Hi everyone. I could really use some advice on how to feel better about everything. I filed for bankruptcy about three weeks ago, and I feel like such a failure. Up until 2022, I had no debt and a good credit score, but then I lost my job and was unemployed for six months. I had to borrow money and do random jobs like pet sitting to keep up with rent and utilities, but other bills piled up, leading to more debt than I could handle. That year was the hardest of my life.
I finally filed for bankruptcy this year because the debt just got too heavy. I tried paying off collectors, but it felt like I was just drowning.
Then, today, I found out that the food benefits I got during that time are now considered ‘fraud.’ They’re saying I should’ve listed my roommate, even though the benefits were just for me, not them. They apparently sent letters to my old address about a hearing, so I never got a chance to explain. Now they say I owe over $4k, and they’ve already taken around $1,700 from my tax refunds. My attorney says bankruptcy won’t clear it since they’ve marked it as ‘fraud.’
I don’t know how I’m going to pay this. I didn’t lie, and I genuinely needed those benefits. I’m already feeling defeated with everything I’m going through, and I just wanted a fresh start with the bankruptcy.
I posted here yesterday for advice, and some of the comments were pretty harsh. Please, if anyone has been through something similar or has any advice, I’d appreciate it. I feel like I’m stuck, working just to survive with nothing left over. Sometimes, I think about leaving everything and starting over somewhere else. Life just feels so hard right now, and I don’t know where to turn
You’re not a loser. The mistake was mentioning the roommate—sometimes giving too much info works against you. Maybe you can get another hearing. If not, you might just have to pay it back. It sounds like you’ve already paid off a big chunk of it.
Sorry you’re going through this. I was in a similar place a few years ago with almost no income. I ended up filing for bankruptcy, too, and it was tough at first. But I started focusing on learning new skills and eventually found a better job. There are some great free courses online like on edX, Udemy, and Google Career Certificates. Finding something new to work toward helped me a lot. Hang in there!
Sorry to hear that. Sounds like the error was not listing the roommate on the application. Here (in CA), they’re strict about listing everyone in the household, and they can usually verify it pretty easily. You might want to visit the office in person and see what your options are. They might still let you appeal, or they might offer a payment plan.
Cruz said:
If the bankruptcy is clearing everything except the $2,300 food balance, what’s the main issue?
The main issue is I shouldn’t have to pay it, as the info they have is wrong, and I didn’t do anything fraudulent. I’m frustrated they already took my money.
@Teal
Their info is ‘wrong’ because you didn’t report everything. By leaving out the roommate, it showed higher expenses, so your benefits were based on that.
@Teal
Stop trying to play the victim here. You made a mistake and didn’t report the info correctly.
Something’s not adding up here… if you were out of work for six months, rent is probably around 1k, plus another 1k for food, etc. That’s 2k x 6 = 12k. With side jobs, you’d have needed way less than what you filed for bankruptcy over.
Take ownership of the mistakes and move forward. Maybe a new car isn’t the right move at the moment. Doesn’t bankruptcy require you to sell assets like that?
See if you can get a payment plan for it and keep pushing back on the fraud charge. Also, if you’re paying $579 on a car, it might be time to trade down. That’s a really high payment.
I went through something similar with food stamps. Reported my earnings, but two years later they said I’d been overpaid and still needed to pay it back, even though I had reported everything accurately. They ended up garnishing my tax refund.
It’s impressive you picked up extra work to get by during that tough time. Once the bankruptcy is done, it could really feel like a new start. Are they asking for the full amount or just the difference if you had calculated expenses with the roommate? Maybe you can work out something in the middle. Try reaching out to them and see if they’re open to a settlement.
