What To Do

In_Search_Of_Me

No money expert but looking at this you should be able to sort things without having to get IVA etc...agree with Lynz that there is quite a bit you can cut down on & keeping a spending diary really is a great way of seeing where your money goes. I think you can do this but you'll need to cut down & be ruthless but again...am not a financial adviser! Good luck & keep us posted! You've taken the most important step which is to take your head out of the sand so well done!

lynzpower

sorry, somethings not adding up on a second look.

Is your wife childminding at the moment, only £150 looks very low, what hours are they, how many children? Its possible that she could be undercharging

Also, I would say that added into your budget would be the items that your wife needs "for the business" such as toys, blankets, wipes, snacks etc, as these dont seem to be accounted for. Im guessing these expenses are getting lumped in with food. If this is done, I dont know if you can get vat back for things like this? Have you checked?

ckemp

Hi lynz i have been meaning to reply to your earlier posting and i will in more detail asap,for now further to your recent posting,

At the moment my wife is looking after 1 child,which is a few hours per day 3 days a week,she recently lost 2 child simply because the parents couldnt afford to put their children into childcare anymore ,so it wasnt as if we knew the contracts were coming to an end otherwise yes we would have advetised earlier,

My wife has just taken a phone call from someone who has seen the advert and is looking for a childminder,wahooooo,fingers crossed.

As for toys,wipes ect,we have a 3 year old son and 5 year old daughter so these items are to hand anyway and yes these can be off set against tax as the items are also needed for the childminding business.

Hi Fishface69 thank you for the kind words of support,i REALLY do not want to do an IVA or consolidate,i just want to keep ploughing through it.

I will post a reply in a little while with a game plan i have,see what you guys think and see if it is realistic.

thankyou onece again

In_Search_Of_Me

Good that it was a help. From experience keeping a diary of exactly what you spend is a great help and enables you to see where the money is going & if/where its overspent...I have found it a great help.
You say that your wife has a debt management plan...please sit down as a couple and be honest with each other about money and how you are going to reduce your outgoings togeather. Have a look round the boards here...some of the stories are heartbreaking and I am concerned that if you dont honestly tackle the debt now and go on a serious economy drive you will end us in serious financial difficulty & that would be awful...It is hard (just got through month 1 of being ruthless and STILL spent too much!) & does require a whole change in the way you live but is well worth it! You can do it but you've got to be honest & ruthless! Good luck with new childminding child by the way! Lets hope another one comes along soon!

Lydia.42

Hi
I agree with what Lynz has said. But before cutting up/closing the empty credit cards, call them and ask what rates they can give you. I called A & L when my 0% deal was coming to an end, and was told they could not offer me anything. However when i moved the balcance and cleared the card, they offered me 0% for a further 6 months (just 2 weeks after saying no to me).
All cc companies want your business. Perhaps you can balance transfer enough by shuffling to free up enough to clear the provi cash loan as Lynz said. This way it may be possible to get it on lower apr.
Good luck, and really bash the phone/internet this week to get cheaper lecci/gas, etc and tackle the card companies.
Just shuffling could give you a bit of breathing space until the child minding picks up again, and make you money work harder at clearing the debts.
L