And then there was light!!!

jessie179

I had my LBM few months ago but because financially I am not the main earner it was a bit stressful sorting it out. I been registered on here since last year September and been reading the post of many Debt Free Wannabe's and have been finding the motivation from the forum. I was this close to do an IVA but decided that we can do it.

So just a little info of myself and how we got into this mess. at this second I thought it was 3 months to go but actually in 2 months time I will be 30. Yes 30 and I am in debt and going crazy as i never been in debt before or more so ever since I been married. I have been married 2 years and 4 months and always been employed. Always been really good with my money. I love clothes but would never spent loads for just a dress or pair a shoes. I had loads of clothes and shoes but all bought at bargain stores, sales and my ultimate favourite vouchers. I am a voucher queen. So I have always been one of the people that can up until a day before payday or week before payday go out, spent money, work do's or party if invited as I always saved money.

I met and fell inlove with the loveliest guy. Literally been together from day one with no nights spent apart. Got married 8 months later in my home country that costs loads just for a ticket alone but also holiday and we spent 6 lovely weeks there. Came back and had another wedding reception. Most of these was initially money that was saved for. Wedding was really last minute as I saved up months before i even met my partner for flight and holiday as already confirmed with family when i was next coming down. He decided last minute to propose and join me and at the same time get married. So within 4 weeks of proposing we got married. But the only negative about my then partner was as good as I was saving money he was twice as bad as spending the money. So what he did without me knowing, he took out a loan for engagement ring, he took out an even bigger loan for wedding and holiday. we had second reception in england which I then took a loan out for. He lost his job in September and was doing odd jobs and just before we left he was promised a new job on his return. When we came back from holiday he didnt like the job and was literally in between jobs and hardly earning anything. The money he earnt was spent so quickly that I hardly had time to ask where it went to. Anyway 4 weeks after our lovely return from holiday and a week after 2nd reception I found out I was expecting a baby. This was lovely news but also very shocking as husband wasnt working at all. so this was back in Feb 07. Somehow another loan was taken out without me knowing and he finally found a nice job in May 07 and he is still with the same company. So during the times that he wasnt earning and I was on a salary of £1000 after tax I covered all the expenses, rent, council tax, bills, loans but couldnt cover his. To cut a long story short by July 3 months before baby was due and as a birthday present for me he agreed to discuss his debt with his bank. And at this point even though i hardly earnt loads I covered the loan that was taken in my name every month on time. So in order for us to have no debt worried we both agreed to change my personal loan to a managed loan and his personal loan, overdraft, credit card, all with same bank also to a managed loan.

During the time of my pregnancy his family cut all contact with us because of husbands ways with money. My family arent near at all and whatever money we had was used to pay the current bills and baby stuff. We literally bought everything ourselves. His salary being in sales was very low when he started as its commissioned based. So even though he started a job it was months before he earned any proper money and by the time he finally did I started earning maternity pay. So it just a vicious cycle. What we ended up doing is used loads of catalogues to pay for things. And at first it was all paid on time. But then my husbands bad behaviour started again and if he earnt £1800 example as he did one month and I was visiting my family he would pay the rent that was £650 back then not pay council tax and just spent the money on nothing that I could ever see. So before we knew it me earning what covered essentials we were slowly getting more into debt. Lots of occassions I would be in touch with a company sort out an agreement and set up a standing order and maybe the one month the money would go out the next month it was spent before it went out or he would earn very little due to current economic climate.

So all that has made put us in deep deep debt as I kind off gave up and stopped answering my phone as I couldnt deal with the companies anymore as the more I tried the more something came up and I woudl break my promise to these companies.

Now I am hoping that this is the last of it all and fingers cross we get it all out of the way soon as I am unemployed right now looking after my daughter and hoping to start soon working as a Childminder. I will be 30 soon and need to get a wake up. I will post my SOA after this.

thanks to anyone that got to the end of this post didnt mean for it to be so long

jessie179

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned....................

