Any help will be gratefully received

Hope_2

I've been browsing for months and have just plucked up the courage to post. My hubby and I have been struggling financially for nearly 16 years since I gave up work to have my first baby.

As I was earning the same as him our income halfed and it didn't take long for us to go through our savings. For a few years we managed to keep our head above water by myself working as an evening shelf filler only taking a few months off to have daughter no2. We foolishly took bad advice and did stupid things like extending our modest (£20k mortgage) to make ends meet and we also run up big catalogue bills.

Although I should have probably gone back to my full time job I desperately wanted to be there for my babies and felt the financial sacrifice was worth it at the time. Over the next few years hubby's wages started to rise but by this time we had discovered credit cards and we naively spent on these making minimum payments not really noticing the balance rising all the time.

Unexpectantly we found out I was pregnant with daughter no 3 after I returned to full time work when the other 2 started school and nursery. Again I gave up work and as hubby relocated with his job we remortgaged and consolidated all our debts increasing our mortgage to £40k. This seemed a way of reducing our outgoings but was a big mistake as once my maternity pay stopped we were struggling again with hubby being the sole earner.

Sorry to go on a bit but it's the first time I've actually worked out how our financial problems started. Anyway to cut a long story short over the last 10 years we have built up credit bills and then consolidated and now our mortgage is £95k. The only saving grace is that we only paid £67k for our house and it is now worth £180k. However we owe £15k on a Natwest loan and £ 26k on credit cards.

Although I am now back in part time work and our joint income is £35k we are surviving on credit which we are using to buy clothes, food and petrol. For the last year we have managed to switch to interest free cards but I think we have now used most available and soon we are going to start paying interest on them which I think will take us out of control. I just don't know which way to turn and haven't slept for months with the stress of it. It all seems hopeless and I can't just cut the cards up as we need them to survive.

To make things worse because we earn so much my daughter who wants to go to college in Sept won't get any financial help and as she is quite clever and wants to go on to univesrsity will have to cope with huge debts for the next 5 years. I feel such a failure and can't believe I've got myself into this mess.

Although we only have 9 years to go on our mortgage part of me feels like selling the house to pay off all our debts and then using the remaining money
to fund rent. Moving to a smaller house isn't an option as this house isn't that big. My hubby thinks selling and renting would be crazy but I am just so sick of the debt and feel we will never be able to repay it.

The only other saving grace is that between us we will have a pension gratuity of £55k but hubby gets his £35k in 9 years and I get my £20k in 14.
I just wish we could have this released early.

I think our debt is the worse I've seen on this site but you all seem so lovely and positive that I thought maybe you could help in some way.

It has helped anyway to write it all down but I am feeling very low and overwhelmed and tonight I think I am at the end of my tether.

So sorry to go on so much.

Peppa_Pig_5

Hope, I just wanted to say welcome to the site. I joined in December and was browsing for a few weeks before that. I have managed to cut down a lot of my outgoings. Also as you can see by my signature I will nearly have it all on lower apr. It was all on approx 20% apr before I came to this site. Feel much better about my debt now. My DH and I used to remortgage everytime the debt got too much, but not anymore, we now want to pay our debts off and pay mortgage early as soon as possible.

I am sure the same will happen with you. Please let us have a SOA listing all your incomings, outgoings and Balances, APRs on your debt. You will soon get lots of help. Thank you for sharing your story with us.

Peppa
x

duncans-mum_2

Hi Hope, and welcome to MSE. Just thought I would say you've done the right thing coming on here. Just talking to people that know how bad it can feel can help. I am still new myself and am just trying to get my head round sorting my life out (and poor spending habits/judgements). Writing down exactly whats what though and sorting out a plan is a real positive start. Lots of people as you are probably aware are more experienced at offering advice.

Just to let you know you are not alone and its daunting posting your situation, but everyone on here is ready to offer you any support they can.

Good luck with this fresh start!
x

Hope_2

Income: Hubby; £1,516 Mine: £817 Child Benefit: 159.20 Tax credits: £39.75
Outgoings: Mortgage £787.57 Life cover: £54 Mortg endowment: £31
Loan: £224
Council task: £116
Gas and Electric: £79
Mobile: £20
Dental: £11.30
Contact lenses(daughter)
Water rates: £30.71
Car ins: £58.32
Phone: £31
Broadband: £17.99
NatWest cc: £139
Halifax: £100
Alliance & Leicester: £40
Capital One: £136
Sainsbury's: £100
School lunches: £60
Lift money( work): £30
Music fees(school): £12.50
Pocket money (kids): £50
Food: (£450) paid on credit
Petrol: £
I think that's it don't know APR as all are 0% interest at moment

Thanks for positive words

Hope_2

Sorry forgot to give o/s balances on cc
Natwest:£5649.25
Halifax: £4621.74
Alliance & Leicester: £8960
Sainsbury: £2835.76
Capital One: £4459.30

Doomed_Economy

Hope wrote:

