A problem of timing...

Pillow

Hi everyone,

I hope this is the right place to post this. I don't really know where to start so I'll just dive right in.

My husband and I graduated a year ago and have 3 student overdrafts between us, which are now completely maxed out. As we have been graduates for a year now, these overdrafts are about to be cut in half and we have no way of paying them off. I also have a credit card which is maxed out too.

There are two reasons for our problems at the moment. The main one is that we have been trying to start a business, which did quite well at first but then tanked quite spectacularly (don't really want to go into details) so since January this year we have been living month to month only just getting by. The second problem is that I've been looking for a job (very actively) for the past 3 months but I haven't found anything yet. I've recently registered with 3 new temp agencies so hopefully something will come along soon.

So at the moment, we have literally £20 to our name. Our bills are almost up to date for the moment, but by the end of the month we will be behind on pretty much everything, including rent (which we have been paying monthly). Although if I get a job in that time we could probably stall the people we owe money to for a little while and pay them off over a longer time period. If I don't get a job then I really don't know what we can do. We really don't want to end up moving in with our parents as neither of them have the room and I'm sure they don't want us hanging around, but if it came to that then they would take us in.

I guess I'm mainly writing this post to get some advice on what our options are. I have missed a few payments on my credit card in the past so I don't think I have a good enough credit history to get one of the 0% balance transfer cards, but I'm not sure about that. My husband's credit history is probably just as bad as he has 2 student loans. We really want to be debt-free as soon as possible, but that isn't looking likely in the near future.

So this is really a problem of timing - everything is falling in on us at once, and if this were a couple of months later I would probably have some sort of work and could get a loan or something. At the moment, we are pretty stuck and are looking at living on pasta for the next month or so. Also, my husband needs the internet as he's trying to carry the business on (which will also begin making money again in a couple of months, but it's not soon enough and it will take a while to get up to the level of income we need again).

Sorry for the long-winded post. If anyone could give me some advice I would be very grateful.

Thanks


edit: we are also in debt to our parents and they aren't exactly rich so borrowing more off them isn't an option.

rogerblack

You are registered for JSA, so have that income coming in?

Pillow

rogerblack wrote: »

You are registered for JSA, so have that income coming in?

I don't think we can get JSA because we had quite a lot of money going through our accounts when the business was going well.

Million_Percent

You say your overdrafts are about to be cut in half. Are you saying the amount of arranged overdraft is reducing or is it simply that the interest free portion is reducing? In my experience graduate accounts generally reduce the amount of the overdraft which is interest free but the amount of the overdraft stays the same - you simply have to pay interest on the remainder.

Pillow

Million_Percent wrote: »

You say your overdrafts are about to be cut in half. Are you saying the amount of arranged overdraft is reducing or is it simply that the interest free portion is reducing? In my experience graduate accounts generally reduce the amount of the overdraft which is interest free but the amount of the overdraft stays the same - you simply have to pay interest on the remainder.

To be honest I'm not quite sure, the letter they sent me last year was a bit vague. I think we will just have to pay interest on it, but they can just withdraw the whole thing if they feel like it. The main thing that worries me is if I pay money into my account and then they reduce my overdraft limit, making my balance zero again.

Poppy9

Are you still trying to run your own business or is your OH looking for work too?

Pillow

Poppy9 wrote: »

Are you still trying to run your own business or is your OH looking for work too?

He's still running the business. In a few months it might hopefully be profitable again, plus he has to carry on as his investors would not let him give up on it yet. At the moment what little money is coming in from that has to be re-invested pretty much straight away so we don't see any of it.

Million_Percent

Pillow wrote: »

To be honest I'm not quite sure, the letter they sent me last year was a bit vague. I think we will just have to pay interest on it, but they can just withdraw the whole thing if they feel like it. The main thing that worries me is if I pay money into my account and then they reduce my overdraft limit, making my balance zero again.

Well you probably ought to clarify with the bank. You need to understand the terms and conditions of the overdraft.

Pillow

Million_Percent wrote: »

Well you probably ought to clarify with the bank. You need to understand the terms and conditions of the overdraft.

Thanks, I have been looking online, but the website is very unhelpful. To be honest I am a little scared to ring them in case they realise I haven't paid any of it back and recall the whole overdraft. I guess that's a bit of a stupid way to think though as they are almost certainly keeping tabs on me (and everyone else who is borrowing their money) so they already know all that.

vixx

Hi Pillow,

I still have an overdraft 5 years after graduation - my bank never lowered it, just started adding interest.
Call your bank first thing tomorrow and get them to clarify what they are going to do.

They won't care that you haven't paid it back, in fact it makes you much more profitable to them if you don't - then have to pay them interest on it every month!
Best to know for sure than get yourself in a state about it.

Hope things pick up for you
Vicky

rogerblack

Pillow wrote: »

I don't think we can get JSA because we had quite a lot of money going through our accounts when the business was going well.

Had.
What is your husbands income now.
If it's >100/week or so - then no, you won't get help from JSA.
You may be eligable for council tax benefit or other benefits, which have a slightly higher threshold.