1st Post - Help Needed

Hibee07

hey everyone,

This is my first post here asking for your help. I have been reading for a few weeks now and decided to post and see where you can help, as i feel things are getting tighter and tighter for me each month.

Im finding i can't enjoy the lifestyle i'd like too, and with my girlfriend recently moving in she is constantly wanting to modify the flat and also go on holidays in the future, yet i have no way of seeing this happening with my current finances.

Below is my SOA, with certain parts explained, please help:

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.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1250
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 400 (Partners Rent)
Total monthly income.................... 1650

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 317.5 (*see specific question below)
Rent.................................... 540
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 147
Electricity............................. 50
Gas..................................... 50
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 15
Mobile phone............................ 50
TV Licence.............................. 12.37
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45
Internet Services....................... 15
Groceries etc. ......................... 0
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 50
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 45
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 10
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 42
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 1398.87


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 1500
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 1500


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 0........(0)........0
Secured Debt.................. 42000....(317.5)....6 (* see question below)
Total secured & HP debts...... 42000.....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Loan...........................1600......49........7.9
Credit Card....................500.......25........13.9
Total unsecured debts..........2100......74........-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,650
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,398.87
Available for debt repayments........... 251.13
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 74
Amount left after debt repayments....... 177.13

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 1,500
Total HP & Secured debt................. -42,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -2,100
Net Assets.............................. -42,600

.[/i]

* This debt is actually to my parent, as when i split up from an ex i brought with me two loans which she left me with. My dad then offered to consolodate and secure them against his home in his name if i agreed to pay the mortgage on it, which i accepted as it meant monthly payments halfing.

1 other problem i have is my ex also has a loan and mortgage she pays and i have nothing to do with yet my name is on the loan from our time together. The bank will not let her re-do the loan in just her name. So on my credit history it shows this also.

HELP!!!!

HappyMJ

You've missed out a lot such as Groceries ... £0 ..Do you not eat anything?

Also, you should have life insurance to cover your dad for the loan that he has secured on his house.

McKneff

Gas and electric are way over the top if there are only 2 of you in the house.

Consolidate your internet /satellite system into 1 package.

saltnvinegar

Hi Hibee07

My thoughts below on your SOA

Hibee07 wrote: »

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.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1250
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 400 (Partners Rent)
Total monthly income.................... 1650

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 317.5 (*see specific question below)
Rent.................................... 540
Is your rent really £940 and you have deducted your partners £400 off this? Or is the £400 income she gets from letting out a property?
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 147
This seems high to me as a rental of £540 would indicate a flat or small house? Does this include any arrears payments?
Electricity............................. 50
Gas..................................... 50
This seems high also. Have you tried www.uswitch.com to get a better deal? Or does this include arrears also? You may be able to get a combo deal.
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
No water rates at all? Included in your rent?
Telephone (land line)................... 15
Mobile phone............................ 50
Is this for 2 phones? Is high for one. Look at a PAYG if contract is up for renewal.
TV Licence.............................. 12.37
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 45
This is a luxury and if you're serious on getting flush cancel it.
Internet Services....................... 15
Have you looked at getting combo phone/internet deal?
Groceries etc. ......................... 0
You don't eat at all?! 2 people should be approx £130 a month.
Clothing................................ 0
You both walk around naked?
Petrol/diesel........................... 50
Are you being realistic with this? It is not much for a month.
Road tax................................ 0
You have a car. You must pay road tax
Car Insurance........................... 45
This is high especially for a car worth £1500. Shop around to get a cheaper deal.
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
You own a car and need to MOT it. You will need at least £5 per month then or more to cover repairs
Car parking............................. 0
Budget at least £5 / month for this
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Everyone gets sick and needs a prescription from time to time. You need to budget something for this.
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 10
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 42
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 1398.87


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 1500
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 1500


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 0........(0)........0
Secured Debt.................. 42000....(317.5)....6 (* see question below)
Total secured & HP debts...... 42000.....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Loan...........................1600......49........7.9
Credit Card....................500.......25........13.9
Total unsecured debts..........2100......74........-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,650
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,398.87
Available for debt repayments........... 251.13
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 74
Amount left after debt repayments....... 177.13

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 1,500
Total HP & Secured debt................. -42,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -2,100
Net Assets.............................. -42,600

.[/i]

* This debt is actually to my parent, as when i split up from an ex i brought with me two loans which she left me with. My dad then offered to consolodate and secure them against his home in his name if i agreed to pay the mortgage on it, which i accepted as it meant monthly payments halfing.

1 other problem i have is my ex also has a loan and mortgage she pays and i have nothing to do with yet my name is on the loan from our time together. The bank will not let her re-do the loan in just her name. So on my credit history it shows this also.

HELP!!!!

Please take my comments above as constructive, just trying to find some areas you can make savings.

OK so the secured loan is a priority debt so lets leave that for the moment as it needs to be paid.

Some more questions for you:

Is the loan of £1600 the one associated with your ex or is this in additional to that?

What do you use your car for?

What position are you in work wise? Can you get overtime? Can you look at p/t work?

More comments when you get back on the above!

SnV

Hibee07

Ok,

Thanks for the replys. Here is the answers to your questions on the soa.

- firstly my rent payment for the flat is £540 and the £400 is what my gf gives me per month towards rent and bills, hence why it's Inc in income.

