I’m not quite sure how your first sentence relates to the OP’s situation. At the time they got the line of credit (if I’m reading correctly) they had income sufficient to pay it. The income went away through no fault of their own; were they somehow supposed to know this would happen when they took out the loan?
Last year I bought a house with the expectation that I can afford the mortgage payments and my other expenses out of my pension. If that pension were to stop would I be a “deadbeat” because I should have anticipated the loss of income?
We have crossed the Scotiabank off the list of banks we’ll do business with, after they lied to my mom over her dead ex-husband’s debts, trying to trick her into paying things she wasn’t legally obligated to pay (I realize that sounds like hyperbole, but it really was that bad), and then they screwed us over for an early-mortgage-payout penalty (normally they waive a penalty if you re-mortgage with them). It’s not just the one branch.
I’ll let you get back to calling each other cunts now.
She and the “huz” took out secured loans on a house that was not worth the value of the loans and compounded that by adding unsecured debt. This while she was working for or co-owning a company that was clearly insolvent. Which part of this ever seems like a good idea?
No one is here, including, the OP, is denying that some bad financial decisions were made. However, your insinuation that spending funds on either basic living expenses or cultivating a proper appearance for a job interview is somehow dishonest and deadbeat shows an appalling lack of priorities. At least the OP and her husband are trying to get new jobs, a task that, three years ago, would not be nearly as difficult as it is today. Yes, they got in over their heads, but saying that they were somehow irresponsible in looking for a new job or taking on freelance work to bring some money into the household is not only stupid and illogical, it really is kicking them when they’re down.
Probably a phone call would have been nice, but as far as a laps of ethics goes, I’d say it ranks as a lighter offence than hiring people when you know there is a good chance you can’t pay them, especially as it envolves havng them quit a stable job. Was this made clear to the potential employees? I’d say these people took a much bigger hit.
I don’t understand all the hatred to carolstream who is just stating the truth. I am sorry but I am not too sympathetic towards the OP, who may be the nicest most genuine person in the world but these stories piss me off.
i’m sorry you didn’t get your new skirt, if you soil the old one bring a stain stick to take care of it, or go to goodwill and pick up a gently used skirt for five bucks.
Is it bad luck that your mortgages, line of credit and credit cards are about to blow but wtf were you thinking when you were amassing this staggering debtload?
Again, it’s up to you to make sure you have money in the bank. SOunds like you are not taking the situation seriously enough. You want love and hugs go to MPSIMS but you should expect a little heat over this situation in the pit.
For me, it was telling the OP she should be repaying debts instead of trying to get freelance work or apply for job. Ideally, the OP should do BOTH, but really, if the OP doesn’t get a job she can’t pay her debts, and maintaining a certain level of appearance is necessary to getting through an interview.
I think they were thinking they’d both have jobs, or at least one of them would have a job, and if they lost a job they’d get another in short order. A LOT of people ran up similar debt, and probably for worse reasons than trying to invest in a business. To my mind, the mistakes they made were, first of all, acquiring more debt than they could handle (VERY common among entrepreneurs) and NOT pulling out soon enough. If they had pulled out of the failing venture sooner fewer people would have been hurt and less money lost by all involved, including their bank/credit union and other debtors. ALSO a very common scenario with people attempting to start a small business, which is why trying to start a small business can easily end in bankruptcy.
On the other hand, shitting on their heads at this point is NOT going to help them. What do people want, for them to be homeless? On welfare? They need to get jobs again. That is what is best for everyone - them, their creditors, and society at large.
I agree - people in their position should probably be shopping at Goodwill, not Needless Markup. If they really are completely unable to repay their debts they SHOULD declare bankruptcy and start rebuilding instead of dragging things on and on. They may need to downsize where they live (i.e. lose their house) and unburden themselves of many material items. They may even need to look into foodstamps or other forms of public assistance. The sooner they take the painful, drastic measures necessary, the sooner they reprioritize, the sooner they’ll get back on their feet. Not that that will happen quickly in any case - you don’t climb back from such a hole overnight.
If you read the thread Sleeps With Butterflies linked to, you’d see that I didn’t want to hire these people because I knew we didn’t have the funds nailed down. My business partners (including the CEO, who was the majority partner) wouldn’t have it. Should I have sneaked out and called the employees to say “Don’t take the job!”? In hindsight, probably. But I went along with the vote that was made on that question, trying to prevent drama and distractions so we could keep working on making the company profitable.
Broomstick, sorry for the credit union/bank confusion. It actually is a credit union, but I frequently shorten it to “bank” when I’m talking about it because I’m a lazy deadbeat.
Where do you think I was planning to go? I haven’t shopped retail for quite some time now. The bigger problem was being unable to print my portfolio. It’s a necessity for a job interview as a graphic designer. Pulling out the old version and describing the changes won’t really cut it. I need to show not only that I do great work, but that I also know how to present it to its greatest advantage. That’s an expectation of the job.
Yes. Until we got involved in the business, we were always very careful to not take on more debt than we could handle. Modest house, one car, etc. When we talked with our financial advisor (yes we had one) about doing this investment, he told us to prepare to be in significant debt for quite a while. He looked at the numbers and thought we could handle it, so he told us to go for it. Obviously things didn’t go well, but we didn’t just stumble into it blindly thinking we’d end up rolling around in piles of money.
No, it never seemed like a good idea, but it did seem like a necessity given where we were at the time. Originally that line of credit was our overdraft protection (took it out a long time ago) just in case. We never had to use it till the business situation came up.
That really sucks, moonstarsun. I hope you and your husband find jobs soon. Banks can be real assholes sometimes … when you’re back in black again, take your business elsewhere, and tell 'em why.
I understand completely how you end up in this situation. My boyfriend may have to go out of business because we spent half of two nights ago on the side of the road waiting for MY AAA to tow him, and he probably can’t afford the repairs. Honestly, his business should have gone under months ago, but I’ve propped it up with my good credit to the tune of ten grand or so, and frankly I don’t know what to do. I feel it’s a good business, but he keeps talking about liquidating because should you throw good money after bad? and I just don’t know. Luckily, I have a good solid job and can support the both of us, including some of his debts, but… I sent him some information on ARC loans, but frankly I just don’t know what to do. My basic instinct is to encourage him to keep going, but what if that’s terrible advice?
I agree with this completely. I do have sympathy for the OP, but the lesson to take away from this is not that banks are evil and government is evil - the lesson is that you have to protect yourselves and make good choices.
It seems the person who knows the business best (your bf) is suggesting liquidation, so why would you argue that. At the very least, because you are giving him money, you need to be demanding to see what his business plan is and whether it realistically has any chance of turning the company profitable. If you are unable to remove yourself from the situation enough because he is your bf, have someone else look at it who would be qualified to judge its merits (this is probably a good idea regardless…think lawyers, financial advisers, other successful entrepreneurs, exc.). Whatever you do, do not just keep lending him money just because you feel you can afford it.
Addendum to the above: That wasn’t meant necessarily to be snatchy, but with two mortgages and an additional line of credit and no really clear account of how all this borrowed money was spent, it sounds like you and your husband could use the services of good financial educator/credit counselor. Some credit counselors only do repayment workouts, but I think you should try to find one that would give you some guidance about career choices and budgeting as well.