Well here goes.. feeling hopeless

johanne

Hiya,

i posted a months ago and have been trying to make changes and stay debt free but circumstances have changed and now i find myself just over £30 away from being £4,000 in debt....

I know its not much compared to some people debts but to me its huge! Especially when you realise im currently not working so have my £45.50 a week jobseekers allowence to live on and thats it as im still waiting for my housing benefit/council tax benefit to be sorted out 2 months on so have been paying out of my own pocket/my overdraft for them. :rolleyes:

My circumstances will be changing again in about 6 weeks time too as i (through financial hardship) am having to move out my house and move in with my boyfriend as i cant afford to rent here anymore.. and cant afford anywhere else. Unfortunetly my boyfriend is self employed and cant get work at the moment either....so hes plummeting into arrears with his mortgage etc and as he has no overdraft or credit cards as hes strictly a "cash" man.... wish is great EXCEPT anything that needs paying out for at the minute like diesel for his van, food for us etc im paying for on my credit card.. so im getting deeper and deeper into debt! I even had to buy a kitchen for us the other day as his house he owns is in a bad way and there was no kitchen! So as we wont have my place anymore to cook in we have HAD to buy a kitchen..luckily we got it in a 1/2 price sale and building it ourselves so it was £406 + £22.85 for the taps off ebay. But still its nearly £500 (as we still need to buy a ceiling!) that we couldnt afford.

Anyway... im trying reallllllly hard to not get deeper into debt.... even going to measures such as when i used my "slummy" 10ps out my piggy bank to pay in Netto for food this last week..... should have seen the looks i was getting as i counted out and then handed the girl 18 ten pences to cover the bill of £1.76 for basic bits.

I cant really cut back anymore at the moment...(except my phone use BUT last month was unusual month due to family circumstances) but i wanted to post here anyway so that i can see it in writing and make it public so hopefully i'll stick on the straight and narrow a bit more... :rolleyes:

My SOA FOR JULY ONLY

1899.com - £23.04 - PAID
Telewest - £38.81 (phone, basic tv and Broadband)
Council Tax - £55
Rent - £425
Water - £17.75
Sainburys Card - £5
Capital One card - £73.50
Barclaycard - £7.33
Gas - £10
Electric - £25
Groceries - £80
Mobile - £30

Total Outgoings: £790.43

Total income : £182 (JSA)

Hopefully i might get the £404 housing benefit im owed which would take my total income up to £586 - if not my parents have offered to lend me the money to pay my rent + council tax


My debt as of today

Capital One card: £2450 (0% until sept 2007)
Sainsburys Credit Card £116.98 (0% until next month)
Barclaycard: £7.33 (27.9% but will be paid off this month BTed the rest)
Overdraft: £1139.22 (29.9% Limit £1500 until 31/12/06 then back to £500)
Mum: £180 (0% to be paid back whenever)
Dad: £70 (0% to be paid back whenever)

Total: £3961.21


Rough estimate of my future SOA for August onwards when living with my boyfriend is..

Rent (including all bills + food etc): £350
Credit card repayments: minimum of £85
Mobile: £10

total outgoings: £425 income: unknown!

BUT thats only if im working.... If im still on benefits of JSA £182 a month it will be:

Food: £80
Credit Cards: minimum of £85
Mobile: £10

total outgoings: £175 leaving £7 "spare"

Im just feeling hopeless as i cant see things getting any better... im sick sick sick of not having ANY money! Ive been like this for nearly a year... as ive been on SSP or JSA for almost 11 months now.. Im fed up of sitting in all the time and watching every penny! Ive got no friends left cos they all have given up asking me to go out or that and me replying "i cant afford it.. " and none of them wanna come sit in with a bottle or anything Things have got so silly I even posted an application for a job the other day even though it said to take it into the store (so i probably wont get it now!) because a 1st class stamp was cheaper than the £2.80 bus fare to get to the store and back...!!!! I have started getting "food parcels" from my parents to make sure im at least eating... and 3 weeks ago my nan sadly died and i had no funeral clothes (as never been to one before and my "work" black pants wont fit!) so i went to tesco and picked up a £20 black dress (put on the credit card) making sure i could "accessorise" it to make it suitable for other occassions to "get my wear out of it" which made me feel really bad as it shouldnt have been considered that way

Just dont know what to do....... needed to rant though as im boring my boyfriend stressing over money all the time... i can tell ... thought here would be the best place as i know everyone here would understand. So erm yeah... thanks for reading this far!! And sorry for rabbiting on.....

