If OP is extremely disciplined this isn't totally necessary. I'd pay it off slowly (min payments only) and park the excess in a high-yield savings account in the meantime paying 4-5% interest.

In the hectic times after my divorce and relocating, new bank accounts, I missed payments for the first time in my life. I was more concerned with with the penalties for not paying anything. I called up and they refunded most of my penalties. Not sure what it did to my credit score.

Usually when I switch bank accounts, I leave the old one open with some money in it for a while so I can make sure I got everything. I also maintain a document with all my bills and account numbers and how/when they are paid.

That mortgage is way too high for that income level. Assuming you have had that for more than a year you are probably financing like 600-650k depending on rate and escrow and down payment. That suggests you financed 5-6x your annual salary in house.

It might not sound like fun but downsizing to a smaller house is probably a strong option especially if you have some equity in it that you can use to pay bills.

You also own the car free and clear. You can get a loan on that at a much lower rate and pay off the cc debt. That should get you some more affordable payments.

Bankruptcy at your income level isn’t going to get you much relief. Just a 5 year repayment plan that is still pretty onerous. You aren’t going to just wipe out that debt for free.

Your mortgage is too much. You're at over 40% DTI just with the mortgage alone (when you factor in HOA you're at 40.7%). 61% of your take home is going to the mortgage! Your wife probably needs to make at least $30k/year to get into a more healthy range for just the mortgage (32-34% DTI), add in utilities and other stuff and she probably needs to be more like $50k/year.

The only reason I'm really focused on that is because things will be harder after bankruptcy. You won't be able to turn to credit or loans to bridge gaps. If you don't fix the problem, you could very well find yourself right back into the same situation you are now, except without the ability to stretch things out with credit and try to carry as long as possible.

You need to evaluate your son and his medical issues. What costs might still be coming (direct medical bills, items not covered by insurance needed around the house to help him, time off to care for him, etc) and come up with a really good estimate (as best as you can, no one can see the future) to understand what the next months and year or two might have in store for you.

You need to evaluate your wife's earning potential in a couple situations; partial caring for your son, fully recovered and back to work full time, etc. Then you need to come up with a budget and see how your situation could fit.

Look at this whole picture. Look at a couple road maps out of this, even if you pull the bankruptcy lever. You don't want to fall into a trap where 18 months later and you're back in a hole.

200 point drop from 2 late payments?

I’m financially conservative most of the time. When it comes to vehicles, I get what I want at the start and keep vehicles a looong time. Yes, you’re just starting out, and you do not want to finance a lot….but…you’ll be throwing good money after bad (getting a random car) because in the not too distant future you’re going to want that truck…so get it now. You’ll be happier.

Where I live in the states, lots of Dodge 1500s for sale …2018-2020 with 30k ish miles for $35-38k. Pay $10k and finance the rest for 2-3 years…buy an extended warranty just in case.

Buying a slightly used car saves $$ on taxes and insurance and registration. If your grades are good from college you might save on insurance.

My understanding bankruptcy is still a federal process, not local or state bearing. Especially when you have to go to a “federal” court to finalize it. Granted local attorneys do it. 99% sure you’re going to have to file jointly unless you’re filing you’re taxes differently.

Would definitely talk to a pro! And stop looking for credit cards, it’s only going to bury you more.

Right most banks do... infact most my cards or loans send a reminder that the payment is coming out before the due date and after its gone through. I also have a seperate email account thats strictly for bills so i don't even have to sort through them in my primary email.

Yep, this is local lawyer not Reddit territory.

One little difference or minor law change in your local Jurisdiction can be the difference between say you just wrecking your credit or you losing your house. Best to talk to a professional.

Texas.

In this particular case, not really. Admiral shares usually have lower expenses, and this is technically true, as VMRXX has an expense ratio of 0.10% vs. VMFXX's 0.11%. However, within VMRXX, it used to have Investor shares (VMMXX) with an ER of 0.16%. That was phased out a few years ago.

This is all dependent on your state whether or not you can file alone or must file jointly(community property states normally force joint filing). Your state laws would also dictate how much home equity is exempt; some states have unlimited homestead protections while in others creditors can go after all but 15-25k of your homes value.

With 80k of debt you should get a consultation with a local lawyer who can tell you the specifics for your state.

Tell them you had Covid.

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Thanks for the comment, this is really good advice. I’ve never put myself in debt so this is something I’ve been thinking hard about. Of course I really want it but this is a big decision and I’m so hesitant solely because I hate the idea of taking such a big loan on a depreciating asset. I’d even have the same cold feet on a mortgage. Because of my mindset, the toys I wanna buy would be from a “play fund” I plan on having that I’d buy out in cash.

I’d like to ask your further input; I have about $10k in my bank currently and I found a car I’d consider. It’s listed for $19.5k but I really wouldn’t pay more than $16k and I’d be haggling the seller so I’d take a loan less than $10k to purchase it, which is more up my alley for less anxiety on my finances.

I will need a car very shortly, this vehicle was what I was not exactly wanting to go with solely because it’s a 2014, about 170k km and realistically is in my budget but my biggest concern is ending up in a money pit vehicle that costs me both time and money; more emphasis on the time from the burden of having to get it fixed.

With being realistic with my budget for a vehicle, but my concern about being used what kind of feedback do you got for me?

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It's crazy that PNC offers a 4% HYSA in a handful of markets and not nationally.

yea it’s pretty insane to check on your accounts so little that you didn’t notice your credit card went unpaid for 2 months. if you got fraudulent charges unless they were for a huge amount you’d probably never notice.

I use sofi, it's 4% but requires direct deposit setup from your employer. If you don't want that, ally bank, discover is alright at 3.6% I believe. CDs have higher rates but harder to pull out money typically. Smaller banks might have slightly higher rates but might not be as reliable as bigger ones.

I use the autopay from each credit card website to have them get the full payment from my bank. I feel like they would hound me if there was an issue getting their payment from the bank. When I hear of people setting up payments from their bank it always struck me as more worrisome. I don't truly know if it is and would be curious if anyone knows the actual answer.

I lasted for about a month with PNC after they acquired BBVA. Didn't like anything about them. Rates are pretty bad with them as well.

You don't need a truck today, stop trying to talk yourself into it.

Buy a car you can afford. Based on the info you gave, you can't afford any of the options listed.

My bank contacts me like 15 different ways how the F. do you miss something like that? Are people just not opting in to notifications because "ugh, they are so annoyingh!" these days???

Haha, I did the same thing a week ago. Moved everything from PNC and giving SoFi a try (4%). Pretty mad at myself for keeping my money at PNC as long as I did.

Never hurts to call them and ask nice