Please help with advice

mollygrub1

I hope that someone - somewhere can give me some advice please

I am really struggling financially and i will list my outgoings etc as follows:

Mortgage at 355/month - owe 62k - house worth approx 105k
Black Horse secured loan - 11k - pay 150/month (cancelled the PPI)
Loan to parents 73/month - due to end May 2007
Credit union loan (includes savings of 10/month) - 55 - due to end 2008
Gas 28
Gas service contract 28
Electric 29 - changed my utilities to take account of better deals
Telewest for tv, broadband and phone at 42
Food 125 - but i have never got that money so it comes out of bill money somehow for food
Petrol 85
Car insurance 65 (hefty as my son is a named driver on my policy and he uses my car for work as he is in a rural place and only 18 - has to work for 5 weeks before getting any wages and then will pay me 25/week keep) - Thank god!
Dog insurance 11
TV licence 11
House insurance and buildings insurance combined at 33/month - had some claims so have attempted to reduce this but struggling to find better
Catalogues - reducing at 30/month - owe about 300
Argos card - 25/month - owe 500
T mobile 22
Council tax 76
Inland Revenue 8 - due to end March 2007
Pension (straight out of wages - Local Authority pension) 85/month
Water 23

I dont owe any money on my car so have wondered about selling that (is worth about 2.7k) and getting an old banger and just insuring it for third party to get my insurance down whilst my son is still on my policy.

I just dont have any money for anything and just about cover my bills but never have money for food etc and i am really worried about my boiler at the moment and have a feeling that will be needing to be replaced - heck!

I was made bankrupt in 1998 and discharged in 2001 and my credit is just about okay - no missed mortgage or anything - a few late catalogues but nothing serious and always for a reason - dispute etc. I am just really stressed as i lurche from one month to another with never any money in between - i worry myself sick about house repairs etc and have not got any savings to pay for anything so it would be a major disaster!

I also wonder about selling my house and renting somewhere but am really worried about doing this and not being able to ever buy again as i dont earn a lot.

I take home about 998 from my main job and have a part time job that brings home about 70/month - i am trying to get a third job but am struggling to get the time to do anything else with two jobs already. Help!

skintchick

Could you rearrange your SOA so your bills are listed and totalled, then your debts are listed and totalled, so we can easily see the situation.

fairylights_2

Hey Mollygrub!

It sounds like you're treading water at the moment - there might be some things you can change so there's a bit more free cash.

I think your idea of selling the car and getting a banger has merits, but you would then need to make sure you'd got some cash to pay for repairs ... so would need careful consideration. As far as the car goes, I'd also suggest your son looks into getting HIMSELF an old banger for cheap insurance once he's getting paid. Then you can take him off your insurance. And as far as asking for board goes, Have you agreed that £25 is a fair amount to ask him to pay? I don't know how old he is, but I'd have to say he should cover his own costs, council tax, bills, petrol, food.

Give up your mobile - or use it less - £22 a month is nearly £300 a year, which you really don't need to be spending. Stop buying from catalogues - and the Argos card (I assume that's a store card). In fact, in truth stop buying things altogether if you don't actually need them. It sounds harsh, but we all fritter away our money on things that don't need buying. For example paying telewest £42 a month is a waste of money. You don't need hundreds of tv channels, basic line rental from BT and 1899 or other call providers will cost you about £15 a month. Ditto cheap broadband, saving another £12+ a month.

I'd also seriously consider cancelling the gas service plan. Have you ever claimed on it? Wouldn't you be better off paying £30 a month into a savings account in case anything goes wrong? You're potentially giving british gas £360 a year for nothing.

Apologies if this comes across as harsh, but I'm short of time at the mo. I really think you could make your life a bit easier if you just planned your spending better. I'm surprised you didn't have to go through all of this when you went bankrupt before. I'd recommend getting a little notebook and writing down every penny you spend - and what on. You'll be amazed at the end of the week where your pennies go.

mollygrub1

Hi thanks for my replies.
Re car - guess you are right.
Treading water - dead right!

Debts are as follows:
Catalogues -
Mortgage at 355/month - owe 62k - house worth approx 105k
Black Horse secured loan - 11k - pay 150/month (cancelled the PPI)
Loan to parents 73/month - due to end May 2007
Credit union loan (includes savings of 10/month) - 55 - due to end 2008
Catalogues - reducing at 30/month - owe about 300
Argos card - 25/month - owe 500


UTILITIES
Gas 28
Gas service contract 28 - it has proven to be of benefit as i had to claim for my boiler to be regigged
Electric 29 - changed my utilities to take account of better deals
Telewest for tv, broadband and phone at 42 - my son is going to put 15/month into this as he uses the tv package too. I don't go out so i figure my tv is my only real luxury
Water 23

Food 125 - but i have never got that money so it comes out of bill money somehow for food - i dont ever buy processed food - i make everything from scratch and freeze it so am very careful etc.
Petrol 85
Car insurance 65 (hefty as my son is a named driver on my policy and he uses my car for work as he is in a rural place and only 18 - has to work for 5 weeks before getting any wages and then will pay me 25/week keep) - Thank god! - my son will be contributing towards the cost of the insurance when he is paid after the first month - he cannot buy his own car as the insurance would be crazy for him at the moment - maybe a year until that happens! So, in the meantime i walk to work!
Dog insurance 11
TV licence 11
House insurance and buildings insurance combined at 33/month - had some claims so have attempted to reduce this but struggling to find better
T mobile 22 - on low tariff but need this as i babysit a lot and this gives me inclusive minutes to call my mother as my dad is very ill and i need to keep tabs on them without using other people;s phones at babysitting
Council tax 76
Inland Revenue 8 - due to end March 2007
Pension (straight out of wages - Local Authority pension) 85/month

mollygrub1

Sorry - just re-read your replies, re Argos - i hated taking this card out but my cooker blew up and my fridge at same time so i had to get new ones! I have paid for my cooker (dont quite know how) but now owe on the fridge and am paying it off asap.
Sorry that my replies are a bit rambling - one of my many faults!

