Almost maxed out - bankruptcy? - copied from DFW

sundays

I can tell straight away that you will not get housing and council tax benefit, your income is pretty reasonable for a couple. You also often find that if you get WTC what they give with the one hand they take with the other.

The partner wont get JSA as has been out of work for 6 months plus (2008) JSA (IB ) IS ONLY PAID FOR the initial six months of unemployment if you have a working partner then it ceases.

alastairq

If BR is a serious option, then there are downsides that have to be considered...and prepared for.

Sadly, when renting, credit checks are relied upon, probably due to the way agents guarantee to LL's that 6 month's rent.....so moving house once BR can be expensive, with up-front payments.

Getting settled into a property that the BR-to-be will be happy with, potentially for at least 6 years, pre-BR, may be a less difficult procedure.

Certain jobs preclude BR....although , from on here there seem to be ways around that one...?

Certainly, anything that remotely relies on a credit system will become difficult to obtain....insurance can become a hassle, for starters.

Therefore, since you have the foresight to see how things may be panning out, initial preparation will probably be essential, to avoid difficulties over the next 6 or 7 years.

Ineedaname

sundays wrote: »

I can tell straight away that you will not get housing and council tax benefit, your income is pretty reasonable for a couple. You also often find that if you get WTC what they give with the one hand they take with the other.

Wow, wouldn't it be great if you could walk into a housing benefit office, give them your income and rent and be told straight away you definitely won't be entitled to anything?

The calculations are much more complicated than that which is why I gave the OP a link to the Government's online calculator.

I've come across many instances over the years of people being told they won't be entitled to various benefits, for them to later find out they actually could claim. Nobody can say for sure until they investigate for themselves.

desperado1973

Copied from previous thread to give everyone here a little more info on the position.

I do have some specific questions about preparing things for the next stage, but will start a new thread when I am ready.

"I have spent the last 2 years economising and cutting back to even get down to this level and yes the food bill is an area which can be cut - the figure is really a guess as I have not really been monitoring this in any case.

All other expenditure has been looked at and either reduced or has reasons to be there that are not monetary alone. This may be a luxury but sometime luxuries are necessities.

Benefits - all possible benefits are being claimed, in the last 6 months tax credits have halved and housing benefit has been reduced. On top of that there has been an over payment of housing benefit which is being taken on a weekly basis reducing that benefit further. was £8 per week.

The credit card shuffle has been done already and due to lack of available extra credit can't be done again at the moment so no 0% deals. This is not a long term solution in any case and will only really work if there is plenty of disposable income.

As we are looking for a long term solution to the difficulties the solution it needs to maintain a level of comfort which is sustainable for at least 6 years, circumstances may change but the plan must reflect current circumstances.

Stories of extreme survival, while commendable, have no place here. it is simply not realistic for a long term solution.

We have tried several eBay businesses, have sold much and still have more to sell. I find the process so stressful that there as had to be a break from it. In total we have lost in excess of £3000 on self employment ideas, - I'm not sure of the current figures but at least 50% of all new businesses go bust. Not good odds.

Thanks for the job ideas, the ones that are better than the one I have require specific skills that I don't have. The ones suitable for my OH have been passed on but are very similar to the 5 a week the they are already applying for and getting no responses.

Some posts insist that I have already decided on BR and am looking for this to be confirmed as the best option. That is not and has never been the case. I have been looking for ideas about what to do.

I would say 30 - 40% of the posts have given me good points and a few have been very useful, I thank those people for taking the time to post.

I was not prepared for the extreme veiws of some here who think that saying "move house" is a sensible thing, as though this would not have already been considered, even emigration has been considered and dismissed as it is missing the point.

Where ever I live the costs will be too high and wages too low, that is life in the 21st century. Everyone here is trying to get income up and expenditure down, it's not easy. But with 35k debt that is being charged at close to 20% hanging over you there is little room for maneuvere.

The Short Term Plan
1 Monitor spending more closely and improve the SOA, adding a figure for all that are currently 0.
2 Contact debt help charities and discuss current position and possible solutions.
3 Gather more info on IVA DMP and BR
4 continue job searches.
5 resume selling on eBay
6 Make medium term plan

Ineedaname

desperado1973 wrote: »

Benefits - all possible benefits are being claimed, in the last 6 months tax credits have halved and housing benefit has been reduced. On top of that there has been an over payment of housing benefit which is being taken on a weekly basis reducing that benefit further. was £8 per week.

Thanks for clarifying your HB situation, I should have realised that was in your SOA as tax credits at £2,500 p.a. is only approximately £208 pcm and you have input benefits income as £260 pcm.

You are doing everything you can. The only other thing I can suggest is try ringing tax credits again to see if there's any chance of an increase. This suggestion based on the thought that maybe your income was higher last year and that's why TC have dropped for this year. I beleive they can over ride that if you know your income for the current year will be lower.

If this isn't the case then I apologise for the suggestion. Not able to think of anything else at this time.

Oh, and £200 pcm grocery budget for 2 is pretty darn good. The OR's allowance is that amount for one person!