OberonSH

Hey chick, don't be so hard on yourself. You've made some hard decisions, and I'm sorry you feel so bad.

Have you been onto the council about your benefit? I'd be at the offices every day! Hopefully you'll also get back pay f it's been going on so long. Go up there and tell them that you're getting into serious debt with them not paying you.

Have you ebayed everything you can, and maybe considered barwork in the evenings? You don't usually need prior experience.

skintchick

Oh, honey, big hugs.

I don;t know what to suggest, but I wanted you to know I care and feel for what you're going through.

I've never been in such a situation and can't imagine what you should do. I wondered if you can get a job of some sort? Or would that leave you worse off?

Hugs.

lynzpower

Hi love

Is there is no chance of you working? You could maybe work part time and still keep some beenfits. Do you realise you wont get any HB or CTB contributions when you live with OH dont you? My understanding is that the DWP believe that your OH shouild support you ( even if they earn a pittance)
However,do look into this I might be wrong on this though, do check it out.

The other option is is there anything you can sell? Ebay, amazon, greenmetropolis for books? Do a car boot sale with a mate?

The other thing you can do is to go to the CAB, CCCS, Paypal and lok into them undertaking a DMP with you where the creditors will hopefully agree a quid a month nominal payment till you get bakc on your feet. I suggest you do this asap at least to give you a break from all the pressure you are under on these cards

johanne

Im presently looking for work and have been for a while but im not having much luck as i was dismissed from work in December (on xmas eve!!) by Tesco as id been signed off sick for 3 months after a bad case of german measles which kicked off "post viral depression and anxiety" as the doctor put it :rolleyes: I then took a job in March as a trainee supervisor at H samuels (even though i didnt want it cos knew it would be too much too soon and i didnt wanna work in a jewellers) which unexpectedly entailed me travelling 60 mile round journey a day 3 months which i wasnt told about till i accepted the job... plummeting me into deeper debt AGAIN as i had to pay out my own travel etc... (which my parents paid hence what i owe them) and then work didnt pay me for 6 weeks cos of when i started...... then paid me wrong ...(£71 for 6 weeks full time work + commission - i think not!) so it took 10 weeks for me to get paid by them, by which time id been dismissed AGAIN by them for being off ill...... AGAIN! Because i caught a really bad infection again and couldnt leave the house let alone commute 30 miles a day on public transport.. and i was on a "trial".

Sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo this means my "employability" is extremely poor...... 2 gross misconduct dismissals in 6 months.... 4 months off ill in the last 12 months... I have been applying for anything and everything even 8 hour a week part time sales assistant jobs which youd think id be able to get? I just need someone who'll give me a chance.....

Ive sold most things i can on ebay etc to keep my head as above water as possible.... Ive spoke to the council over my benefit and they are trying to sort it as a matter of urgency....I am using pigsback etc to get vouchers etc, i have been using my clubcard/nectar points to buy food and using vouchers + using reduced stuff wherever possible...... i am just scrimping whereever i can!

About the debt.... im KINDA LUCKY.... as im only an additional card holder on the sainsburys card and not even that on the capital one (although its MY debt i balance transferred off the sainsburys card)... when i moved out my parents home in August my dad got the card so i could get a 0% on purchases deal........all the spending is mine though... hes now just got the capital one platinum card to transfer the debt too so i continue to have the debt at 0%! So debt in MY name is only my Barclaycard and my overdraft..... BUT obviously i dont wanna lumber my parents paying the other cards although im sure they would if i was desperate... but i wanna pay them back every penny i owe them... and i DONT wanna mess with their credit rating by defaulting or anything because theyve been soooooo kind to allow me to use their credit ability in the first place.


I know i wont be entitled to anything when i move in with my OH (i used to work for the DWP and have a good friend who still does so ive checked it all out!) THATS what makes it even scarier!!!!!! Cos in theory on a BAD month wed have my £182 jobseekers... thats it! I have been told by someone in the benefits office id be better off getting pregnant and NOT naming my OH as the dad.... because im under 25 i dont qualify for alot of benefits without a baby..... and because my OH is over 25... he should "come down with depression" and get signed onto the sick so he can get sick benefit etc....so he'll have some kinda income + hed qualify for help towards his mortgage.... AND we should live together but claim that werent not!!! :eek: :eek: :eek: I almost died being told this and when i told OH we both said we would never do it as its benefit fraud!