fairylights_2

mollygrub1 wrote:

I don't go out so i figure my tv is my only real luxury

That would be fine - but you can't afford luxuries. Luxury is for people who aren't paying off debts.

mollygrub1 wrote:

Food 125

Where do you do your foodshop? We spend £150 a month as a family of four.

mollygrub1 wrote:

Petrol 85
Car insurance 65
So, in the meantime i walk to work!

So you spend £150 a month on a car you don't use?

mollygrub1 wrote:

T mobile 22 - on low tariff but need this as i babysit a lot and this gives me inclusive minutes to call my mother as my dad is very ill and i need to keep tabs on them without using other people;s phones at babysitting

Can't they call you?

I get the feeling from your posts that you wouldn't be posting if you weren't feeling the pinch a bit. But you need to be committed to clearing your debts, not looking for an easy way to free up some money. Otherwise you're going to find yourself back where you were eight years ago.

mollygrub1

Hi - yes i walk to work but i need my car for my second job and i will get it back from my son when he gets a car - i do actually need a car in the week but i am just borrowing from my poor mum at the moment if i need it or cadging a lift wherever possible as it is essential for my son who only started his first job two weeks ago. I shop at our local market or Morrissons so not Waitrose or anything! I am not looking for an easy way out - really - i try very hard and am very careful. I babysit most weekends to earn money and work really hard in the meantime - always have. I have always paid my way and the bankruptcy was purely because of a house that i purchased and we were literally forced out of it by crime and feeling very unsafe - so i rented it out and rented a small flat somewhere where i felt safe after a year of lying awake every night in case we were burgled again or the car was broken into. My son was only 6 at the time and it was essential that we got out of that property (as advised by the local police). So i sold at such a loss and the bankruptcy was not because of leading a high life or debts at that time - just the property so i dont look for an easy way out - i cut everything down to the minimum as much as poss and try my hardest - i will look at other ways of reducing things like my shopping etc - take your point which is very valid. Thanks

Callisto

Hi there,

I've just added up your bills and debts which (if I've done it correctly, apologies if not, but I'm not a maths genius!) comes to £1339 per month, while your pay equals £1068. You are spending £271 more than you are bringing in. If you add in your son's monthly contribution of £115, you still need to find £156 per month to cover everything.

You MUST cut back in one or more areas to make up the shortfall, otherwise in one year you will be £1800 further into debt.

If your son is the main user of the car, then he should also contribute more to petrol costs.

Seriously consider downgrading your car. If you can get £2.7k for it and buy another car at about £1k, then you have £1.7k to clear the Argos card, catalogues and possibly save some for emergencies? Definitely use it to clear or part pay on debts with highest APR's first.

Stop paying for extra channel TV and buy a freeview box. We used to have Sky, but I only really miss the Discovery Channel!

Shop around for cheaper broadband. Cut down on mobile and/or landline use wherever possible.

Read the Money Saving Old Style board for further tips on how to cut your grocery bills. £125 for two people seems a little high.

As a last resort, can you see if you can cut down the amount you pay your parents until you have some more breathing space? Also see if you could freeze your pension for a few months?

Once you're sorted out and have a surplus of cash each month, then save it as an emergency fund, so should appliances etc break, you will be able to cover it rather than taking out store cards (with HIGH interest rates!)

Hope that helps!

mollygrub1

What a good idea about the pension - i am going to ring them straight away to see if i can do that - that would be brilliant and i am certainly going to look at selling the car. I am just a bit concerned that it will be a false economy if i get a car that needs things doing to it and my car is reliable and fairly new - a difficult decision to make as we really need it to work. My son will contribute towards the running costs of the car and petrol as soon as he gets paid from his first month's wages. I am counting down the days! I have cancelled my tv today and ordered a freeview box so that is a saving. I have to go to the post office now to post some ebay stuff i have sold so will have a look at cheaper internet later - thanks so much to everyone for help!

mollygrub1

Thanks to all who replied to my help plea and thanks very much to Greenfinger.
I wish you all well. I have found i can cancel my tv package and have now got a freeview box which will pay for itself in a couple of months and i have changed my mobile to pay as you go and my son has gone through a list of things he will help me with when he receives a regular paypacket. I am still spending more than i have coming in and shattered from working two jobs and babysitting as much as possible as i get 15-20/night for this and am able to fit it in as i dont do much else! I do appreciate my replies and i would welcome anyone else's opinion please.
We had some bad news today - my car which is only 4 years old needs a new steering pump which is going to cost 700!!!! I have had to leave it in the garage as there is no way i have this sort of money and dont know what to do. So much for modern cars!!

It never rains but it pours. I have savings in my change tin of approx 28 total - bit off the 700 required!

Again,thanks for all your help.

CLAPTON

Try asking the garage what happens if you don't replace the 'steering pump' ....maybe just maybe it simply needs regular topping up with fluid...maybe not but worth a try (I have a reasonable but not expert knowledge of cars but I have not actually ever heard of a steering pump...(maybe they mean a power assist steering pump) . Anyway worth asking (mine doesn't work properly but by topping up every two months it seems ok to me...)