File for unemployment, cut expenses and leave IRA alone
Q: I’m 48, just lost my job, and soon will have no income. I get two weeks of pay and two weeks of vacation time; then nothing other than my wife’s part-time job as a bank teller. We have three children—14, 13 and 9. Thankfully, my wife gets benefits. We are paying about $3,300 per month on our $168,000 mortgage, $48,000 home-equity loan, and $26,000 in credit card debt. At what point do I contact the mortgage and credit card companies, or should I claim bankruptcy? All I can fall back on is a traditional IRA with $52,000 and $13,800 in a 401(k).
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