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I was doing fine with a low salary of $500/month, living a simple but peaceful life in Vietnam. But my mistake was not putting much into a saving “bank”. I just threw random small bills into a piggy bank once in a while.
Then suddenly, my company got into financial troubles and delayed my salary for two months. At almost the same time, my dad got diagnosed with stage-3 colorectal cancer. I was reading the apology email from my company while waiting for my dad’s surgery! He had health insurance, but they only paid back AFTER he was released from the hospital.
I was in a panic, and went into debts with some banks and credit organizations. I should’ve done a lot more research into credits and loans back then, but I didn’t. I thought if the debts were divided into small installments, I could just use my salary to pay them. But eventually, I had to borrow from place B to pay for place A, then C to pay for B.
Now after a year, my father’s health is actually not bad for someone with stage-3 cancer, but the debts are starting to feel overwhelming. I’ve taken up a part-time job in the evening, but it doesn’t pay much. My full time job is R&D for an English-teaching organization, and my part time job is tutoring.
The total debts are about $1500 (from about 5 different lenders), and my salary is only $500. The paying dates are different, but they are all within this month. My family has already spent everything on my father’s hospital bills, and my parents are spending both their wages on paying their own debts.
I don’t think I’m close enough with anyone to actually ask for money from them, and even if they do lend me some, it probably won’t help much.
I have already sold the few valuable things I had. I’ve tried many different methods to get money, even the silliest ones like leaving QR codes on the streets or selling my collection of rare adult videos and stories (that I’m sure very few people have).
My strength is my English proficiency (compared to people in my country) and I’ve also scored 990 on the TOEIC, but that only helps in getting tutor jobs, and those aren’t helping much.
Right now I’m going through my friends lists to see if there’s anyone who might help me, but I doubt I will get much from them, as I’m not close with anyone (another mistake).
How long can I delay my debts until the debt collectors come to my house, or worse, my workplace? I only borrow from legit places like banks and reputable credit organizations, but in this country anything can happen.
   
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Damn! Hope your father beats it!
Not familiar with Vietnam law or practices otherwise. Credit card debt I assume (those usually are the most expensive). Could ask your lenders to restructure the debt so it's more manageable maybe? As for them coming to your house, there's not much else they can take from you anyway right. If they know about your work they can legally get your salary, but usually you are still left with something (you gotta stay alive so you can keep playing after all).
Good luck!
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Sorry to hear that about your situation but dont blame yourself for your misfortunate there was no way you could've seen what was happening coming.
Idk how the vietnamese government work but do they have like social welfare programs that may cover you ? It might be worth a shot. I havent heard of a government who dont have that kind of stuff.
Yeah making the debt more manageable by asking them if you could make the payment terms more flexible might be worth a shot. I remember somebody I know sending letter to a bank due to the being unable to pay the bank loan due to pandemic era and they did really give leway after awhile
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You need to state hardship, which is kind of annoying when dealing with 5 lenders.Would any company take on consolidation of these debts? Then you just deal with one company, possibly at a lower interest rate.
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On September 04 2025 20:05 iPlaY.NettleS wrote: You need to state hardship, which is kind of annoying when dealing with 5 lenders.Would any company take on consolidation of these debts? Then you just deal with one company, possibly at a lower interest rate. This. Like everyone else here, I have very little knowledge of life in Vietnam outside of what my father told me as a long-term tourist.
However, I am sure that there is some form of debt consolidation there. I am also confident that the government has some sort of assistance system for information. A CPA (or Vietnamese equivalent) will pay for themselves in the long run, at least in my experience. The question is whether or not all of these services are trustworthy.
Have you considered asking for assistance from your bank? I know you might not have a solid history with them because of your piggy bank finances, but I am hopeful that they would like to retain and help a customer with your predicament by offering financial services and consultation, or at least referral to a recommended accountant.
I would ask your friends about their accountant or money manager or whatever is your local equivalent, and go with someone who is recommended to you. They can help you navigate your obligations to credit lending agencies and also manage your finances. It's in their best interest that you stay solvent so you can continue to pay them, too. In my personal experience, it may be worth a shot, especially when dealing with unconventional circumstances. You might be spending $5 but it is in order to save $10, so to speak.
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Contact the credit institutions and explain your problems. Collecting on non performing loans is very expensive so usually lenders rather restructure it. The worst you can do is just waiting for them to come to you. That's how it works in NL at least.
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On September 04 2025 05:31 LUCKY_NOOB wrote: Damn! Hope your father beats it!
Not familiar with Vietnam law or practices otherwise. Credit card debt I assume (those usually are the most expensive). Could ask your lenders to restructure the debt so it's more manageable maybe? As for them coming to your house, there's not much else they can take from you anyway right. If they know about your work they can legally get your salary, but usually you are still left with something (you gotta stay alive so you can keep playing after all).
Good luck!
There's no way to restructure them besides paying 30% to delay for 2 weeks. But that 30% doesn't get deducted from the total debt. I can't let them coming to my house or my work. I need a place to stay to keep working.
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On September 04 2025 19:26 goody153 wrote: Sorry to hear that about your situation but dont blame yourself for your misfortunate there was no way you could've seen what was happening coming.
Idk how the vietnamese government work but do they have like social welfare programs that may cover you ? It might be worth a shot. I havent heard of a government who dont have that kind of stuff.
Yeah making the debt more manageable by asking them if you could make the payment terms more flexible might be worth a shot. I remember somebody I know sending letter to a bank due to the being unable to pay the bank loan due to pandemic era and they did really give leway after awhile
None of the government programs covers me. I'm not qualified to be in the "poverty" section haha.
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On September 05 2025 04:56 Jealous wrote:Show nested quote +On September 04 2025 20:05 iPlaY.NettleS wrote: You need to state hardship, which is kind of annoying when dealing with 5 lenders.Would any company take on consolidation of these debts? Then you just deal with one company, possibly at a lower interest rate. This. Like everyone else here, I have very little knowledge of life in Vietnam outside of what my father told me as a long-term tourist. However, I am sure that there is some form of debt consolidation there. I am also confident that the government has some sort of assistance system for information. A CPA (or Vietnamese equivalent) will pay for themselves in the long run, at least in my experience. The question is whether or not all of these services are trustworthy. Have you considered asking for assistance from your bank? I know you might not have a solid history with them because of your piggy bank finances, but I am hopeful that they would like to retain and help a customer with your predicament by offering financial services and consultation, or at least referral to a recommended accountant. I would ask your friends about their accountant or money manager or whatever is your local equivalent, and go with someone who is recommended to you. They can help you navigate your obligations to credit lending agencies and also manage your finances. It's in their best interest that you stay solvent so you can continue to pay them, too. In my personal experience, it may be worth a shot, especially when dealing with unconventional circumstances. You might be spending $5 but it is in order to save $10, so to speak.
Thanks for your advice. I will try negotiating with the creditors.
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Best of luck, and let us know how it goes!
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Well I managed to borrow from a credit organisation with the help of a shady woman. Also, out of all my "friends", only one was kind enough to lend me some. I'm somewhat safe, for now.
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Finally some good news! Keep on keeping on.
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User was banned for this post.
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