is there anything we can do...

molly29

Pasting the SOA:
Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 2
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2610
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2280
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 4890
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 1396
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 806
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 193
Electricity............................. 139
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 45
Telephone (land line)................... 41
Mobile phone............................ 25
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 490
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 40
Road tax................................ 19
Car Insurance........................... 50
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 125
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 11
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 15
Buildings insurance..................... 30
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 57
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 30
Haircuts................................ 15
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 3584

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 270000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2700
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 272700

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 270662...(1396).....4.8
Secured Debt.................. 59000....(806)......13.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 329662....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
unsecured egg loan.............7385......298.......7.66
credit cards...................14187.....316.......19.9
overdraft......................2400......0.........0
credit card....................1800......57........19
2nd egg loan...................4300......105.......7.66
Total unsecured debts..........30072.....776.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 4,890
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 3,584
Available for debt repayments........... 1,306
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 776
Amount left after debt repayments....... 530
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 272,700
Total HP & Secured debt................. -329,662
Total Unsecured debt.................... -30,072
Net Assets.............................. -87,034

Jesthar

Hi Milly, and welcome

From the look of it, plenty can be done You apparantly have a big amount of money left over on paper every month after paying your debts, and there are also areas like groceries you can make some savings.

It's going to be a long haul to pay it off, sure, but you are in a strong position - well, if you really do have athat £500+ left over a months. If you can't actually find it, I suggest you start a spending diary to see where the pounds are slipping away

I have to dash right now, but I'm sure others will comment more specifically and I'll be around again later

*hugs* relax, m'dear - this can be handled!

~Jes

talana

Amount left after debt repayments....... 530

This is the key figure, as Jes said.
If you have that amount spare at the end of the month then there's a lot you can do with it.
If not, then your first job is to figure out which black hole that £530 is disappearing down. Keep a spending diary for a month and note down everything, every single spend.

credit cards...................14187.....316.......19.9

And can you break this down into individual cards?

bottleofred

Hi Molly,

The landline for the telephone is excessive for 1 month, as is the electricity (is it really £139 per month?!!). The £14187 at 19% for the credit card is expensive and it could be worth trying to shift some of it onto a 0% card. I've said some of it because it's highly unlikely your going to get that size of credit limit. If you do have £530 left each month, saving on the telephone and electricity etc could increase this amount and give you more cash to put towards the debts. As the others have said, if you don't physically have this amount left a strict spending dairy is required. Also, £490 per month on groceries is an awfully large sum of money for 2 people! And do you really spend no money on clothes?

molly29

Thank you all for taking the time to look at our situation, it was comforting to see the replies. You did make me question the amount left over each month and as some of the grocery spend was on cats and medication I've reallocated some of that, however, it also includes toiletries and cosmetics and whilst I'm not remotely as extravagant on these as I'd like to be, I do need some. Also my husband looked at the SOA when he got home and pointed out mistakes/ things I'd missed such as petrol only listed one week, no account taken of bank charges.
The 'disposable' income is all we have left towards the many boxes that have been left as 0, such as clothes, holiday, entertainment, household repairs, other travel etc and towards birthdays and Christmas as the amount allocated is an absolute minimum. Revised SOA follows although understand if you feel I've wasted your time. It was a difficult thing to do yesterday and a real reality check. Oh yes, electricity cost also includes gas.

molly29

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned.................... 2
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2610
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2280
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 4890
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 1396
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 806
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 193
Electricity............................. 139
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 45
Telephone (land line)................... 41
Mobile phone............................ 40
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 380
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 160
Road tax................................ 40
Car Insurance........................... 50
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 125
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 71
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 65
Buildings insurance..................... 30
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 57
Other insurance......................... 18
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 15
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 3768

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 27000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2700
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 29700

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 270662...(1396).....4.8
Secured Debt.................. 59000....(806)......13.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 329662....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Egg loan.......................7385......298.......7.66
Credit cards...................14187.....316.......19.9
Overdrafts.....................4800......120.......0
Partner credit card............1800......57........19
2nd Egg loan...................4300......105.......7.66
Total unsecured debts..........32472.....896.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 4,890
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 3,768
Available for debt repayments........... 1,122
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 896
Amount left after debt repayments....... 226
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 29,700
Total HP & Secured debt................. -329,662
Total Unsecured debt.................... -32,472
Net Assets.............................. -332,434

katsu

molly29 wrote: »

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household.........
Number of cars owned.................... 2
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2610
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2280
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 4890
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 1396
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 806
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 193 is this your annual figure divided by 12 or is it what you pay each month for 10 months giving you two "free months" to allocate this to debt busting?
Electricity............................. 139 :eek: Two of us in a 2 bed semi are on less than half of this for dual fuel (more like £50-55pcm) and we are both out at work all day too. You need to get onto this. Get your bills and work out what is your electric and gas usage. The utilities board here might give you some idea of regular consumption figures for similar properties? Check you are on the best deal through comparison sites and use a cashback site like Quidco or Top Cashback if you want to switch.
Turn everything off. Stop using standby, fit energy saving bulbs, don't use the immersion heater on your water tank etc.
Your local library might be able to lend you an electricity consumption meter to measure your usage and see how you can cut down.
Gas..................................... 0 see above.
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 45 consider a meter - again I pay less than half what you do (I have a washing machine, take showers not baths).
Telephone (land line)................... 41 Look at how you can cut this - use the "say no to 0870" website, cheap deals for international calls etc. This is excessive for a landline phone
Mobile phone............................ 40 not bad - assume this is two phones?
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45 get a freeview box
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 380 You will be able to cut this with meal planning. Look at the Old Style board for tips. This is an area where I'm waaay not perfect I'm afraid
Clothing................................ 0 try and work out what your spend has been on these things out of your surplus so you get a better picture of your spending habits.
Petrol/diesel........................... 160 making any non-essential journeys? can you cut down on short trips of less han 2 miles and walk instead or cycle? Don't drive to the shope for a bottle of milk etc.
Road tax................................ 40
Car Insurance........................... 50
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 125 :eek: every month? Over £1k in maintenance costs - you could buy a car for that! are you actually saving this up each month?
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 71 Would a pre-payment certificate work out cheaper if it is prescriptions? If it is medical or dental cover check if you can get it cheaper.
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 65
Buildings insurance..................... 30 I assume this includes contents? Use comparison sites at renewal time to check prices and coverage, then use a cashback site to purchase.
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 57
Other insurance......................... 18 what is this? check all insurances are best rates.
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40 You said this is a minimum! You can cut this in half, easily. I spent £180 on 23 people for last christmas and no-one thinks we are cheap. I use sales all year round, bargain deals (check the grabbit board most days), cheap shops and charity shops - they sell great new goods if you hunt them out.
Haircuts................................ 15
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 3768

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 27000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2700
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 29700

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 270662...(1396).....4.8
Secured Debt.................. 59000....(806)......13.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 329662....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Egg loan.......................7385......298.......7.66
Credit cards...................14187.....316.......19.9
Overdrafts.....................4800......120.......0
Partner credit card............1800......57........19
2nd Egg loan...................4300......105.......7.66
Total unsecured debts..........32472.....896.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 4,890
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 3,768
Available for debt repayments........... 1,122
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 896
Amount left after debt repayments....... 226 start by working out what you really have left each month. If you are spending on entertainment etc then add that up and put it in above so you can get a realistic picture where you can cut down.
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 29,700
Total HP & Secured debt................. -329,662
Total Unsecured debt.................... -32,472
Net Assets.............................. -332,434

Hi Molly, Here is some ideas for you to look at. To start slaying the debt you need to make some changes but it can definitely be done. |First step is to stop using the cards -have you stopped or are you still using them? If you are still using them you need to work out what you are spending it on and update the SOA.

We don't feel you are wasting our time. This board is here to help.

Hope this helps you.

talana

molly29 wrote: »

The 'disposable' income is all we have left towards the many boxes that have been left as 0, such as clothes, holiday, entertainment, household repairs, other travel etc and towards birthdays and Christmas as the amount allocated is an absolute minimum.

Always helps to revise your SOA and get it as accurate as possible.
Your comment here about the 'disposable' income is the wrong way to go about it. You need to set yourself strict budgets for all those items and stick to them, just as with everything else, or the disposable will dribble away and you'll have nothing left at the end of the month.

And achieving a surplus at the end of the month it what it's all about if you want to tackle the debt.

Katsu has down a pretty good breakdown of your spending there. Plenty of wiggle room for cutting back.
Groceries and car maintenance are the ones I'd start with. Do you really spend £125pm on car maintenance on a car worth £2700? :eek:

foxgloves

I'd start with that grocery bill. We spend about 250 a month on groceries which includes cat food, all household cleaning products & some toiletries. Am quite old-style in terms of growing some of our veg, cooking from scratch & batch cooking to freeze & this helps as you can time a month where you know you are going to have, say, a big car bill & mostly eat out of the freezer. Your energy costs are high. Our energy provider (Npower) gives away free energy monitors (you can often also borrow them from the library as a previous post says) and this has been a revelation in terms of what the different appliances cost. We already turned everything off, had low-energy bulbs, etc. Are you on the dual tariff (Economy 7) electricity? If so, you'll probably find like us that it makes a difference setting the washing machine to come on at night, also things like breadmaker, storage heaters, so they use elecricty at the cheaper rate. Orange does a mobile tariff for 15 a month & I got a nice touchscreen phone with that too.....not much of a saving, but everything you can release to chuck at a debt is worth doing. It does become very motivating when you start to see them going down & you realise that the cutbacks are working.

Jesthar

Hi, Molly

You're never wasting your time or ours doing an accurate SoA! Don't worry about asking questions or having to correct things, the only thing that matters is that you want help and we want to help you

Katsu has done a great commentary on yout SoA, so I'll just agree that groceries and car maintenance seem very high, and could easily get you more to spend on clearing your cards.

Keep smiling, this can be sorted - it'll take a while, but it's very do-able

~Jes

podperson

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 1396
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 806
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 193 - is this over 12 months or 10?
Electricity............................. 139 - really high, check comparison sites, look at things being left on, if not on dd see if this would be cheaper - we pay £60 a month for both, that includes extra for arrears and OH and flatmate are home all day so tvs, computers etc on all the time.
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 45
Telephone (land line)................... 41 - very high, again shop around, does this include internet since that's at 0? If so look at getting a cheaper phone/broadband and even sky package (I get all 3 for £30 a month on basic package)
Mobile phone............................ 40 - could you drop a package on these?
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45 - see above
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 380 - could be cut down, we spend about £150-200 a month for 2 of us, including cat food, toiletries, cleaning stuff etc. and know could reduce more if made more of an effort with batch cooking etc.
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 160
Road tax................................ 40
Car Insurance........................... 50
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 125 - this seems high even for 2 cars
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 71
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 65 - is this every month or have you had vets bills recently? If just insurance shop around
Buildings insurance..................... 30
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 57
Other insurance......................... 18 - what's this?
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 15
Entertainment........................... 0 - nothing for this? wouldn't say budget a huge amount but this is going to be a long term plan and no one expects you to never go out again till the debts are paid
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 3768

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 27000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2700
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 29700

Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly.. .APR
Mortgage...................... 270662...(1396).....4.8
Secured Debt.................. 59000....(806)......13.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 329662....-.........-
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly.. .APR
Egg loan.......................7385......298.......7.6 6
Credit cards...................14187.....316.......19.9
Overdrafts.....................4800......120...... .0
Partner credit card............1800......57........19
2nd Egg loan...................4300......105.......7.66
Total unsecured debts..........32472.....896.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 4,890
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 3,768
Available for debt repayments........... 1,122
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 896
Amount left after debt repayments....... 226 - this is good but does it usually happen? If not keep a spending diary to see where it's going to.

Ok the good news is that you have enough for the major bills and should technically have a bit left over. Also some savings could be made which will up this amount. Would suggest throwing this extra money at the high interest ccs first. There's a snowball calculator where you found the soa that's worth having a play with. Good luck with it x