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Stressed, Depressed & Seeing No end in sight

Hi all,

I'm currently in a job I've grown to hate, earning 15.5k with no hope now of meeting the companys new accreditation criteria for pay rises.

I have the following debt accrued over the years:

Cahoot Loan (taken to help my dad when his business was going under) - £187 per month with £3400 left to pay
Egg CC (I'm one of their outcast, probably a good thing I guess)
£60 per month with £2100 on it
IF CC £60 per month with £3100 on it (max)
AMEX £50 per month with £1900 on it (max)
CAR £150 per month
Phone Bill £40 per month
NEXT a/c £40-£50 per month

I've tried in vain to get a loan or balance transfer credit card, but can't get anything.
My g/f & I have just been offered a council flat, but I'm getting so worried about how little cash we have to survive on.
I'm the first to admit being in debt is my fault, but I can't see any way of getting myself out of it, and it's causing friction at home as you can imagine.

I've sold most of my stuff on ebay - mobiles, xbox games, comics etc - it's just not enough. By the time you pay ebay charges there isn't much left.

I've cut out all spending on luxuries - no more games, dvds, I don't drink or go out much anyway so that isn't a problem.

I'm sure there are folk much worse off than me, and July has been a really bad month cash wise - I had to fork out £70 excess when my car windscreen smashed.

I guess I'm just looking for advice from anyone who's pulled themselves out of a hole like this.

It gets so frustrating as it gets to the point I have to use the money I pay onto my cc every month or use my next a/c to get a birthday present or whatever.

I've been half heartedly looking for a new job, but there's not much out there unless I want to go back to customer service & crappy shifts.

Thanks for reading
«13456713

Comments

  • Uniscots97
    Uniscots97 Posts: 6,687 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    HI, sending both you and your gf a hug from a fellow weegie. Take a deep breath, you can do this. I'm in the middle of doing mine. Can you post your SOA (statement of affairs), there's a sticky at the top of the board that will help you fill it out. This will help me and others advise you about where you might be able to make savings.

    It is possible to get rid of your debt. I'm nowhere near the finish line myself but I'm a lot closer to it than I was. The one thing you really need to stop doing is getting into the habit of buying presents etc on cards especially store cards. I used to do this and since finding other ways of buying presents (look on the Up your Income board, sign up for survey sites that pay out in either cash or vouchers these all add up), I've saved a fortune.
    CC2 = £8687.86 ([STRIKE]£10000[/STRIKE] )CC1 = £0 ([STRIKE]£9983[/STRIKE] ); Reusing shopping bags savings =£5.80 vs spent £1.05.Wine is like opera. You can enjoy it even if you don't understand it and too much can give you a headache the next day J
  • Verbatim
    Verbatim Posts: 4,831 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts
    Hi there,

    I think you'll get more of a response later. If you could post up your statement of affairs, all income and outgoings plus debts with minimum payments, balance and aprs for each it would be easier to make suggest ions. I'm sure you'll get a wealth of useful advice and info from the amazing people here.
    CCs @0% £24k Dec 05 £19,621.41 Au £13400 S 12600 Oct £11,981 £9481 £7500 Nov £7250 D £7100 Jan 6950 F £5800 Mar£5400 May £4830 June £4660 July £4460 Aug £3200, S £900, £0 18/9/07 DFW Nerd 042
  • Uniscots97
    Uniscots97 Posts: 6,687 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Brody, this might help with the SOA. It needs to list all incomings (wages etc) and outgoings (rent, electricity etc) and as Verbatim said the details of your credit card, loans etc

    Incomings:

    Outgoing:

    Rent:
    Electricity:
    Gas:
    Coucil Tax:
    Insurance:
    Dental:
    Prescriptions:
    Car:
    Fuel:
    Parking:
    Food:

    etc

    The online version is here:- http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html

    Hope this helps.
    CC2 = £8687.86 ([STRIKE]£10000[/STRIKE] )CC1 = £0 ([STRIKE]£9983[/STRIKE] ); Reusing shopping bags savings =£5.80 vs spent £1.05.Wine is like opera. You can enjoy it even if you don't understand it and too much can give you a headache the next day J
  • brody77
    brody77 Posts: 231 Forumite
    Silly question, but how do I find out the annual rate on my cards?
  • Uniscots97
    Uniscots97 Posts: 6,687 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Not a silly question at all Brody, its usually printed on your statement (look for APR or annual interest)
    CC2 = £8687.86 ([STRIKE]£10000[/STRIKE] )CC1 = £0 ([STRIKE]£9983[/STRIKE] ); Reusing shopping bags savings =£5.80 vs spent £1.05.Wine is like opera. You can enjoy it even if you don't understand it and too much can give you a headache the next day J
  • Uniscots97
    Uniscots97 Posts: 6,687 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    If you have the rest of your SOA but not the APR then post that (so we can help you with that first) and then edit your post once you have your APR figures.
    CC2 = £8687.86 ([STRIKE]£10000[/STRIKE] )CC1 = £0 ([STRIKE]£9983[/STRIKE] ); Reusing shopping bags savings =£5.80 vs spent £1.05.Wine is like opera. You can enjoy it even if you don't understand it and too much can give you a headache the next day J
  • brody77
    brody77 Posts: 231 Forumite
    Not sure if I've done this right....some fields are blank as we've only just gotten the flat & don't know all costs.
    I've only included my salary & debt.

    Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

    Monthly Income Details
    Monthly income after tax................ 987
    Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
    Benefits................................ 0
    Other income............................ 0
    Total monthly income.................... 987

    Monthly Expense Details
    Mortgage................................ 0
    Secured loan repayments................. 0
    Rent.................................... 200
    Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
    Council tax............................. 0
    Electricity............................. 0
    Gas..................................... 0
    Oil..................................... 0
    Water rates............................. 0
    Telephone (land line)................... 0
    Mobile phone............................ 40
    TV Licence.............................. 0
    Satellite/Cable TV...................... 15
    Internet Services....................... 0
    Groceries etc. ......................... 0
    Clothing................................ 0
    Petrol/diesel........................... 40
    Road tax................................ 0
    Car Insurance........................... 0
    Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
    Car parking............................. 0
    Other travel............................ 0
    Childcare/nursery....................... 0
    Other child related expenses............ 0
    Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
    Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
    Buildings insurance..................... 0
    Contents insurance...................... 13
    Life assurance ......................... 0
    Other insurance......................... 0
    Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
    Haircuts................................ 0
    Entertainment........................... 0
    Holiday................................. 0
    Emergency fund.......................... 0
    Total monthly expenses.................. 308

    Assets
    Cash.................................... 0
    House value (Gross)..................... 0
    Shares and bonds........................ 0
    Car(s).................................. 5000
    Other assets............................ 0
    Total Assets............................ 5000

    No Secured Debt

    Unsecured Debts
    Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
    IF.............................3100......50........0
    Egg............................2100......50........0
    Amex...........................1900......50........0
    Cahoot Loan....................3400......187.......0
    Total unsecured debts..........10500.....337.......-

    Monthly Budget Summary
    Total monthly income.................... 987
    Expenses (including secured debts)....... 308
    Available for debt repayments........... 679
    Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 337
    Surplus(deficit if negative)............ 342

    Personal Balance Sheet Summary
    Total assets (things you own)........... 5,000
    Total Secured debt...................... -0
    Total Unsecured debt.................... -10,500
    Net Assets.............................. -5,500

    Created using the SOA calculator at www.makesenseofcards.com.
    Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission.

    ======== Enter any other useful information below ========

    e.g. the number of adults & children in the household, the number

    of cars included in the SOA or anything else that may be useful.

    2 adults & 1 baby in the flat once we move in
    I pay the min monthly payment on Amex, but pay £60-£70 a month to IF and £60 a month to Egg
  • strumpet
    strumpet Posts: 652 Forumite
    Hi Brody,
    Well done for getting on here and facing your debts head on - that's a really positive step. There's loads of people on here who offer top rate advice and whose only reward is to see you lift yourself out of your money troubles. They really are worth their weight in gold!

    One thing I used to do, when I had Credit Card debt was to spend on the card if it was an expenditure I ABSOLUTELY couldn't avoid eg your car windscreen, but then pay the cash equivalent off the card immediately (having online payment facility helps here). That way, the balance on the card is not affected but you have "rolled the credit" a little by cancelling a little of the interest bearing debt and replacing it with a new debt which could attract up to a 56 day interest free period depending on when your statement is issued. Not a major thing but every little helps. You do have to be MEGA disciplined to do this though.

    This method also has the advantage of paying money towards the minimum payment without leaving you short of cash if you're having a particularly bad month cash-wise. Remember though that min payments are designed to perpetuate your debt and you should always try to pay off more than the MP if you can.

    I hope I got all this right - if not someone will be along in a min to correct me, I'm sure!

    Good luck buddy!
    NIL ILLEGITIMUS CARBORUNDUM!
    Nov Grocery Challenge: £0.00 / £150.00
    Horace & Strumpet's NSD Challenge (Nov): 0/8
    £2 Savers Club #088: £200 since 01/09/2008 (£0 to bank) (Banked £200)
    Slimming World: 15½lbs/21lbs (74%) at end of Week 18 (Target date for 13st: 25/12/2009):dance:
  • Dithering_Dad
    Dithering_Dad Posts: 4,554 Forumite
    Mortgage-free Glee!
    What's your Dad doing about the cahoot loan? It seems that you've sold a lot of your stuff to keep your head above water, but has he done the same?

