Complicated Situation, any help greatly appreciated

FU510N

Hi guys and gals, I was wondering if you could give me some advice? I understand its a bit of a read but I really need help

I currently have debt in the form of a HSBC credit card (£1500 limit, £700 used) and an overdraft on my HSBC debit account (£600 limit, £300 used). I also have 2 mobile phone contracts with O2 if that affects things (I read somewhere that a phone contract constitues credit, true?)

With one thing and another to pay out for, my debt has been sat in these kinds of figures for the last few months now and ive just been hit with the problem of replacing my car (head gasket, grrr). To top it off I need to pay out for Christmas and the remaining balance on my holiday next year needs to be paid by January 4th (£500 left to pay)

Im unsure of the interest rate of my overdraft but my credit card is about 21.9% APR. So I have been considering getting a small loan or another credit card to lump everything together and pay for a new car and the holiday, the troubling thing is knowing which option is best for me? (I don't intend on spending more than £1000 on a new car, preferably near the £500 mark)

Im also puzzled as to where I stand regarding an application for a new credit card or a loan with anyone apart from my bank. The reason being I live in Cornwall but work near Nottingham during the week, I have been at my Cornwall address for 3 and a half years and working for the company near Nottingham for about 10 months. I stay with family when in Nottingham and everything in my life is registered to my home in Cornwall. It worries me that this may look odd to credit agencies as these places aren't exactly close to each other, would they require details about my place of work etc.?

If any other information is required in order to give me the best advice then please dont hesitate to ask (age etc.)


Many thanks for even reading this, I look forward to hearing your opinions

SimbaSimon

I currently have debt in the form of a HSBC credit card (£1500 limit, £700 used) and an overdraft on my HSBC debit account (£600 limit, £300 used). I also have 2 mobile phone contracts with O2 if that affects things (I read somewhere that a phone contract constitues credit, true?)

The mobile phone would appear on your credit reports but as long as your paying them the normal payments on your phones and credit card its not a problem.

With one thing and another to pay out for, my debt has been sat in these kinds of figures for the last few months now and ive just been hit with the problem of replacing my car (head gasket, grrr). To top it off I need to pay out for Christmas and the remaining balance on my holiday next year needs to be paid by January 4th (£500 left to pay)


Im unsure of the interest rate of my overdraft but my credit card is about 21.9% APR. So I have been considering getting a small loan or another credit card to lump everything together and pay for a new car and the holiday, the troubling thing is knowing which option is best for me? (I don't intend on spending more than £1000 on a new car, preferably near the £500 mark)

Can the car be repaired? If so wouldn't this be considerable cheaper then buying a new car? Saving a few hundred pound in the process. If repairable the remaining overdraft should just about cover this.

This leaves you £800 unused credit on your credit card. You could pay the balance of your holiday which would leave you £300 for christmas which should be plenty. This would take you near your credit limits so you need to be careful not to go over them. I wouldn't advise getting a loan as these could drag your credit out over a longer period of time, when you really need to get paying it off as quick as possible!

Im also puzzled as to where I stand regarding an application for a new credit card or a loan with anyone apart from my bank. The reason being I live in Cornwall but work near Nottingham during the week, I have been at my Cornwall address for 3 and a half years and working for the company near Nottingham for about 10 months. I stay with family when in Nottingham and everything in my life is registered to my home in Cornwall. It worries me that this may look odd to credit agencies as these places aren't exactly close to each other, would they require details about my place of work etc.?

As long as you live in Cornwall some of the time, your on the electorial register in Cornwall and all your bills are going to Cornwall then you should be fine providing you use this address on your applications. I doubt they'd look at the corrolation of your work address being in Nottingham as I'm sure plenty of people commute during the week or stay somewhere else at weekends.

One option is once you've got your holiday and christmas on the credit card you can try applying for a new credit card from one of the lenders either now or at the start of the year (presuming your payments are all in good standing as mentioned at the start). If you got one that allowed a low interest rate on balance transfers during the introductary period then you could move the debt to the new card, pay the lower interest rate and start working on getting the debt cleared.

Simon