Im just at a complete loss! Apart from selling a kidney... i dont know what to do!

lynzpower

Could you sign up to a temp agency? This might make you more "employable"

So sorry to hear of your run of bad luck

jessicamb

Sorry about the run of bad luck.

I agree with Lynz - a temp agency seems like the best option to find some work while you get you track record back and get you some quick money.

pattiemay

Really sorry to hear your bad look, have you tried CAB or cccs to help with the debt problem, I have an appointment on Wed. with cccs as my situation is hopeless so have fingers crossed they ll sort me out. Please give them a ring they are very understanding

niceshoes_2

Hate to deliver the final blow, but if you are on JSA and move in with your partner, you aren't entitled to the JSA either, unless its contributions based, which it sounds as though it isn't as you have been on benefits for 11months.

You may be entitled to HB and CtB as a couple, based on his earnings, but you'd have to make a new joint claim together and provide details of his earnings etc.

Spirited_2

I think you are very sensible and ethical not to go down the route of working at and defrauding) the benefit system. It is true that some poor children are brought into the world for the most ridiculous reasons.

I am sorry to hear about your difficulties with viruses and depression. I have struggled with mental health myself and am currently out of work too - though luckily without the blackspots on my employment record - other than gaps. I wonder if your dismissal was fair given your health? It is difficult sometimes though with depression as you can find it difficult to keep the doctor and your work informed and without knowing they can't help you.

I think you should transfer the balance on your Sainsbury's card to one of your 0% cards/borrowings before the 0% runs out, and if possible do the same with your high interest bearing cards. No point paying interest you don't need to.

One thing I'd like you to think about is whether there is anything that you are good at that you could do at your own pace in a self employed fashion. Things like making jewellery, writing freelance for a local paper, etc. You would need to register as self-employeed and pay your tax and NI, but it might help you get some extra cash. Selling things like gifts online might not make you rich, but it ought to help.

The other thing would be to find some local voluntary work, to get yourself a good reference and to find out if you are ready to go back to work, whilst feeling you are making a difference would be good for you.

Kindest Regards x

johanne

niceshoes wrote:

Hate to deliver the final blow, but if you are on JSA and move in with your partner, you aren't entitled to the JSA either, unless its contributions based, which it sounds as though it isn't as you have been on benefits for 11months.

Your right... i totally forgot about that! Makes the situation even worse... yikes!

Spirited wrote:

I think you should transfer the balance on your Sainsbury's card to one of your 0% cards/borrowings before the 0% runs out, and if possible do the same with your high interest bearing cards. No point paying interest you don't need to.

All my balances will be at 0% by the end of the month due to:

• transfering £2450 off the sainsburys card to the capital one card
• transferring the £112 on my barclaycard statement across to sainsburys (no bt fee)
• Just discovering today that i have £115 worth of kitchen units to return hopefully for a refund! Which should credit my sainsburys card £115 cancelling out the balance transfer from the barclaycard! :j (lets just hope they dont insist on an exchange instead - if so we'll just have to buy £115 worth of bathroom suite which is what we need next!)
• Paying the odds and sods off all the cards then.. the odd £1 here and there that may be left.

Does anyone know of a way i can Super-balance-transfer money from sainsburys or capital one into my bank account? Just my overdraft is killing me at such a high rate.......

spirited wrote:

One thing I'd like you to think about is whether there is anything that you are good at that you could do at your own pace in a self employed fashion. Things like making jewellery, writing freelance for a local paper, etc. You would need to register as self-employeed and pay your tax and NI, but it might help you get some extra cash. Selling things like gifts online might not make you rich, but it ought to help.

I had though about this but im not very talented.... never been a crafty/arty

The other thing would be to find some local voluntary work, to get yourself a good reference and to find out if you are ready to go back to work, whilst feeling you are making a difference would be good for you

See id love to do this but ive been told it might affect my benefit (at the mo) because im a Scout leader in my spare time which counts as voluntary work..... so if i take on anything else then it may go over the "threshold" of being acceptable! :rolleyes: