Debt consolidation - Catch 22

laurieann

I currently have about 5 credit cards, all maxed. My fault, i am totally resposnsible for this, so instead of paying the cards at the minimum payment for years on end, I went for a loan, so that I could pay off the cards and close them down. Things are tight, but I am still making repayments and will continue to do so. I have a couple of other loans,one of which finishes next year. I have never defaulted on any payment, either loan or credit card.

The loan I went for was over 7 years at half of what I pay now. I was refused and the reason was that I had too many cards open. My credit rating is bad, despite the fact I have made all payments and never been late! So, I am in a catch 22. I can't get a loan because I have too many cards, but its these I want to pay off! I want to see an end to this and 7 years is a small price to pay, but not 30+, which is what it is looking like now. I have made cuts where I can and I do understand the banks perspective (HSBC have been pretty good), but is there any other way out of this, short of trying again when the loan is finished next year??

Numpty_Monkey

Hi,:hello:
consollidation very rarely works, , so in a way the bamk has helped you:eek:

If you post your SOA (income and outgoings) use this
http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html
we'll have a look see if there areas where you can make more savings and give you a different perspective and ways to pay your cards off that won't take 30 years

bottleofred

Hi laurieann,

I tried to consolidate years ago and was successful in getting a loan. However, about 12 months after consolidating I owed another small fortune on the credit cards and eventually had to go to the Consumer Credit Counselling Service for help. As numpty has said, post a statement of affairs and you'll get good advice etc on what to do.

Good luck and trust me, life can be much better without credit cards!