Were to start... and why didn't i stop spending a long time ago?

jpower87

Hi i've done the below SOA which i can just about manage every month but that it every month barring £21 it leaves no room for any emergencies or any unexpected bills which will mess every thing up should one come along...

But my main problem is i'm £260 behind on my rent and i don't see where the money can come from to pay that? I thought cancel all my unsecured payment that i'm making and pay every spare penny onto my rent as its a priority debt but it still not going to pay it for a good few weeks they want the money now i dont know what to do...

And a Wonga loan which i should never have taken out which is due out next week £193 which i'm going to have to extend because i need to pay rent not Wonga but then no i'm stupid i'll just be wasting £40 odd quid extending it (if i rang and said the money wont be in can i set up a repayment plan is this something they do? or would they still try taking the money on friday?)

I know i lived beyond my means spending when i should have saved and now i'm left with the consequences

Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 1
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 0

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 800
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 480
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1280

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 280
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 67 over 12 with single person discount
Electricity............................. 60 this is the lowest i'm on a newly installed meter paying of arrears also
Gas..................................... 80 as above new meter paying arrears
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 40
Telephone (land line)................... 12
Mobile phone............................ 30 due to end in 2 months then will be on sim only or pay as go
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 20 have reduced from 40 package recently but tied in to 12 month contract still
Internet Services....................... 20
Groceries etc. ......................... 120 Could i get this lower? 30 a week but includes pack up for me for work to save on buying shop bought sandwiches etc
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 60 This will have to a least halve due to bus tickets to get to shops and visiting family at weekends
Childcare/nursery....................... 140
Other child related expenses............ 30 dinner money every week day and £1 a week for brownies
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
Haircuts................................ 0
Entertainment........................... 20
Holiday................................. 0
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Attachments of earnings................. 40 last years water bill
Money owed to others.................... 80 This is a personal loan doorstep lender pay due to end first week in September
Jacobs Bailiffs......................... 50
Total monthly expenses.................. 1161


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

No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Littlewoods....................1203.39...15........0 I've not put any apr with these as they are all the full amount which have been passed to varies debt collector
Very...........................620.4.....15........0
Argos..........................200.......12........0
Studio.........................80.76.....10........0
Fashion World..................144.......12........0
Next...........................289.12....23.25.....0
Topshop........................98........10........0
Total unsecured debts..........2635.67...97.25.....-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 1,280
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 1,161
Available for debt repayments........... 119
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 97.25
Amount left after debt repayments....... 21.75

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -2,635.67
Net Assets.............................. -2,635.67

I've been stupid plain and simple the money was there to pay people and i didn't

chevalier

I would say show this to your landlord to show that you can get the money over a few months, but not as one big hit.

If you are on benefits can you get free school meals this would save you 30 pounds?

Also you are going to be 80 pounds better off after September is that correct ie when the doorstep lender finishes?

Do you get housing benefit and council tax benefit?

What about applying for a crisis loan to pay back your landlord, that would at least keep a roof over your head..

Or how about applying to a credit union to do the same?

Is there no one who could help you out? Even just to get the rent arrears paid back?

good luck
chev

ellesbellesxxx

Definitely either look into Free School Meals - or could you do packed lunches for the next month until your other 80 is freed up?
I am afraid Entertainment will have to go for the time being until you have got through this - your landlord probably wouldn't be impressed either. Join the library, go to the park.
Definitely look into suggestions from Chevalier... as concerns Wonga I think you will need to contact them to say you cannot pay, set up repayment plan - please do not borrow any more from them though!!!!!!
They will I expect try to take money - could you set up a basic bank acc and put your money in that so they can't physically take it?

Loubell83

Have you got stuff you can sell on eBay/car boots to try and pay back some of the debt? Old childrens clothes sell really well!

Your SOA looks pretty tight as it is, I am sure people will come along with good advice, but my advice is to sell stuff you dont need. You get 100 free listings for 99p on eBay a month.

