was approved I could probably get back on track by the 1st of the month (e.g. pay March's rent out of the first and not the 15th).

I have a couple of things I might be able to sell on Craigslist, but not sure how to go about it.

So, what would you do? What would you pay first? Would you pay a partial rent payment with an IOU? How would you sequence things?

I'm afraid of being evicted, but I don't know if that's a real threat with being one month late.

I'm sorry that you're struggling. It's so hard to get ahead when you feel like you're spending all your energy just treading water.

The first thing that you do is contact your landlord. That should have been done as soon as you knew that you would not be able to pay February's rent on time. Water under the bridge now. Keep it in mind should this ever happen again. The landlord will be more understanding if he knows what is going on from the get go.

Offer to pay half of Feb.'s rent immediately and the balance plus fees plus March's rent by March 1st. A landlord would rather have something in his hands besides a promise to catch up. Stick to your word and pay him on time.
$900
Pay the insurance. You don't want them to drop you.
$75
And pay the phone bill for your daughter so that she has an emergency phone.
$25
Take $50 and buy groceries for the week. Groceries only! No cleaning products, no paper towels, no sodas or junk foods. Use everything in your pantry to make meals if you have to. Even if that means eating succotash and beans for a few dinners.

Fill the gas tank halfway when it gets close to E. Don't take the car anywhere except back and forth to work. Any errands should be run either on the way to work or on the return home. Look for someone to carpool with next week. Offer to drive them the following week, when you can afford gas.

Forget the prepaid credit card. That's not a credit card in the truest sense. It's a glorified debit card for people with bad credit. You need to fund it before you can use it. And for someone who is maxed out on her other credit cards, you absolutely do not need the headache of another card!

Even if you come out above water at the end of this, sell that stuff on Craigslist. Put the money in an emergency fund so that this doesn't happen again.

Best of luck to you. There are 9 more days left in the month. You can do it if you really tighten your belt!

 

[Temporaryname]

A few things.

I am not Christian, and would feel comfortable implying that I would become a church member..

Quoting myself because I wanted to be clear this is a typo. I am NOT comfortable going to churches and lying about my faith. Don't want anyone to think I'm this unethical!!!

I'll go back and edit.