Greetings....

BOBHOPE_2

Hello,

Im new to this forum but not new to debt unfortunately. Ive been spending the last few months trying to pay off my debts but its going so slowly and I feel like Im going round in circles

My SOA is as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2000
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 2000
Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 365
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 100
Electricity............................. 60
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 45
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 80
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 40
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 250
Clothing................................ 20
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 100
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 10
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 15
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50
Haircuts................................ 15
Entertainment........................... 200
Holiday................................. 50
Emergency fund.......................... 40
Bank Account Charge..................... 12
Total monthly expenses.................. 1464

Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 125
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 125

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
PLN............................15768.....355.......0
Credit Card....................1980......100.......21.9
Overdraft 1....................1350......50........0
Overdraft 2....................2150......50........0
Store Card.....................200.......20........29.9
Total unsecured debts..........21448.....575.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 2,000
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,464
Available for debt repayments........... 536
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 575
Amount short for making debt repayments. -39
Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 125
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -21,448
Net Assets.............................. -21,323

Ive been trying to tackle the smaller debts by trying to pay off whatever I have spare but Im constantly floating at the bottom of my 2 overdrafts and nothing looks like its moving.

I know I have to remain positive, and Im actually managing that pretty well, although it does put some strain on my relationship at times....

I have a few questions though which I would be grateful if anyone could advise me?

Firstly, I lost my car in february because I couldnt afford to replace/fix it (head gasket) although this might seem good news at first glance (financially) it actually isnt cos I seem to be spending a hell of a lot more money getting about using taxis, trains etc (plus where I live there isnt much in the way of public transport) Am I an idiot for trying to get a car on top of all this debt? If it would even be possible and me not to feel guilty

Secondly, is it wise/possible for me to switch banks and ask my current bank if they can possibly freeze my 2 overdrafts/charges and allow me to pay them off as just another debt, a fixed amount every month for example. My aim here is the extra money im losing with being in the overdraft (and constantly getting bank charges whilst juggling finances) can be put to better use in paying off the actual debt.

Thirdly, my credit card.... I have been floating close to max limit (2k) for 6months now. I thought I was getting somewhere but the xmas period killed me and I ended up not paying for a month and back to square 1 Again, would you think the bank would freeze this card and let me pay it off again with a fixed amount per month?

In a nut shell I havent a clue what to do or where to turn. All advice, help, and comments welcome.

thanks

Superbiatch

Straight away I can see savings to be made on mobile phone (£80 a month is alot!), entertainment - could you cut this right down for a while to maybe £50 a month and also your groceries. If you cook from scratch and freeze you will save a fortune and also make use of stuff which probably goes out of date (this used to happen to me alot). Check out the old style cooking board.

Water rates seem awfully high for one person, are you on a meter?

If you switch banks and ask for the interest etc to be froze you will enter into a debt management plan which will affect your credit history for the next 6 years. I don't think you necessarily need to, with a few cuts here and there you can easily make up that shortfall.

Doubtful_Guest

Is this for one person ?

We spend about £100 per month on groceries for two of us. Have a look on the Old Style section of the board. There are people there that can feed themselves for £1 per day without too much bother.

£200 on entertainment seems kind of crazy. That's nearly enough to buy yourself a package holiday each month ! I mean, cinema once a week with a pint afterwards is a tenner tops. Or going out for dinner with a 2 for 1 voucher with a friend and you'll get change of £15.

I don't think getting a car is a great idea. You spend £100 on travel currently. What will you be paying on petrol, car tax, insurance, MOT, maintenance, parking etc etc month ? Will that really add up to less than £100 ?

I honestly don't mean to sound harsh but you really can't afford to spend £100 a month on holidays and presents when you're getting deeper and deeper into debt. I know it feels crap but maybe you need to just concentrate on paying off your debt instead of treating yourself and others just now.

If you ask the banks to freeze interest etc then they will probably ask you to provide them with your SOA so they can decide whether you are in genuine financial difficulties. They won't freeze your interest when you're spending 10% of your income on 'entertainment' and another 10% on holidays/gifts/savings etc. You really do have enough money to service these debts; you just have to make some hard choices.

BOBHOPE_2

Thanks for replying

The mobile tariff is 2 phones (mine and gf's) and im stuck on the contract for another 18 months Im not sure its possible for me to cancel the contract?

