what to do first.

hornet64

Where do i start, have been self employed for 16 years the last 4 being a nightmare. i ask myself every day why did i not give up earlier. having spent the last 4 years trying to keep the company going and paying everybody else but not myself, i now find myself £165,000 in debt to the bank and £87,000 in debt with cards trying to keep the company going for what i ask myself. the bank loan is secured on my house so i have now no equity in it, was it all worth it, well at least i have two beautiful girls and a supportive wife. so looking to the future i find BR now the only choice open, not one that i relish but what chioce do i have. my questions are these
What do i do to start with?
Where do i get the forms?
Can i just hand my keys back to the estate agents and let them sort it out?
How on earth do i persuade some one to rent me a house?
and has anybody been in a similar situation becaue i feel like a leper and a failure

alastairq

Hi hornet64...wlcome to the forum...

others far more knowledgeable than I will be along shortly.

What do i do to start with? at the top of the screen are some stickies for Debt Councilling organisations..I htink one of those should be your first port of call.
Where do i get the forms? The Insolvency Service website has forms in online format...either download, or fill out the online system.
Can i just hand my keys back to the estate agents and let them sort it out? Not quite as simple as that.[what would the estate agents do with them?] Again, someone who has dealt with property/mortages with regards to BR is better placed to advise....I flogged our house some time beforehand.
How on earth do i persuade some one to rent me a house? May/will be worthwhile finding property to rent beforehand..ie once you have decided to stop paying the mortgage....depending on where you live, estate agents do lettings, for example....Just being a BR isn't a bar to renting a property....an argument often put forward is that, after BR, one is in a much better financial position to pay rent, etc...than beforehand. If BR is your intended route, then a bit of planning will see moneys released to finance things like rent.
and has anybody been in a similar situation becaue i feel like a leper and a failure...An awful lot of people on here felt that way...some still do, sadly. Br is a ''new beginning''...and should be grasped as such. ''Failure?'' I wouldn't say so, for one....firstly, you have found the courage to actually do something about the terrible situation you find yourself in. For sure, your employees aren't going to thank you for making them redundant..but hey, life's like that...it's a fact.
There are no other options....and they ought to have seen this coming?

Consider this...you have ensured they have had a living wage for however long....without your efforts, they would not have had that....duty, responsibility are all admirable things...but where was the help and advice when you needed it?

You have to put this all behind you now, focus on your family, find a source of income, and move on.

Don't please feel guilty at being a victim of the times.

cavework

Have sent you a PM.
You have created your own income for 16 years. That is not failure, that takes courage and commitment.
xx

Darnit_2

Me too! I used the word "failure" when crying with my OH about it all. Frankly I am far from it, and I see it now. I was dealt a rubbish hand of cards and I tried my best to play them. Same applies to you. Just do what you have to do, you will have a ruubbish few weeks, then things will start to look up. Preparation is the key and it is a lot of work for a few weeks when your affairs are complicted like mine and probably yours, but then each thing you do is another thing ticked off.

Good luck and keep posting.

hornet64

thanks for the support guys!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sorry i mean to say hand the keys back to the morgage people not estate agents, my mind is all over the place at the moment

tigerfeet2006

Please, please give Business Debtline a ring in the morning and go through your options with them. Their link and no. are in my sig.

If they suggest BR then we will help and support you as much as we can.

If you are letting the house go then stop paying the mortgage and save the money for your rent, deposit, LA fees, moving costs and BR fees. Get yourself a rental property and then look at going down the BR route.

As for the house, when you move out send the keys back to the mortgage co. with a letter. When it is time someone will help you with the wording. You will have to notify the council you have moved out, they will give you a 6 month payment holiday on the CT. If the house has not been repo'd by the end of that you will usually have to pay 50% of the CT until they have.

Have a read of the Bankruptcy Help sticky as there is lots of useful info and links there starting from post 1

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1056083



As the others say you are not a failure, you are a victim of changing market and circumstance.

alastairq

Sorry i mean to say hand the keys back to the morgage people not estate agents, my mind is all over the place at the moment

Hornet..yup, I knew what you meant...but just had a brief mental picture on reading your post.......of the look on the face of the estate agent when you just opened the door and threw the house keys at him......???

chinnnup......we're all here to support, one way or the other