    I know blood is thicker than water, but if the loan was taken out on his behalf then he really should shoulder the responsibility for it. If his business is struggling then perhaps he can get an evening or weekend job (delivering free papers, pub work, etc) to help out?
    Mortgage Free in 3 Years (Apr 2007 / Currently / Δ Difference)
    [strike]● Interest Only Pt: £36,924.12 / £ - - - - 1.00 / Δ £36,923.12[/strike] - Paid off! Yay!! :)
    ● Home Extension: £48,468.07 / £44,435.42 / Δ £4032.65
    ● Repayment Part: £64,331.11 / £59,877.15 / Δ £4453.96
    Total Mortgage Debt: £149,723.30 / £104,313.57 / Δ £45,409.73
  • Uniscots97
    Uniscots97 Posts: 6,687 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    brody77 wrote: »
    Not sure if I've done this right....some fields are blank as we've only just gotten the flat & don't know all costs.
    I've only included my salary & debt.

    Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

    Monthly Income Details
    Monthly income after tax................ 987
    Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
    Benefits................................ 0 (check out to see if you're entitled to these having the little one entitleto.com I think it is)
    Other income............................ 0
    Total monthly income.................... 987

    Monthly Expense Details
    Mortgage................................ 0
    Secured loan repayments................. 0
    Rent.................................... 200
    Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
    Council tax............................. 0 (the council should be able to tell you what this is for the flat)
    Electricity............................. 0
    Gas..................................... 0
    Oil..................................... 0
    Water rates............................. 0
    Telephone (land line)................... 0
    Mobile phone............................ 40 (this is very high, can you switch to a lower tariff of PAYG?)
    TV Licence.............................. 0
    Satellite/Cable TV...................... 15 (switch to freeview)
    Internet Services....................... 0
    Groceries etc. ......................... 0
    Clothing................................ 0
    Petrol/diesel........................... 40
    Road tax................................ 0
    Car Insurance........................... 0
    Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
    Car parking............................. 0
    Other travel............................ 0
    Childcare/nursery....................... 0
    Other child related expenses............ 0
    Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
    Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
    Buildings insurance..................... 0
    Contents insurance...................... 13
    Life assurance ......................... 0
    Other insurance......................... 0
    Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
    Haircuts................................ 0
    Entertainment........................... 0
    Holiday................................. 0
    Emergency fund.......................... 0
    Total monthly expenses.................. 308

    Assets
    Cash.................................... 0
    House value (Gross)..................... 0
    Shares and bonds........................ 0
    Car(s).................................. 5000
    Other assets............................ 0
    Total Assets............................ 5000

    No Secured Debt

    Unsecured Debts
    Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
    IF.............................3100......50........0
    Egg............................2100......50........0
    Amex...........................1900......50........0
    Cahoot Loan....................3400......187.......0
    Total unsecured debts..........10500.....337.......-

    Monthly Budget Summary
    Total monthly income.................... 987
    Expenses (including secured debts)....... 308
    Available for debt repayments........... 679
    Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 337
    Surplus(deficit if negative)............ 342

    Personal Balance Sheet Summary
    Total assets (things you own)........... 5,000
    Total Secured debt...................... -0
    Total Unsecured debt.................... -10,500
    Net Assets.............................. -5,500

    Created using the SOA calculator at www.makesenseofcards.com.
    Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission.

    ======== Enter any other useful information below ========

    e.g. the number of adults & children in the household, the number

    of cars included in the SOA or anything else that may be useful.

    2 adults & 1 baby in the flat once we move in
    I pay the min monthly payment on Amex, but pay £60-£70 a month to IF and £60 a month to Egg


    Is the flat furnished? If not get onto Freecycle and get household items on there (everything from furniture to paint, cots to lamps), don't be afraid to ask either. Freecycle is great for furnishing places, ok things might not be exactly what you would have chosen but its a very good place to start and will save you a fortune. There's always lots of baby stuff on Freecycle too and they're a friendly bunch. Have a look on the Up your Income board too for ideas for bringing in extra to help squash the Next debt before the end of the year.
    CC2 = £8687.86 ([STRIKE]£10000[/STRIKE] )CC1 = £0 ([STRIKE]£9983[/STRIKE] ); Reusing shopping bags savings =£5.80 vs spent £1.05.Wine is like opera. You can enjoy it even if you don't understand it and too much can give you a headache the next day J
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