The groceries also includes £3 a day for food at work (approx £60 a month?) and also laundry powder which gives me around 35-40 per week for 2 of us (used to be around 60 a week but we dropped brand stuff). Will look into this more tho with the gf, see if we can save further...

The entertainment is £12 a week for Thai Boxing, £15 a month online subscription and we go out once a fortnight with about 60-70 for a few drinks or food (or cinema, depending on the mood). I can try and cut this but this side of it is when I face relationship strain

The water rates are a fixed amount for the whole block, no meter (im in a privately rented 1 bed flat).

Things used to be fine a year plus ago but after redundancies, then paycuts, overtime bans etc at work my whole world kinda fell apart....

and theres rumour of more paycuts in the next few months (fingers crossed this doesnt happen)

Superbiatch

So the debts are yours alone and you only pay towards the things indicated from your wages?

Doubtful_Guest

If you end up having to go on a payment plan or have interest frozen then you will get these marked as a default on your credit reference. A default is almost as bad as a CCJ. You will not get any decent credit for 6 years and you probably won't get a mortgage either.

I don't mean to be rude but I suggest you ask the girlfriend whether she values her expensive nights out more than getting a place of your own in the future. If she really doesn't care that you're getting yourself into serious debt in order to pay for her lifestyle then she doesn't sound like she's bothered about your future very much.

You can't afford Thai boxing and online subscriptions and holidays if you aren't covering your minimum debt repayments. What would you do if you lost your job tomorrow ? You'd have to do without, so go without now so you won't be in such serious problems if you end up getting a paycut or redundancy.

BOBHOPE_2

Yeah, my gf finished university last year and cannot get a job. She is apparently not entitled to anything as I earn too much I have managed to clear 5k off my debt up until beginning of last year (thats when things at work got tough)

Hey Doubtful, thanks for the response. Its not harsh at all, I welcome your opinions. The £50 a month holiday is also to cover when I take time off work because I lose half of my wages as its half 'shift' and half 'bonus'. If I had a 2 weeks off in 1 month my monthly wage drops to 1500.

BOBHOPE_2

I dont want to end up not paying things and definately dont want any marks on my credit record...

I will stop the Thai Boxing, you are right there. I can drop the nights out to prob once a month, although when I say 60-70 that also includes approx 20-30 in travel.

Superbiatch

BOBHOPE wrote: »

I dont want to end up not paying things and definately dont want any marks on my credit record...

I will stop the Thai Boxing, you are right there. I can drop the nights out to prob once a month, although when I say 60-70 that also includes approx 20-30 in travel.

I really wouldn't stop the thai boxing if its something you enjoy (my OH does this and if he stopped it I think he'd go mad as it helps with his depression!). The nights out could be trimmed down I'm sure, go out earlier and travel home on public transport or better still stay in with friends and no taxi home

[Deleted User]

My SOA is as follows:

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet
Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 2000
Total monthly income.................... 2000

Monthly Expense Details
Rent.................................... 365
Council tax............................. 100 Ask your council if you can spread this over 12 months instead of the usual 10
Electricity............................. 60
Water rates............................. 45
Mobile phone............................ 80 This is high, I know that you have said that you are stuck in a contract, but see if they will allow you to drop a tariff - get your girlfriend to do the same - also if she's currently out of work she presumably has access to the internet at home during the day - get her to register for Skype and/or voip cheap for calls
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 40 I think that it's time to cut this down or cut this out - look at freeview/freesat
Internet Services....................... 0 look at Martin's article here to see how to get this as cheaply as possible
Groceries etc. ......................... 250 we are two and spend about half of this as well as feeding two cats - meal plan, batch cook, drop brands, go to lidl/aldi, also check out this link: http://www.cheap-family-recipes.org.uk/planners.html It is based on feeding a family of four, but you can alter the quantities to suit two. Also, you seem to be spending a fortune on lunch at work - (£60 per month) - start bringing a packed lunch, you can make this for a fraction of the cost
Clothing................................ 20 stick to essentials only for now
Other travel............................ 100 what does this cover? taxi's/bus?/train? - would cycling or walking at leat part of the way reduce this?
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 10
Contents insurance...................... 15
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 50 I think you need to reduce this for now
Haircuts................................ 15 perhapse try going a further week or so in between cuts - also, see if there's a college nearly where they may do cheap/free trainee cuts
Entertainment........................... 200 This definately needs to be cut back I think, you mentioned that you do Thai boxing which is quite expensive, perhapse you can find an alternative/similar that is cheaper? - could you save by paying up front?
Holiday................................. 50 I'm thinking that you really can't afford this right now, perhapse put on hold until you're debts are paid down a bit and/or your gf finds work
Emergency fund.......................... 40 sensible, but perhapse reduce until debts are paid down a bit
Bank Account Charge..................... 12 - is this a charge for your bank account because you have a fee paying account or is this the charge of your overdraft?
Total monthly expenses.................. 1464

