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Maybe you don’t think it’s a problem. Maybe you don’t think it’s that big of a problem. (“It” being your financial situation) You’re falling behind on bills, making partial payments to creditors, and robbing Peter to pay Paul. But, it’s not that big of a deal. You’ll catch up soon, right? “Right” is most likely “Wrong” and you’ll realize you are wrong when it’s too late. You can fix the problem of rising debt before it grows out of control by knowing the signs. Elkhorn, Wisconsin bankruptcy lawyer, Shannon Wynn, lists 7 signs you’re living beyond your means. Read them below.
 
7 Signs You’re Living Beyond Your Means
1. You Constantly Carry a Credit Card Balance. There is no problem at all with using a credit card to pay for items. However, you should be paying off the balance each month. If you carry a balance month to month, you’re spending more than you can afford. You’ll need to make a double, triple, or quadruple payment to get yourself out of the red.
2. You Can’t Pay Your Bills on Time. You may have good intentions, but if you don’t have enough money in the bank to pay your bills on time, then you are living beyond your means. Elkhorn bankruptcy lawyer, Shannon Wynn, suggests reexamining your spending habits. You may need to forego some luxuries such as nail salon visits, morning coffee runs, or weekend pizza and drinks. It’s imperative that you cut back now and get your bills under control before your bills are out of control.
3. You’re Not Saving. You should be able to pay all your bills on time each month and still save at least 5% of your income, 10%-15% would be even better. If you aren’t saving at all, or you are constantly robbing your savings account to pay bills, then you need to budget.
4. You’ve Been Denied Credit. Even if you think you can handle the payments, your existing debt may be too high of a risk for a creditor to lend to you. Your current credit score may be below 700 points. You may pay bills on time, but have nothing left at the end of the month. You may pay bills, but not on time, and some end up in collections dinging your credit score. You may be piling up debt and not able to pay any of it off. Whatever the situation, many factors go into being denied credit. Being denied new credit is a major sign that you are living beyond your means.
5. Your Credit Cards Are Maxed Out. Having a credit card for emergencies is one thing. Maxing out every credit card you own is another. Elkhorn, Wisconsin bankruptcy attorney, Shannon Wynn, says possessing several credit cards with no available money left is a major concern. Missing just one payment can put you over the credit card limit due to the late charges and interest fees. Exceeding the credit card limit can really hurt your finances. How can you afford the monthly payment? To top it off, your credit report is taking a beating.
6. More Than 28% of Your Income Goes to Housing. Calculate what percentage of your monthly gross income goes toward your mortgage, property taxes, and home owners’ insurance or rent and renters’ insurance. If it’s more than 28% of your gross income, then you are more than likely in over your head. 28% is the magic number most lenders use as a guideline to ensure a person can properly pay for their home, plus live a comfortable lifestyle. If you are in over 28%, you should consider downsizing to a more comfortable price range.
7. You Don’t Budget. Elkhorn bankruptcy attorney, Shannon Wynn, states that having a budget in place is one of the most important pieces to obtaining financial freedom. Most people have never made an honest assessment of their spending. Not budgeting is a tell tale sign that you may be living beyond your means. Attorney Shannon Wynn recommends that you monitor your spending for a couple months and see where your money is really going. Then, you can set up a budget, knowing full well where you can cut back. Be sure to budget for savings, too, not just monthly bills.
 
Contact Elkhorn, Wisconsin Bankruptcy Attorney, Shannon Wynn
If you are guilty of even one item on the above list, you need to take a second look at your finances. If you feel now is the time to consider bankruptcy options, feel free to contact Attorney Shannon Wynn for a free bankruptcy consultation. You can reach Wynn at Law, LLC by phone at 262-725-0175. Wynn at Law, LLC has bankruptcy offices located in Lake Geneva, Delavan, Muskego, and Salem, Wisconsin.
 