asparagus1968

hi there,
we've all been stupid and overspent!
at least you have realised now,not any later down the line.
once you get organised ond make a plan of action,it gives you a big boost and you'll find you actually want to cut back/lead a simpler life .
things i did:
go through every direct debit-see ways you can reduce amount or get rid
cut luxuries for now-sat tv/phone usage/"treats"
meal plan like mad, go through all your cupboards/fridge/freezer and make up meals from what you have in,then only put on your shopping list the extras needed STICK TO THE LIST! buy cheap shampoo (value 20p 0r less from sains or t**co) and use that for shampoo/ bubble bath/ handwash
I buy prpoer milk for my son,but get longlife for me as its cheaper (and i only have it in my brews)
Think i'd def get a repayment plan for wonga,but as above,you'd need to change bankaccounts so they can't just take the money anyway.
how many children do you have?
does work do the childcare vouchers?could you change your work pattern to reduce childcare costs?
I earn £840 a month and get CTC of about £300 ,( i presume its more than one child you have?)i could get free school meals for my son, but he only wants a pack lunch (argh!) though pack lunch is really cheap and quick, and i know what he's eating.It makes me do one for me too,which stops me buying my lunch.
Are you actually paying all the minimums on your debts at the moment?
sell stuff like mad,ebay and netmums are good for kids things.
join library-free books, dvds for £1 a week, things for kids to do, internet by the hour.
i ask family to buy my son his annual winter coat for christmas,saves me a bit!
do you not get any csa for children?

stick at it,it DOES get easier,i promise

welshsue

becareful of wonga,i'm in the same situation and been asking wonga for a repayment plan(since last thursday) got an income/expenditure form(excel attachment) emailed to me Friday afternoon which i promptly sent back filled in. They still tried to take the money from my account on Saturday! I'm still chasing them now,latest email this morning was with another I/E form. I've sent the original back to them again and now waiting for response.Checked wonga account been hit with 2 days of late payment charges!

HeadAboveWater

Hey jpower87 Good for you for posting. Nobody is pointing the finger. We've all spent stupidly and have nothing to show for it. We're all here for help and support

Looking at your SOA you've already done a lot of thinking and organising, and tried to cut back as much as possible.

Would agree with trying to cut back on entertainment, even though it's not a huge amount. Try for cheaper alternatives.

Your £120 grocery isn't bad. We'd be about that for family of 5, although maybe a bit more occasionally. We buy a lot from the reduced sections in both Tesco's and Asda. We'd easily go through loaf of bread a day with packed lunches, toast for breakfast, toast for supper... We rarely pay full price for bread. It can always be frozen if you can get your hands on some good bargains. A lot of our fruit and veg we get reduced too. Just a matter of keeping your eyes peeled when you're out and about. And if you have a shopping list try to stick to it!

Try selling stuff. Ebay. Gumtree. Get rid of old mobiles, books, cd's and dvd's. If you've outgrown clothes have you a clothes bank that pays 50-60p per kilo? It may not be much but every little helps!!

Good luck

moneywaster-nomore

Hiya I cant say anything more than the fab advice already given. Hang in there, it can be done. Have you spoken to your landlord has he refused to help at all ?

I am in the same boat, overspent and didnt pay when I should have. You are sorting it now before it get worse thats the main thing :j.

Hovel_lady

Might be worth checking this:

http://www.turn2us.org.uk/

prepareathome

Hi, have you contacted your water company and told them about your finances. I know they have put an attachment of earnings on you to get their money but most, I would guess all, water companies have plans in place to help. Ours last year as money was tight gave me a pound for every pound I paid them so basically I only had to pay half my bill for that year. That was just the help we needed then. I don't know if you can get the help though for more than one year as so far not needed to ask for any help this year. I don't know if there is a income limit for this help or not as we are on less than you are for two adults per month so there is you might be on to much, but no harm giving them a call and asking.

I presume the benefits you receive will be Child Benefit and Child Tax Credit but do you receive anything towards rent or council Tax?

If your landlord is pushing for payment give Shelter a ring, they deal with all housing problems not just people who are homeless, as they might be able to help you deal with Landlord.

Am sure others will come along and give you more advice. Not sure if a DMP would be the way to go as although your debts aren't much in reality they are taking up a lot of your income, might be worth looking into also, not sure if there is a minimum amount of debt you need to be in to do one sorry never needed one thankfully so only know what I read on here. Would be good if it took the debts including water and fuel ones on as well so you don't need to put so much in those meters, but again I don't know enough about that.

Sorry don't know if any of this any use.

Keeping everything crossed that your rent can be sorted asap.

National_Debtline

Hi there

Just a single suggestion from us in addition to the very useful advice already offered:

It appears that you have an outstanding CCJ (for the water debt) and that your debts overall total less than £5,000 (please correct us if we're wrong). If this is correct then you may be able to apply to the courts for an Administration Order to consolidate your debts into one monthly payment made through the court. This would result in further costs and action by creditors being frozen. Have a read of our fact sheet for more information at http://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk/england_wales/factsheet.php?page=09_administration_orders

NDL