- council tax is £147 per month without any arrears. This sum is correct for my area as in a new build flat.

- gas and elec dd is Inc arrears from winter months when there wasn't enough being paid on a monthly dd set up. So can't switch them at moment without paying of arrears to either.

- water rates Inc in rent

- this is one mobile contract at £40 per month but budget for £50. Contract another year to run

- Internet and phone line rental is already a combo deal along with tv sat all with sky.

- groceries would be about £80 per month for me, didn't Inc this as didn't see what this had to do with reducing other outgoings.

Hibee07

- clothing, no I don't walk around naked, but recently have not been buying clothes due to not affording them hence the £0 per month

- petrol is accurate as I car share to work and only drivevone week per month. Road tax is pd for the next 6 months, but if it helps I would have to budget £20 per month for this.

- the £1600 loan is additional to the one with ex, this was used to pay off a high interest cc.

- car is used for leisure and commuting to work.


Hope these answers help you find a further solution.

Hibee07

- clothing, no I don't walk around naked, but recently have not been buying clothes due to not affording them hence the £0 per month

- petrol is accurate as I car share to work and only drivevone week per month. Road tax is pd for the next 6 months, but if it helps I would have to budget £20 per month for this.

- the £1600 loan is additional to the one with ex, this was used to pay off a high interest cc.

- car is used for leisure and commuting to work.


Hope these answers help you find a further solution.

HappyMJ

Hibee07 wrote: »

Ok,

Thanks for the replys. Here is the answers to your questions on the soa.

- firstly my rent payment for the flat is £540 and the £400 is what my gf gives me per month towards rent and bills, hence why it's Inc in income.

- council tax is £147 per month without any arrears. This sum is correct for my area as in a new build flat.

Thanks....

Council Tax. It is very high. I have never heard of a flat being so high what Band is it? £1470 per year for a flat sounds like it's Band D. Flat's are always Band A or at best Band B especially considering the rent you are paying. You need to appeal it. You'll need to visit the VOA and go through the appeals process. Never mind that you are the tenant you have the right to appeal. My house is a 3 bedroom recent new build and it was Band C but I have appealed it down to Band B and it wasn't hard at all and I pay more rent than you. It's brought my council tax down from £132 per month down to £115 per month. Then with paying 12 months and getting single person discount it came down again to £72 per month.

New build or not the value is the same. If anything a new build is smaller and therefore cheaper.

DawnW

Not being funny, but can't your partner get a job? If she wants to redecorate the flat, go on holidays etc, is there a reason why you should have to pay for it all?

saltnvinegar

Hi Hibee

Thanks for the further info, I understand your thought process but I fear it is not going to work. Heres some things to consider:

1) Your biggest debt is the secured loan against your dads house. With your current repayment, without interest, it is going to take you at least 11 years to pay off.

2) You state you cannot enjoy the lifestyle you would like

3) If you split up with your girlfriend and she moves out your income drops by £400 per month (fingers crossed this doesn't happen though!)

Ok so with those things in mind when you draw up your SOA first of all it needs to be long term. You are going to be paying back that secured loan element for a long time therefore your SOA needs to reflect this too.

Next you need to start enjoying a lifestyle you can afford not a lifestyle you would like. The important thing is to learn to enjoy the lifestyle you can afford!

Your solution is long term, and a change in lifestyle. Setting up a SOA without including things like clothing is not going to help you. Your creditors may be happy for you to walk around with threadbare clothes but that is just not realistic.

What I would suggest is enter the SOA again but think more long term and be a little more honest with yourself in terms of what to include in your budget.

Ok so onto some practical stuff......

Two simple equations:

Income < Outgoings = Debt
Income > Outgoings = Savings and cash accumulation

So to balance the equation in your favour you need to:

a) increase income
b) reduce outgoings

Q) Can you increase your income? Simple answer is yes, do car boots, ebay, mystery shopper, online surveys. All info on these you can find on this website

Can you get overtime at work?

Can you get a part time job at the weekend?

Q) Can you decrease your outgoings? Almost certainly yes but we need a more realistic SOA first. You have to include the things mentioned and this other loan you had from ex.

Get rid of luxuries such as Satellite TV.

Only use the free minutes on your mobile and once spent do not use it further so you only pay the minimum contract amount.

Reduce your entertainment budget

Can you commute via public transport?

Your Council Tax is extortionate! I pay less than that for a 3 bed house in a 'nice' area.

When is your rental lease up for renewal? Can you move somewhere:

a) Cheaper
b) Much closer to work so you can walk to work and ditch the car saving more money

I know these are all a bit savage and radical but you need to make some severe lifestyle changes as I think if you're a bit more honest with your SOA you are closer to the bone than £177.13 a month which is where I think some of your problems lie and why you are finding it harder every month.

The good news is the amount of unsecured debt you have is very manageable and I think you could get this paid off very quickly and with a little discipline meaning your outgoings reduce too!

Update your SOA and repost and lets see what we can do

SnV

northern_at_heart

HappyMJ wrote: »

Thanks....

Council Tax. It is very high. I have never heard of a flat being so high what Band is it? £1470 per year for a flat sounds like it's Band D. Flat's are always Band A or at best Band B especially considering the rent you are paying.

That's not true. Our flat is in Band D, as are all the others in this street and surrounding area (I looked into appealing in detail, but for us Band D is correct).