newbie advice

trace1908

Hi i yesterday contacted cccs for advice on our debts after going through everything with them they have advised that we can only afford token repayments to everyone. My worry is how far will the creditors go to reclaiming their money . We are both looking for part time jobs on top of what we do. any advice would be appreciated thanks.

soa

income

mine 420 month
oh 1200
child benefit 177.01
tax credit 25.00 ( 100.00) forgot doing monthly

total 1897.01


outgoings

mort 756.06
house insurance 16.73
life insurance 33.90
car insurance 44.50 (2 cars both needed oh works 14 miles away kids school 2 miles away 1 of my jobs 4 miles away)
car tax 35.00
water rates 26.00 (including 6 arrears
gas 30.00
elec 55.00
telephone internet calls 45.00
house repairs 50.00
car servicing 20.00
fuel 180.00
food etc 360.00
emergencies 30.00
clothes/shoes 60
haircuts/dentist/ipticians/ 40.00
coucil tax 140.00 (including 40 arrears)
tv licence 11
total 1833.13

debts
blackhorse 7000.00 payment 160.00
ge money 800.00 payment32.00
british gas 300
cash maker 600 payment 78.
liverpool victoria 108.00
moorcroft 220.00 want payment now ( have just spoken to them they will accept 40 shall i send cccs budget form off offering token payment cut back elsewhere to find extra maybe haircuts etc )
there is 1 more but brain gone dead (overdraft approx 1800) payment 60
total 11,000

So i send token offers off to all and wait for a response what else should i do
thanks

webitha

hiya and welcome

im sure more experienced people will be along in a mo
but heres my two penny worth
food? for how many? i spend £200 on 5 people and that includes nappie and cleaning product/toiletires

utilites are these the cheapest you can get?

life insurance can you really afford this rigth now can you not stop and start again when your debt free
fuel is rather high do you use clubcards at morrisons tesco etc to help towards the groceries
they are just some that sprang out at me
like i said im sure more people will be along soon

trace1908

Hi food is for 5 people and i will definately cut back there, life insurance i think is quite important it only pays out on death and would therefore cover the mortgage which still has a few years to run. We have to run two cars unfortunately oh works 15 miles away and although i could walk the kids to school its 2 miles along a very busy road and by time i have walked back i would be late for my morning job, my other job is 5 miles away middle of day so i really need both cars. Regarding gas and elec these both include some arrears, and are hopefully with the cheapest for us.Thanks

Psykicpup

I agree £360 a month of food does seem quite high - why not nip down to the Money Saving Old Style Board & pick up some tips & recipes to bring this down without starving lol!
Dont have any other advice just now but the good peeps here will soon be along to help!

robnye

telephone internet calls 45.00 - this is extremely high? does it include broadband access
house repairs 50.00 - is this ongoing work or for emergency work?
car servicing 20.00 - so 2 cars serviced for £240 per year - seems too low?
fuel 180.00 - can you not car share?
emergencies 30.00 - is this not also covered by house repair?
clothes/shoes 60 - miss a couple of months - £120 spare
haircuts/dentist/ipticians/ 40.00 - opticians £20 per person every 2 years, dentist £30 per person, twice a year - hair get it cut every 12 weeks....... or use trainees a t college

you also havent included things like birthdays, child activities at/out of school

firesidemaid

good for your for starting to deal with everything.

have you resolved the reasons why your debts have accumulated?

make your budgets and stick to them. save a little for christmas also.

for all your phones/inet/utilities make sure you are getting the best deals - there is some great advice/tutorials to follow on this site. go to the relevant boards and there are links at the top.

if you have to, sky do phone/inet/tv for £26 a month, incl eve/wkend calls.

food etc can come down loads. does everyone take packed lunches to school/work?

your fuel seems high - i do a work return of 25 miles a day. again make sure you get the cheapest fuel eg. with points back - morrisons

could you get a job nearer home, as petrol costs eat into your earnings. can you lift-share for school?

could one of you get a part time job at a supermarket to take advantage of discounts and free food?

good luck

GirlRacer_2

Your tax credits seems quite low. Are you paying off an overpayment or has it been midcalculated?

bandraoi

Your Mortgage is very high.
Are the payments including something like life insurance or PPI?

You work two jobs but you're taking home £420 a month?
Is there anyway you can get rid of the two jobs and find one that is closer to home and pays better?

Seaxwyn

Hi trace

Running two cars is really expensive, have you thought of cycling? Over short distances a bike is often just as quick as a car.

When I had a job two miles away I used to walk the children to school wheeling my bike then jump on the bike and go to work.

Also I would second that your figure for food is very high and I am sure you could spend less on clothes at least til you're out of debt. Freecycle is very good for children's clothes.

Good luck!

raq

also you would be amazed how much you can cut back on your weekly food.

I spend £60.00 per week for the family. 2 adults, 2 children , young and a 3 month old baby. We eat extremely well but still manage on this amount. You get use to it in the end .

As for clothes i also agree, think this can be put to one side for now. Or if the children are desperate for clothes have a butchers on the ebay site. I have just sold a load of clothes, excellent quality. In my first week I have made £105.72.

Good luck

trace1908

hi thanks for replying
wages for me i only included 1 job as other could finish anyday now
tax credits should be 100 not 25
phone is phone broadband mobile and all calls
emergencies house is ongoing repairs
i will definately be setting a family budget and sticking to it.
i do car share for school with a neighbour but need to keep one for me as i finish one job and have to be at the other in ten minutes. I wish we could do without a car but until my youngest is old enough to bike i think it will have to stay.
I have today spoken to moorcrooft they are asking for at least 40 per month on that debt i will have to wait and see what they say after seeing my budget.
Regarding one of my debts with cash maker they have six cheques that they hold onto how do i go about making a arrangement with them should i just cancel the cheques and get my wages paid elsewhere. thanks again