Posted on: April 15, 2009 by Matt
Happy Tax Day everyone! I hope that everyone was able to get their taxes out already or is at least able to get them in the mail today!
I have noted that I have already finished mine and am really glad that I do not have to worry about them today. Now I plan on sitting back and relaxing a little bit today and watching some news coverage on MSNBC regarding the crazy right wing tea-bagging parties.
I happen to particularly enjoy the clips from the Rachel Maddow Show coverage but I suppose that’s just my liberal point of view.
Posted on: March 25, 2009 by Matt
With all the economic stimulus talk buzzing around lately I thought I would take a minute and put my one little wish out there with all the other ideas. While I believe there are a lot of great areas the stimulus package will address the one that I do not believe is listed that I would (selfishly) add would be a forgiveness or rehabilitation program for privatized student loans.
I am sure that I am not the only person struggling with paying off old student loans that fell into bad standing. Federal loan programs offer several methods to get back into the good graces of your lender but the private programs leave you in collections and generally unable to get back into good standing. I have yet to find a program that will work with you to get your private student loans out of a collection or default cycle and removed as bad debt on your credit report.
I am not saying we should just waive all the bad debt – I took the loans and made a mistake and want to repay the debt. I would like however to have a program to get the loans back into good standing and off my credit report. With the loans in good standing with a reasonable payment the $20,000 I have in collections would not be such a source of stress in my life and it certainly would not prevent me from moving forward. There are all sorts of programs coming up for people behind on their mortgages – why not something for those that would like to get other aspects of their lives back on track?
For me - getting the private loans I have rehabilitated would allow me to move forward with several other areas of my life. Right now these loans are the primary reason that I am unable to look into buying a house (they are the only negative item on my credit report). My job is steady, I pay my bills on time or early and am in otherwise good standing. However having the $20,000 in a negative report on my credit report inhibits me from moving forward.
Anyway – I do not expect anything to come of my little rant but if a program did come up I would certainly be excited! In the mean time – I will just continue to work on repaying the debt as quickly as I can. It will take a long time but it is my next big obstacle to overcome while working towards my goal of owning a home.
Posted on: September 25, 2008 by Matt
Autumn has started in the northeastern reaches of Vermont; the leaves are changing, the air is crisp and everyone seems to be buckling down for winter. I really think that fall is my favorite time of year. While driving this summer and early fall so far I have noticed that it looks like everyone in the area is starting winter preparations early this year. Stacks of wood are piling up next to houses and a lot of stuff (bigger ticket items like boats and cars largely) sits on the side of the road for sale.
Before I moved back to Vermont this spring I had not really noticed how the current economy has effected people. I lived by myself in a city and the only major indicator I could see were the number of houses for sale and news about the foreclosure rates. Maybe the signs were there before I moved as well but I did not notice them until I got home. The buzz around town is: “how are you going to afford to stay warm this winter?” The local economy is not very strong in the area and people are really feeling the pinch of the recession. With the price of heating oil going up a lot of people have turned back to burning wood for heat. This has driven the price of firewood up considerably and left a number of people uncertain about what the winter holds. Rural communities have been hit hard – it makes me nervous about what the future holds. From what I have seen my area is normally a little bit behind the current trends but when a financial downturn hits we seem to see the effects quickly (a microcosm of the current state of the economy and a glimpse into how tough the economy is going to get).
When I originally started to notice everyone worrying about winter and money I figured that I had nothing to worry about – that the recession does not have any effect on my finances. I was wrong. With my move came a number of expenses to get set back up and I also moved into a new living situation where I do not live alone. I now have other people to consider in my financial planning and we all need to agree on spending. The increase in expenditures over the past few months has opened my eyes a bit and I think I am finally starting to realize that maybe this recession everyone is talking about is a big deal. Expenses for everything (gas, groceries, heating fuel, electricity) are all going up while incomes remain the same. Monthly budgets seem to get tighter every month and I now realize just how financially difficult getting by can be for families.
Making ends meet while trying to put a little aside in savings and pay down extra debt seems to get more challenging with each passing month (well more like every negative news story). I hope to have a post up with ways we are combating the pinch of the recession in the near future. Until then what are you doing to ease the pain of the pinch?
