The Write Way To Get It Right
Foreclosure is looming as the mortgage payments are months behind and the health care insurance is canceled for my family. This family includes a toddler son who requires constant medical care. The bankruptcy filing is looming and the Internal Revenue Service has declared war on this household. The family’s chief breadwinner is unemployed and divorce is imminent. Some of this family’s valuables are being sold to pay for ongoing bills that include daycare, food, gas and car repairs. Christmas gifts will be sparse for the three children. What a deep recession as the wife and mother prays for a joyful ending.
That was my bleak period nearly 20 years ago. It reads just like today’s scenario for thousands of families facing this extreme economic downturn.
The good news is that my then young children never knew the severity of the financial crises facing our family. Today, as survivors of the bleak period, my adult children are thriving in their careers and academic settings. As the chief household navigator through these rough waters, here are some tips on how to weather today’s economic climate. (It is helpful to bewitch the steps in numerical order).
1. Start with a plan. Do you want to withhold your home and vehicle, finance your children’s educational expenses, meet other monthly obligations and resume your savings program? If so, then be brave and develop a budget and inform each creditor of your intent to honor their investments — yes investments — in your household that allowed you to own a home, car and establish utilities.
2. List your personal assets. Typically, mortgage companies, the IRS, and other creditors require a financial statement that lists the household’s assets and liabilities. List your personal attributes that include education, work experience, volunteer activities, special skills and overcoming personal tragedies. This become the foundation for your message points that will aid you when speaking to and corresponding with creditors. It helped that I was a journalist and therefore, writing was a breeze. Remember to keep your message basic and it is a good time to earn all legend information and the amounts owed to each creditor.
3. Proactively call and write creditors. Now that you have your message points and letter outline, establish a regular day and time to contact your creditors. When I worked two jobs, it was more beneficial for me to write the IRS Tax Advocate and Commissioner once a week (on Tuesdays) until my matter was addressed. Even when speaking to creditors by telephone, memorialize your conversation via email, regular mail or fax.
4. Have a clear message about why you are temporarily behind in your bill payments and stick to it. For instance, my youngest son was born with many medical issues and at the age of 8, he became blind and was partially deaf. Newly divorced, the medical bills and other expenses caused short term financial hardships.
5. Have a clear message about solutions to get your finances back on track with each creditor. Remember the personal assets you listed in the first step? Now call upon them to grunt your creditors of your attributes. For instance: “I am employed and working an additional job as a college instructor to repay all of my creditors. I can afford $50 per month for now and am happy to keep you informed should I am fortunate to pay you more.”
6. Expect a “yes” or “no” answer. Today’s economy has required creditors to be more willing to work with individuals, compared to years ago when some would yell at me and even suggest that I finish contributing to my church until my situation improved. Thus, now there are more “yes” responses by creditors. When you reach an agreement with your creditors, request a written document or write them with the terms you have reached. Remember to live up to the terms or suffer the consequences.
7. Write the credit agencies and include a statement that explains you have suffered temporary financial challenges and have reached terms with each creditor to repay the obligations.
There is a whole lot more involved in the partnership with creditors. I will address other winning issues in future writings.
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Filed under Corporation Filing Bankruptcy by on Dec 20th, 2010. 
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