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 0
Partners monthly income after tax....... 1400
Benefits................................ 80
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1480

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 850
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 145
Electricity............................. 25
Gas..................................... 25
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 19
Telephone (land line)................... 27.18
Mobile phone............................ 30
TV Licence.............................. 11
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 13
Internet Services....................... 22
Groceries etc. ......................... 318
Clothing................................ 50
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 130
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 10
Other child related expenses............ 5
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 17
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 30
Haircuts................................ 21
Entertainment........................... 30
Holiday................................. 40
Emergency fund.......................... 20
(Unnamed monthly expense)............... 0
Tabacco................................. 180
Total monthly expenses.................. 2018.18


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

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
HSBC Managed Loan..............11792.....168.3.....13.3
HSBC Managed Loan..............9316......125.3.....13.3
Vanquis Card...................372.24....40........47.89
O2 - Husband...................778.......0.........39
O2 - Mine.....................456.......0.........23
Southern Electric - G..........369.......0.........19
Southern Electric - E..........1029......0.........52
Next...........................669.......0.........34
Vertbaudet.....................411.......0.........21
La Redoute.....................200.......0.........20
Empire Stores..................305.31....0.........16
JD Williams....................236.......0.........0
Littlewoods....................1089......59........29.9
Marshall Ward..................92........20........29.9
Blackhorse Loan................200.......99........0
Barclay Card...................701.7.....33........29.9
Total unsecured debts..........28016.25..544.6.....-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,480
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,018.18
Available for debt repayments........... -538.18
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 544.6
Amount short for making debt repayments. -1,082.78

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -28,016.25
Net Assets.............................. -28,016.25

Created using the SOA calculator at
Reproduced on Moneysavingexpert with permission, using Firefox browser.

jessie179

ok, DH salary came in this morning and it is slightly less only because we need to pay £450 to a friend. So whats left is £1350 and rent from that is £850 leaving £500 for normal expenses and debt. How we going to divide that I have no idea. I am checking online for mystery shopping and there is one few mins walk from the house but I am not allowed to take my daughter with so cant commit. If only I know what I can do to earn some money whilst having her

Lemon_Tree

hi, and welcome to the boards, there's not much i can say to start with except your OH needs a kick up the pants, but that none of my business really. The only thing i can mention from your SOA is that groceries can be cut back and you're spending a lot on tobacco, i don't think you can really justify saving for a holiday at the moment, that would be better spent against one of the higher interest bill, and the same goes for the emergency fund at the moment i don't think you have the luxury of an emergency fund, but it's not really going to make much headway into your deficit.
There will be others along soon who will be able to give better advice than i can, have you spoken to the debt charities, i don't know much about them but they probably will be able to help you.
good luck and keep going, stay on these boards and you'll get lots of support and help.

As to other income try the up your incomes board. It's not large sums but the daily scratchcards have netted me 60 quid since christmas and it all helps. Could you try Avon then you won't have problems about taking your daughter. Do you have anything you can carboot or ebay in the short term to get you over the next few weeks?

jessie179

Yes tell me about it, he needs a kick up the backside. Hopefully I got through to him this time.
Tabacco was initially brought down to £153 but he still smoked a packet of 20 a day despite seeing NHS doc several times. So working very hard in getting him to quit.
I know that we cant afford holiday fund at all. But I am South African and my daughter is only 18 months old and have quite a large family. My brother is getting married in Oct and we taking her down to see family as well. Best time would be to go in Dec but flights are much more expensive so family changed decided on date ot make sure I am included and therefore need to save for that money and that will be our last holiday until we debt free.

Again Emergency fund is more the fact that stuff always seem to crop up so if I can stash a few quid away it would save us from when we get there & not being able to find the money.

I loaded a lot of OH DVD's on Amazon (he doesnt know it yet) and so far have sold 6 of them and made £29 after fees. Valuable we no longer have so cant put anything on ebay. Baby stuff like buggies and high chair is still needed for our daughter and I am also a Registered Childminder so will have to use that should i get an enquiry for a baby. So cant sell that.

Sold a very nice sofa that we basically got for next to nothing from a Korean couple that moved back as wife was expecting and they gave loads of their stuff away for cheap to avoid having to ship back. We then resold that 3 years later for £100 making 5 times the money and the guy thought he received a bargain.
I am on cash back sites and also advertising my childminding service everywhere so hopefully soon I will be earning money as well.

Spoke to CCCS last night and they also mentioned the tabacco and advised on a few things so I need to finish read the 28 page booklet that I downloaded so will see.
But thanks for your reply

jessie179

Cant sleep trying to sort out a way to earn some more money. And all the while reading through the forum. Just came acorss a thread where it said that we can claim tax back especially if we've been made unemployed part-way through the tax year. So for tax year 2008/2009 I was on maternity leave for March - June. Then I started working mid-month June from home until 31st Dec. Been unemployed since. Calculator shows I am due at least £300. Not sure if I can claim for the year before as well. The online facilty on hmrc is unavailable right now will therefore try mid-morning. :j