Sunday, September 13, 2009

DC from Mass. needs an electric guitar, money for home remodeling and paying off credit cards.

DC from Mass. sent the following message to ActuallyFree.info:

"I am looking for an electric guitar and amplifier. I am totally disabled and cannot afford such luxuries. I am also looking for money to put in an exit to my cellar and pay off credit card bills. When you don't have much, anything will help. regards."

First, as usual, I have to mention that ActuallyFree.info only provides information, not actual items. So here is the information I have for the situation that you have presented:

Getting some help with these items, or getting them entirely for free may be possible, but it will take a lot of diligence and patience. There is no place that you can go to or call for immediate free gifts like the ones you're mentioning. Some activities you might be doing to get these items are checking a message board every day online, calling government employees for assistance, and educating yourself. Calling government employees, or going to government offices is something that particularly requires patience. They're not like a department store or restaurant where the customer is always right. They're simple workers, probably getting paid low salary, they deal with a lot of paperwork, and they basically provide what the law requires. People have to go to them to request assistance; they don't beckon with the advertising of big business.

That's just a background to get you mentally prepared. Here are my specific recommendations:

Free Electric Guitar and Amplifier

I have two suggestions for getting a free electric guitar and amplifier.

The first suggestion is to check the free section on Craigslist.org every day until someone posts it for free. I've found that no matter what I'm looking for, someone always posts it. Not necessarily today, or tomorrow, but eventually it happens. You just have to be ready for it when it happens and be the first to request the item. You can also download software that you can set up to alert you when the item is listed. I had a free resource for this type of software listed on my classified ads page, but those who provided that resource are now charging for it. I'm currently looking for a free alternative. Also, if you have something to trade, then make the offer on craigslist to see if anyone is interested.

The second suggestion I have for getting a free guitar and amplifier is to join Freecycle.org. You can send a request to Freecycle members in your area, and if anyone has a guitar and amplifier that they're willing to give away then they'll respond.

A guitar is a little more specialized than other electronics so you may have to wait longer than usual, but I can imagine someone out there who decided they wanted to learn how to play, but for whatever reason were not able to. And their guitar and amplifier is just sitting there, gathering dust, and taking up space in the garage when the wife wants to clear it out. Or some similar situation.

You could also try a contest give away like the one here, but I haven't tried it myself, so I can't recommend it. It's a contest give away so there's only one winner.

You can get more tips for using classified ads to get free stuff on the classified ads page.

Free Money for Home Remodeling.

Possibly the government will provide money to remodel part of your home, especially since you mentioned you're disabled, and especially if the remodeling is related to your disability.

Usually when people want to know what kind of housing-related assistance the government provides, I think of Hud.gov.

When I went to hud.gov to find out if they have anything for you, I clicked on "home improvements" and then "rural home improvement and repair."

I eventually found a home repair loan and grant program that you may be eligible for. "The Home Repair Program provides funds to make a home accessible to someone with disabilities." The link is here.

If you're not eligible for this assitance program, you can try contacting your local HUD office to see if they can provide you with more information. Find the contact info here.

You can also shoot for the moon by applying to the TV show Extreme Makeover Home Edition. If you get selected they'll remodel you're whole house and send you on a trip for free. The chance of getting selected is probably slim, but it never hurts to apply if you're willing to be filmed.

Free Money for Paying Off Credit Cards

I'm not really qualified to offer credit card advice. It seems like you need someone to help you with this that's more qualified than me, but I'm not sure in which direction to point you.

I tried to get info on things like credit counseling agencies, but I found some conflicting information. A couple of articles at kiplinger.com (one here and the other here) suggested to use a specific counseling agency, which may help you negotiate with your lender to settle for a lower amount than you owe. But an article from the federal trade commission said to be careful with these because they're often scams; also negotiating for a lower amount will lower your credit score. I'd be very cautious about this.

Here are a couple more links from the Federal Trade Commission which might help:

Credit & Loans
Knee Deep in Debt

I'm guessing you'll be able to find free counseling somewhere, probably from the government, but I doubt you'll find any free money to pay credit card bills. You are generally expected to pay for what you owe.

You may however be eligible for money because you are disabled. Try Grants.gov.

You're welcome to look at the Free Money pages of ActuallyFree.info, but these are certainly not solutions for credit card debt.

Sorry this credit card section probably isn't what you were hoping for, but this is a serious issue in our country right now. Only the government would consider paying for other people's credit card debt, and when or if they do it the taxpayers have to pay for it. If anyone besides the government offers to do it, then somehow, I bet it will mean you are simply changing the debt to someone else. You will owe them something that may be worse or it will be a scam.

Good luck on all three of these items (guitar, remodeling, credi card debt). I hoped this information helped to get you started towards accomplishing your goals.

Admin
ActuallyFree.info

No comments: