A decade ago I was one of those would either -- 

1. Hang up on a debt collector 

2. Pretend to be someone else

3. Create a Google Number and give them that one to leave me alone

4. All thee above

You see before this platform came to be, I was like some of you who didn’t fare well with debt or the people hired to collect said debt from my bank account. While that wasn’t cute, I still know that there are some people who still deal with debt. Heck, I still have student loans. And as you know I come from a place of the journey vs judging you. This is the reason why I can hear and help you pivot to becoming better with not only your mindset about money but the making + management of it as well! 

Back to the “D” word...yes debt. This word has been around since the beginning of time. And just as the video was conflicting with the song “Remember The Time, the notion of debt doesn’t add up either. Just as in the last recession, debt is holding over the heads of those scared for what’s to come and those who are finding themselves deeper in debt than they previously were. Roughly 4M people have lost their jobs as a result of Rona Mae Jenkins and a good hunk of them have been waiting for weeks or even months for their unemployment benefits to drop. This whole situation is one that is indescribable and just a total mind f*ck. So for those finding themselves dealing with even MORE debt due to this pandemic. I get it and I’m with you. 

Before Rona came to the party, Americans held an average of $26,621 in personal debt, excluding mortgages. For some, that number could be more or less, but still eye opening! Now that focus has shifted for some dealing with this pandemic. Many people are focusing on stacking their money and making a long-term plan to weather this recession storm that we are in. Many (including self) believe that the recovery could stand to be seen “up” by earlier 2022. One thing that I am going to dive into is the types of recovery that we could be witnessing. 

Back to you hanging up on debt during this pandemic. While I get that it is easy to just hit or ignore. That number that you owe will not go away, it will only go up like airplane tickets on a Monday. Here are some things I want you to do vs hanging on those people. 

Know your numbers + debtors: Seriously, you have to know this. Why? So you know how to follow the next couple points I’m going to call out to you. If you follow me on social media, you might’ve seen where I talk about this point. If not, click here (follow too). There is also some tea on that post on what debt methods work for you! 

• Call them people! Pick up the phone and call them up. Many creditors are being really compassionate right now due to the pandemic. Take heed of those offers that are giving to their consumers to help them make it. Forbearance is the most popular one right now. The key is that you get in ‘writing’ via direct mail or e-mail about the terms of what that agreement would look like. This helps keep you accountable, but also let’s you know what comes along with it all. 

• Be comfortable with the terms. Many of these agreements (especially for loans) will place those ‘skipped’ payments to the back of the loan. If so, there could  be some additional interest fees added; peep the agreement to CYA. 

• During the pause of the forbearance, either stack or pay down other debts that you have outside of the said agreement. One of my clients took her paused student loan payments to pay down credit card debt. She did something else in conjunction with it, but saw an instant boost in her savings (on the credit card) and credit score. 

Like the meme floating around social media talking about what will come out of this pandemic - Billionaires, Millionaires and Witnesses. I would like to add another option, it will be you coming out sound mind, sound body and a sound wealth plan. The pandemic paper is one that you are capable of reaching and snatching! You didn’t go into debt over night, so you can use this time to get out of debt even more. Don’t forget to peep the apps that will help you get out of debt! Click here to read them! 

To get the purpose behind Pandemic Paper, click here. To read about how the last recession pushed me to build this platform, click here. 

Have you taken advantage of the forbearance offerings? What has been the best one you have seen?