Income: Hubby; £1,516 Mine: £817 Child Benefit: 159.20 Tax credits: £39.75
Outgoings: Mortgage £787.57 Life cover: £54 Mortg endowment: £31
Loan: £224
Council task: £116
Gas and Electric: £79
Mobile: £20
Dental: £11.30
Contact lenses(daughter)
Water rates: £30.71
Car ins: £58.32
Phone: £31
Broadband: £17.99
NatWest cc: £139
Halifax: £100
Alliance & Leicester: £40
Capital One: £136
Sainsbury's: £100
School lunches: £60
Lift money( work): £30
Music fees(school): £12.50
Pocket money (kids): £50
Food: (£450) paid on credit
Petrol: £
I think that's it don't know APR as all are 0% interest at moment

Thanks for positive words

So at £787.57 pm on your mortgage you switched to a repayment mortgage, as opposed to an interest only or an endowmwnt mortgage? If so, whats the mortgage endowment payment of £31 pm? Is this for the original mortgage of £20K? If you've switched to a repayment you could cash/ sell it & release whatever its worth.

moo842

ok, you need to stop paying for your food on credit and use the os board to help cut you bills, can you cut the kid pocket money, how old are they?
can you send them to school with packed lunches??

you haven't put in a cost for the contact lenses (or am i being daft!)

could you look at using 1899 for your calls?

i'm no expert though, those with real wisdom will be here soon

MrsM_4

God Hope - this is dire - +ve words are encouraging, but u are going to have to work hard at this - you have my sympathy - but this is not going to pay off these debts.

You need to think long and hard about what you can do without until they are back under control.. let's have a look. Remember, what ever anyone says and how tactful/less they are, everyone here is trying to help x

firstly, mortgage. Can anyone reccommend you a good (free) financial advisor to look at your endowment mortgage - mine was doing nothing and i have changed to a repayment - this will prob cost more tho and perhaps u could defer this until things are more under control - don't forget about it tho!

Loan: £224 NatWest cc: £139 Halifax: £100 Alliance & Leicester: £40
Capital One: £136 Sainsbury's: £100 = £739


Council task: £116 Gas and Electric: £79 Water rates: £30.71 Broadband: £17.99 Car ins: £58.32 Phone: £31

Mobile: £20 Dental: £11.30

Contact lenses(daughter)

School lunches: £60
Lift money( work): £30
Music fees(school): £12.50
Pocket money (kids): £50
Food: (£450) paid on credit

sorry, just trying to make sense of all this..

School lunches - £60, is this for packed lunch - surely not
Pocket money for kids - half this or lose it for a while - you will have to talk to them, don't know age of children - but they will have to help.
Music fees - are these necessary - we're talking survival here!
Phone £31 per month. £10.50 for line rental with BT and 1899 or/and 18185 will reduce this outgoing.
Broadband 17.99, r u on a contract for this, if not this can be reduced. I pay 11.99 for 2mb broadband for first 6mos and then this will go up to 17.99 for next 6 mos but there are other deals out there, cheaper for 1mb broadband.
what is Dental - is it worth 11.30 a month to you?
Car ins, check this out on confused.com - i made a big saving here.
Mobile £20, lose it - you're going under here - it's sink or swim.
you don't mention house or contents ins - r u not ins here?

My opinion is that you need to make some IMMEDIATE and very radical savings - hard savings to kill the credit cards before they kill you! Reading between the lines your chidlren are up to age 16 (?) Talk to them, tell them how badly its affecting you and obviously in turn - them. Ask for their help at every turn. This is obviously very real.

I have recently found myself a great financial advisor who does not charge, I would see what advice you can get from anywhere, but DO NOT PAY FOR IT!

I'm sorry if any/all of this seems hard, but you've plucked your courage up and seem ready to face it.

Every good luck, try and look on it as a task you have to take on and start to REVERSE what is happening. It won't happen overnight, but do not bury your head in the sand. Support and advice are always available here if you at a low ebb x

Please feel free to PM (private msg) me if you would like to - I feel for you. to PM, click my name at side of this msg and choose that option. :wave:

mm

Hope_2

Sorry didn't make it clear. We have £2100k still as endowment the remaining £7400k is repayment. The endowment pays out in 2 years.
Contact lenses are £20
I know I'm going to have to talk to the kids and give them packed lunches that they hate because none of their mates have them.

MrsM_4

Hope, sent u PM, check at top of your page

How old are your children? they must have some idea how all this is affecting you all - can't you get them on board?

mm

Doomed_Economy

Hope wrote:

Sorry didn't make it clear. We have £2100k still as endowment the remaining £7400k is repayment. The endowment pays out in 2 years.

Hello,
Are you sure about your mortgage? You say you relocated & have a mortgage for £95K in total, but still have an endowment & a repayment also? That seems excessively high (£700 odd), unless its over a very short period of time, or at an highly inflated interest rate. A repayment mortgage for the full £95K at 5% over 20 years would only be £635.25 pm.
74K over 20 years would be £494.82 + £140 (at the maximum) for the interest on the endowment is still much less than you're paying.

Also, have you checked to see if the endowment will deliver £21K in 2 years time?