There may come a point when you’re unable to pay your credit card bills. Even the minimum payment has become too much for you to handle. As stressful as it may be, you need to consider all your options for moving forward.
On the surface, it sounds like a good idea to simply ignore your credit card bills. While this may work at first, you should expect your credit card company to take action.
To start, they’ll send you letters and call you to see what’s going on. As time passes, don’t be surprised if collection activity becomes more aggressive, even bordering on illegal at times.
Other things that can happen include:
- The lender reports you to the credit bureaus: This will damage your credit score, thus making it difficult to secure another credit card or loan in the future.
- Higher rate, late fees: In addition to interest tacked onto your balance, your credit card company can also impose late fees.
- Legal action: It takes a while for this to happen, but your credit card company could take action to place a lien on your property or garnish your wages.
It’s a mistake to assume you can simply avoid your credit card debt until it goes away.
Rather than do this, learn more about your options for eliminating your debt once and for all. For example, a Chapter 7 bankruptcy filing can help you eliminate your credit card debt. Just the same, Chapter 13 bankruptcy can help you reorganize your debt.
Even when you feel like you’re out of options, there are things you can do to regain control of your finances.