Facing up to the facts time :(

jbarnsie

Hi everybody

Have read the excellent guides on here before posting hope i have gathered enough information.

I actually feel a little bit better just collating all of the figures i owe after ignoring them for so long.

Whats my motivation? I will be looking to get a mortgage with my partner within the next 18 months, with my present financial situation there is no way i could afford this.

I feel embarassed and slightly ashamed by the amount of debt i have accrued, here goes and thanks in advance.

Monthly Incomings:

My Salary = £1400 (average figure can be £1200-£1600 max)

Total £1400

Monthly Outgoings:

Rent/Bills £750 a month to partner (covers all utlities e.t.c)

Mobile £20 per month

Travel Costs to work £100

Food £150

Personal Loan Barclays (my employer) £ 267

All credit card repayments (min payments) £250

Outgoings = £1537

Total = - £137 monthly


Below is a list of all my debts with apr's credit limits and outstanding balances.

Barclays Bank loan 6.2% (fixed) ends 2015 £16,458 outstanding as of today. (this is a staff loan and as such is non negotiable)

Barclaycard mastercard £1,228.67 owed 19.9% limit £1.4k

Capital One £302.07 owed 22.4 apr (cash) £1.1k limit

Citibank £2,134.27 (5.83% bt for life) £3.5k limit

Halifax £2518.18 21.9 apr (cash) £3,350 limit

M + S Credit card £1,932.24 (£432.24) cash 28.9 apr remainder on 3.9% bt for life.

Natwest £2,443.83 (£1000 approx) cash rate remainder on 13.9 standard rate (platinum card)

Egg £1,440 0% bt until nov 2009 limit £1.5k (recently arranged)



Ok i have just blanked out these credit card debts from my mind for the last 2 years. I have only used the halifax card recently , it is only now i have realised my min payments are getting me nowere fast and on some cards im paying back my cash balance first thus making bt offers i had arranged pointless in the extreme. I have missed a few payments in the last year and gone over my limit on halifax a few times.

I also have a barclaycard visa with a 2.5k limit that i have just paid of (transfered to egg) . I have 3.6k in a cash isa which seems even sillier but is just another example of me trying to forget this mess.

I give financial advice day in day out, how ironic ?

I appreciate any advice that you are able to offer

Thanks again in advance

piglet39

Can you do an SOA 'cos it gives a much clearer picture? You'll find the link on a sticky on the first page of this board.

Something that stands out though - £150 for groceries. Is that for both of you you or just your half? Either way it still seems high.

HTH

Piglet

RAS

Welcome

There are a few other bank staff on here as well.

Well you starter for 10 is to put the whole lot into the snowball on www.whatsthecost.com.

Then take each of the most expensive debts and pretend you pay that off with the ISA. Which is it most effective to pay off first?

if there is any money left, then which is the best one to pay off next?

Does that get your monthly payments inside your income?

get those accounts cleared/low and then see if you can do a balance transfer to the barclay card at a low rate. Ditto any of the other cards you have cleared.

jbarnsie

thanks for your reply

i used the soa template to produce the above, what have i missed that needs to be included?

the grocery figure of £150 includes money i am spending at work for food e.t.c

thanks

RAS

jbarnsie wrote: »

the grocery figure of £150 includes money i am spending at work for food e.t.c

thanks

Start taking pack-ups. or soup if you have access to a micro-wave. Unless you get massively subsidised lunches?

piglet39

jbarnsie wrote: »

thanks for your reply

i used the soa template to produce the above, what have i missed that needs to be included?

the grocery figure of £150 includes money i am spending at work for food e.t.c

thanks

Sorry sweetie, wasn't being awkward. Just that it gives a clearer picture when utilities etc are broken down into individual sums.

Piglet

jbarnsie

i agree i really need to sort out my lunch habits (spending far to much)

thanks for the support the snowball site is brilliant and is telling me all debts can be paid of in 66 months which has actually made me feel a better.

one question on that , were like the m + s and natwest cards i have some of the balance on promotional rates how do i enter this , when im paying cash rates back first?

jbarnsie

i hadnt entered the egg or citibank debts properly so make that 83 months

not so good

Burlesque_Babe

by changing your lunch habits alone will knock quite a few months off your DFD if you re-channel the money into clearing the debts.

The £750 for rent/bills - is that a total of £1500 a month between you? That's a huge amount if it is - a detailed SOA would be really useful to see what you are paying as you could well be paying way over the odds for loads of stuff.

doodledo_2

Hi and welcome to the forum you have definately come to the best place for support.

It's hard to suggest much with your outgoings as obviously a large bulk of your cash is being paid to your partner. Maybe you need to look at his bills to see if you could reduce them at all so that you both have to contribute less each month if that makes sense.

Its amazing how much you can change by swapping energy suppliers, packages on sky and broadband etc.

Have you got anything you could sell on Ebay/Amazon etc to raise some cash to throw at your debts?

jbarnsie

"The £750 for rent/bills - is that a total of £1500 a month between you? That's a huge amount if it is - a detailed SOA would be really useful to see what you are paying as you could well be paying way over the odds for loads of stuff."

yes it is,

the rent is £1000 per month (central london pretty much) which is a big chunk obviously.

sorry for not doing a detailed soa i will do one on saturday (after work)