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Wells Fargo is asking courts to dismiss lawsuits brought by customers for damages caused by fake accounts created by bank employees because of arbitration clauses signed by those customers when they opened bank accounts.
A typical arbitration clause contained in the fine print of bank account agreements looks like this:
ARBITRATION AGREEMENT
Binding Arbitration. You and Wells Fargo Financial National Bank (the “Bank”), including the Bank’s assignees, agents, employees, officers, directors, shareholders, parent companies, subsidiaries, affiliates, predecessors and successors, agree that if a Dispute (as defined below) arises between you and the Bank, upon demand by either you or the Bank, the Dispute shall be resolved by the following arbitration process. However, the Bank shall not initiate an arbitration to collect a consumer debt, but reserves the right to arbitrate all other disputes with its consumer customers. A “Dispute” is any unresolved disagreement between you and the Bank. It includes any disagreement relating in any way to your Credit Card Account (“Account”) or related services. It includes claims based on broken promises or contracts, torts, or other wrongful actions. It also includes statutory, common law and equitable claims. A Dispute also includes any disagreements about the meaning or application of this Arbitration Agreement. This Arbitration Agreement shall survive the payment or closure of your Account. You understand and agree that you and the Bank are waiving the right to a jury trial or trial before a judge in a public court. As the sole exception to this Arbitration Agreement, you and the Bank retain the right to pursue in small claims court any Dispute that is within that court’s jurisdiction. If either you or the Bank fails to submit to binding arbitration following lawful demand, the party so failing bears all costs and expenses incurred by the other in compelling arbitration.
And the sad news is that some judges are actually going along with the bank and dismissing cases.

Okay, we get it.  Arbitration clauses serve a legitimate purpose of reducing the cost of litigation between banks and its customers.  We can envision that such a provision may help reduce the cost of solving routine issues such as how interest is computed or when late fees apply or other issues regarding the terms of the contract.
But to apply the arbitration clause to fraudulent or even criminal wrongdoing committed by the bank seems to go way beyond what a reasonably prudent customer would anticipate.  Sure, I may expect the arbitration to cover nerdy issues of interest and fees, but do you mean to tell me that customer that is physically assaulted by a bank employee has agreed to binding arbitration when they open up a lousy $10 savings account?  If a rogue group of Wells Fargo collection agents take my daughter hostage until the account is paid, have a agreed to arbitrate this wrongdoing?
My expectation of an arbitration clause is that its application is limited to accounts that I voluntarily open with the bank.  The notion that I have somehow given Wells Fargo the right to arbitrate the murder my family or to open fake accounts without my knowledge is absurd.  The terms of the arbitration agreement are far too vague to permit that interpretation, and even if the terms were clear such an agreement clearly violates public policy and should not be enforced.
Despite some success the bank has achieved in cases so far, I suspect that courts will be reluctant to allow such a vast application of the arbitration agreements going forward.
Wells Fargo still doesn’t get it.  I’m hoping the courts do.
 

The biggest money pit I see when I interview prospects with financial problems is the car — always.  I have even seen people paying half of their disposable income in car payments (plus insurance, tolls, repairs, maintenance, tickets and all the other costs we don’t often consider).  It’s insane.  Here’s a post from Jay Miles in Quora.com, in answer to a young man thinking about buying a Tesla, that says it perfectly:
“No, don’t buy a car.  Cars don’t make money.  They’re depreciating assets.  You already have a wife, so there’s no need to show off.
Mathematically, it doesn’t make sense to ever spend more than $20,000 on a vehicle.  Despite being a cool Tesla, it won’t hold its residual value any more than another flashy brand.
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© Daniel Steger for openphoto.net
The biggest money pit I see when I interview prospects with financial problems is the car — always.  I have even seen people paying half of their disposable income in car payments (plus insurance, tolls, repairs, maintenance, tickets and all the other costs we don’t often consider).  It’s insane.  Here’s a post from Jay Miles in Quora.com, in answer to a young man thinking about buying a Tesla, that says it perfectly:
“No, don’t buy a car.  Cars don’t make money.  They’re depreciating assets.  You already have a wife, so there’s no need to show off.
Continue reading