Assets
Cash.................................... 0 - where's emergency savings, holiday savings? - Your SOA needs to reflect actual spending and not ideal spending - if you are not certain where this money is going each month (£90) then keep a spending diary noting down all spends in a given month and amend your SOA based on that
Shares and bonds........................ 125 - is it worth cashing these in at the moment?
Total Assets............................ 125

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts
Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Store Card.....................200.......20........29.9 As this one has the highest APR of your debts this one should be your priority for overpayments, (once you have managed to find a surplus in your SOA)
Credit Card....................1980......100.......21.9 Once the store card is paid off then this should be your next priority

Are the following realy all on 0% interest? And if so will/when any of them start charging interest? And if so when? and how much?
PLN............................15768.....355.......0
Overdraft 1....................1350......50........0
Overdraft 2....................2150......50........0
Total unsecured debts..........21448.....575.......-

Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 2,000
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,464
Available for debt repayments........... 536
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 575
Amount short for making debt repayments. -39 This is not good news, but there is savings to be made in your SOA whereby I think that you can make this a surplus rather than a deficit. Halving your mobile phone bill will make you break even monthly and making savings in Pay for TV, groceries, presents, entertainment, holidays will allow you to overpay.

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 125
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -21,448
Net Assets.............................. -21,323

Ive been trying to tackle the smaller debts by trying to pay off whatever I have spare but Im constantly floating at the bottom of my 2 overdrafts and nothing looks like its moving.
The best order to pay things off is the order of interest rates that you are being charged - list your debts in priority from the highest to lowest interest rate being charged, but for loans ensure that you will not be penalised for making overpayments.

At the end of the page that you filled in this SOA is a snowball calculator, this should help you priorities overpayments

Firstly, I lost my car in february because I couldnt afford to replace/fix it (head gasket) although this might seem good news at first glance (financially) it actually isnt cos I seem to be spending a hell of a lot more money getting about using taxis, trains etc (plus where I live there isnt much in the way of public transport) Am I an idiot for trying to get a car on top of all this debt? If it would even be possible and me not to feel guilty

You have mentioned that the location of where you live is inconvenient for public transport, would moving be a better option? If you moved closer to either work or a transport link you would save the need for a car (probably not worth considering taking on more debt, especially if there's further risk of pay cuts at work - your SOA is already pretty tight). It might also improve job prospects for your gf.

Secondly, is it wise/possible for me to switch banks and ask my current bank if they can possibly freeze my 2 overdrafts/charges and allow me to pay them off as just another debt, a fixed amount every month for example. My aim here is the extra money im losing with being in the overdraft (and constantly getting bank charges whilst juggling finances) can be put to better use in paying off the actual debt.

As mentioned by someone earlier, if you went down this route it is likely to affect your credit file so probably not recommended as a first line solution, and you do have room for savings in your SOA if you choose to make them. With regards to getting charges, you need to try and organise things so that this doesn't happen. Try and list all the outgoings from your bank account and the dates that each payment will be made and try and figure out what money needs to be in what account and when. This might take you a while to sit down and sort through, but is unlikely to change too much month to month so once done could save you a lot of stress (and bank charges).

Thirdly, my credit card.... I have been floating close to max limit (2k) for 6months now. I thought I was getting somewhere but the xmas period killed me and I ended up not paying for a month and back to square 1 Again, would you think the bank would freeze this card and let me pay it off again with a fixed amount per month?

Again, I would recommend that you reduce you spending first before going down this route - however if after making changes to your spending and budget you are still unable to pay the minimum towards each of your debts then speak to one of the Debt charities for advice, they will give you FREE, IMPARTIAL, NON-JUDGEMENTAL advice, and explain to you what all your options are (try National debtline, CCCS, CAB)

HTH

D9

whiteguineapig

i would cut the present money, you obviously can't afford to be so generous lol.
i save £5 per week and just do the best i can with it
buy smaller presents