Local Nurse Shares Her Financial Saga to Help Others with Their Own Debt
Gale Herrera was always proud of her husband, a business owner who always paid his employees on time, even if it meant taking out a second mortgage or that Gale would cash in her retirement savings, both of which happened. When Gale’s husband, nineteen years her senior, was diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease, she remained determined that he continue to live in their home for as long as possible, even if this required private, 24-7 medical assistance. As a self-employed person her husband had no retirement savings, so Gale continued to work as a lead nurse to pay for her husband’s mounting medical expenses. To cover daily expenses Gale chose what she considered her only viable option: credit cards.
“After my husband died I… stayed in my home to try and make ends meet,” Gale recalls, a financial strain compounded by the loss her husband’s small social security benefit. “I couldn’t handle the bill collectors calling. The other thing is when you are late on payment your interest rate can go from eight percent to twenty-seven or twenty-nine percent and when you make a payment… you are not paying anything on the balance, just the interest.”
Gale, well educated and hard working, knew she had to do something about her mounting debt, so she turned to Consumer Credit of Des Moines and financial counselor Richard Piatt.
“Gale’s budget at that time because of everything going on in her life was a big negative number, I remember substantially negative each month.” Richard says. “We’ll never tell somebody you can’t do a plan and on the opposite we won’t say, ‘oh you have to file bankruptcy,’ that’s not our call. But I did look at her and say, as delicately as I could, ‘you know Gale, it might be worth talking to an attorney. This is a lot of debt to fight through.”
True to her nature, Gale did not respond defensively or emotionally, stating she would like to think about it. She took the budget they had created, worked extra hours and came back with a plan on how to reduce her debt without going into bankruptcy. Gale has paid half of her debt down thus far.
“I’ve asked a couple of times to pay a couple of days later,” Gale shares, “But I have never missed a payment.”
Gale remains a vehement spokesperson for Consumer Credit of Des Moines, noting to some of her own staff with financial challenges that the additional cost of CCDM amounts to just five dollars a month.
Though not every client mirror’s Gale’s discipline and resolve, the plan Richard created with her is far from unique. Every CCDM plan starts with a budget, income minus monthly living expenses, then Richard creates an estimate that allows creditors to reduce monthly payment levels and interest charges so that each client can make successful payments and pay off the debt.
“The lenders tell us what they will take for concessions,” explains Richard, “That’s how we can give an estimate and that estimate is going to be right every time because the lenders have told us ahead of time what they will take for concessions based on the balance of the account.”
Gale’s primary advice for anyone facing a challenging financial situation is just to visit CCDM and speak with someone it. “You will get advice about how to get started,” she says.
Richard’s advice is to, first and foremost, create a budget, specifically your income minus living expenses. “You have to know where you stand,” he states.
“So often when we look at a client’s budget we see where something has gone awry,” adds Tom Coates, who with his family founded Consumer Credit of Des Moines over thirty years ago. “Usually credit cards [are used to] make up the difference.”
Tom believes that as long as there are credit cards many people will struggle with debt. Those with limited means outspend their incomes and those, like Gale, with solid income, often face a situation where using a credit card appears to be the exclusive solution.
“Gale is a good example of the type of people who we are able to assist at Consumer Credit,” Tom says. “She is probably, from an education and income standpoint, a little above the average – which doesn’t mean she wasn’t pressured by debt. She is the type of person we can assist and when we go home we can feel good about what we have done that day.”
Gale couldn’t agree more, adding “One of the things that I really appreciated about having a budget plan is that the paperwork that Rich gave me [included] a lot of things that when you’re making out a budget at home you don’t think about. All of a sudden you have something staring you in the face and if you haven’t been through some professional budget planning you’re like, ‘oh my goodness, what do I do now?’”
When asked about her future plans Gale says she plans to work for four more years until she is 70-years old and, once she has paid off her debt, put her money into retirement. She also emphasizes that, when finished, she will have paid off her entire debt with no reductions.
Concludes Gale, “Without Consumer Credit I probably wouldn’t get to retire.”