please any advise greatly appreciated -need to get out of this hole

de1976

Firstly i am greatly comforted to know there are people like yourselves whom are kind enough to give their own time to help others on this forum.
My problem is knowing what to do next. I am in 14000 worth of debt on credits cards. The apr has gone up and just managing minimum payment.I am just paying the interest each month. I have been refused a credit card in past and just recently a loan of 14000 with my bank. I could have managed the payments on it and be debt free in 5 years but they knocked me back. Where can i go for a loan. I work for trafford council. Would a credit union be able to help. Kind regards everyone De

bottleofred

Hi de1976,

I really don't think a loan is the answer in this case as debt consolidation only works for around 10% of people who try it and I wasn't one of them. I think you should post your statement of affairs to get help and advice on how to save money, which can then go towards the debts. http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html You should also consider looking into a debt management plan with the consumer credit counselling service or another organisation who provide this service free of charge. You were probably declined by your bank because you've used up a large amount of your allowed credit on the cards and continuing to make applications will probably make you look desperate. I tried the loan thing to and cleared the cards, but then spent the money on the cards again and couldn't make the repayments. I promise you, life does go on without credit cards and loans, even though at this moment it might not feel that way.

Good luck

Red

barbiedoll

Have the interest rates on your credit cards increased recently? (i.e. within the last month or so?)

If so, you do not have to accept the rate rise, you can close the account and carry on paying the minimum amount until the account is cleared. BUT...you won't be able to use the cards anymore.

See Martin's guide here....

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/reclaim/credit-card-interest-rate-increases

I also agree with bottleofred's suggestion to contact one of the debt charities with a view to helping you to repay your debts. Do not use a fee-paying company, you will not get a better service and it will end up costing you more money, which you clearly don't have.

With regard to credit union loans, they will only lend small amounts to you at first, you will need to be saving with them too and you will need to show that you are able to afford the repayments, just like a bank. It would still be a good idea to join if you can, even if you can only save £1-£2 per week, it will get you in the saving habit and you will then have access to their other financial products which tend to be a lot cheaper than the regular banks.

de1976

Thanks for the advise, yes i should contact someone to help.i suppose i should start with a helpline... Any suggestions thanks once again

arthursleep

Consumer Credit Counselling Service (aka CCCS)
Wade House
Merrion Centre
Leeds
LS2 8NG
Tel: 0800 138 1111
http://www.cccs.co.uk/

dancingfairy

or try National Debtline or a local CAB.
Dealing with the problem rather than more borrowing is a much better solution. More borrowing generally leads to more trouble rather than less.
df

de1976

hi. thanks all. well i just filled out a form on the cccs website and if i do a dmp it will take me over 11 years to pay off , dont think i can face that , i feel more depressed than ever now i was hoping 5 years would be realistic :-(
de

barbiedoll

Don't forget, that's just the debt-free date, based on what you can afford to pay now. If your circumstances improve at a later date, you will be able to pay more and get your debt cleared more quickly. Also, if any of your debts get passed onto debt collection agencies, you may be in a position to offer a quite small "Full and Final" settlement later on so don't lose hope now.

I hope you wrote to your CC company and rejected the rate rise?

You could always post your SOA (statement of affairs) on here and the good MSEers will have a look and see if we can't help you to save even more money!

Good luck with your DMP, and don't worry, you're not alone. Many of us have our debt-free date way, way into the future but we'll get there in the end.

Squirrel29

That's just an estimate time based on what you can pay now. With pay increases, bonuses, windfalls etc you can either increase payment, or save up and make full and final offers to trim the time off.

myownmoney

Precesion martial arts camberley money scam!!!

I have paid £339 +£200 to precesion martial arts in camberley in august 2010 to train for 6 months. I have attended 7 lessons and they gave me a' blue lined belt' for £35...unfortunately i could not carry on with the training because of some personal problems+ i did not like the training and their price.

I have asked them to terminate my contract on 25 sep 2010 and to give me a refund.
Unfortunately i have signed a very strange and unfair terms and conditions when i have joined them, they said they will never refund a single penny at any cost.
I'm happy to give them the money for 7 days training!
As i'm moving away from the town i can not make the time up any way.

When i have asked for the refund, they said they will never give any money back once it is paid to their account. The only thing i can do is to train for the rest of the term.


I'm going to loose £574 for nothing...it is really unfair. As i have signed their terms and conditions it is very difficult to fight..what should i do? Is it at all fair.?...please help me....


They really do not deserve that money for any reason...

myownmoney

Precesion martial arts camberley money scam!!!

I have paid £339 +£200 to precesion martial arts in camberley in august 2010 to train for 6 months. I have attended 7 lessons and they gave me a' blue lined belt' for £35...unfortunately i could not carry on with the training because of some personal problems+ i did not like the training and their price.

I have asked them to terminate my contract on 25 sep 2010 and to give me a refund.
Unfortunately i have signed a very strange and unfair terms and conditions when i have joined them, they said they will never refund a single penny at any cost.
I'm happy to give them the money for 7 days training!
As i'm moving away from the town i can not make the time up any way.

When i have asked for the refund, they said they will never give any money back once it is paid to their account. The only thing i can do is to train for the rest of the term.


I'm going to loose £574 for nothing...it is really unfair. As i have signed their terms and conditions it is very difficult to fight..what should i do? Is it at all fair.?...please help me....


They really do not deserve that money for any reason...