Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

Former_StepChange_Rachel

Avenger666 wrote: »

Thanks for the reply, I actually have started on a course of anti depressants which I have been taking for the best part of a month, not really feeling any improvement but there's a lot of other factors at the moment, my job is an absolute nightmare I broke up with someone I was deeply in love with last week and I just don't know what to do with myself.

Attempting to go back to basics and sort things out one at a time starting with my money issues, quite fancied a debt management plan but worried about the length it might affect my credit score as I hear it can affect chances of getting a mortgage for a very long time and also things like applying to rent places or even jobs within the financial sector.

I'm not a great risk taker, I need some good advice to take me out of my comfort zone.

Hi there,

Thanks for posting about this. To reiterate the advice given to you by mum2one, it does sound like you're a little bit overcommitted on payments at the moment and it would help you to get some free and impartial debt advice.

I do appreciate your concerns regarding your credit rating. Rest assured that you will not be affected by merely going through a budget and seeking advice from us. It's worth noting however that any reduced payments on your credit file will only stay on there for 6 years from the date they were added.

Again, I can see where you're coming from with regards to one day wanting a mortgage, but it's worth noting that you don't need a strictly flawless credit rating in order to get one. The other issue you should keep in mind is that the stress you may be feeling in an effort to keep these payments up could be intensifying the depression you're feeling at the moment.

I also feel that with your recent breakup you will need some emotional support moving forward. You will certainly find that here on the MSE forums. You may also want to try the Loveshack relationship advice forums as you'll find a wealth of support and helpful advice there: https://www.loveshack.org/forums/

Please do consider getting debt advice from us when you feel the time is right. Our Debt Remedy online advice tool can give you a solution in just 20 minutes: http://www.stepchange.org/msehelp

Best regards

Rachel

Former_StepChange_Rachel

Pickle29 wrote: »

Hi
Me again! Can anyone tell me the following?
Will I get confirmation from each creditor that they have accepted my plan/payment or will I only hear if they don't accept it (like Santander)?

As stepchange are now paying them (they should get their first payment any day now), do I need to contact them? (as I haven't- left it all to stepchange)

When I get default notices (another one today) do I need to do anything or leave it as stepchange are paying them and have written to them (but I haven't)?

I know I ask lots of questions and I am probably being impatient but I don't want to keep bothering stepchange when I know how busy they are ( and how valuable they are) but I'm worried sick and keep thinking should I be doing something ( although I haven't been told to!)

Thank you for being patient with me x

Hi there,

Just on the back of what mum2one has told you:

It's not guaranteed that each creditor will write to you and confirm that they've accepted the terms of the plan but some will do it out of courtesy. Even if they kick up a fuss, as long as you're making some kind of consistent and realistic payment, most of them will eventually quieten down.

There's no need for you to contact the creditors once we've started dispersing payments on your behalf. In fact, if they continue to contact you, tell them we're dealing with it and hang up the phone.

Default notices are pretty much telling you what you already know - you're not making their ideal monthly payment at this moment in time. They're not the end of the world despite how official they sound. If you ever get any paperwork through that you're not sure about, you're free to get in touch with us about it.

Hope this answers your questions, and don't ever hesitate to let us know if something's bothering you or you want something cleared up. That's what we're here for!

Best regards

Rachel

mandyh42

Hi rachel or james, I would really appreciate a reply to my question of yesterday .....I can't stop thinking about it.

wishing4kissing

StepChange_James wrote: »

Hello,

You could go to your local Citizen's Advice for help. Whether someone is able to see you will depend on their policies and how busy they are. I can't see that owning a house would be a barrier to getting advice from them, but I'm afraid I'm not particularly clued up on their policies.

Alternatively, you could look to get advice from StepChange Debt Charity, the place I work at. We give free and impartial advice to people over the phone or via the internet.

We'll help you plan out a realistic income and expenditure budget and give you debt advice tailored to your circumstances.
HAD TO REMOVE THE LINKS

Of course, there's nothing wrong on getting a second opinion, so you could get advice from both us and the CAB.

Kind regards

James

I have been reading this thread and can see people have had plans put in place etc. My question is can people who own their own homes have these sorts of things put in place to help or would the creditors just insist I sell my home?

markaz

Hello

I've obtained a CCJ in 2010 and have paid to date nothing towards it. The DCA who applied for the CCJ have added legal costs and interest to the balance. Are they allowed to do this?

Thanks

NachoBandit

Hi,

First time posting here so please bear with me!

I'd like to say I'm a fairly young happy go lucky 28 year old who has (up until recently) been ok with money. However over the past year or so I've found I have been increasingly going down and down in money and now find myself in an unfamiliar position with a few debts and I just don't know what I can do or how to go about things.

It started when I noticed I was dipping into my overdraft on a regular basis and this led me to increase it more and more until it is where it is now which is £1950.

I then applied for a loan with my bank for £1500 to help and reduce the overdraft which I had found myself living in.

This helped until I noticed myself starting to go back into the spiral again and then with the same bank I applied for and was granted a credit card with a £2700 limit.

Sadly I am now in a position where all these things have accumulated into being in debt at around £6150.

I know it is my own fault I am in this position but now with interest charges taking me over my overdraft limit which then gives me another charge I am in a continual spiral and unsure where to turn or how to get back on track.

Obviously I'm prepared to pay it back but I just can't see how and never being in this situation I don't know who to talk to. I seem to take 1 step forward then 2 steps back, and since I've hit rock bottom I have literally spent nothing on myself and find myself sometimes going without food to save another cost.

I'm sorry if I have gone on but I need some advice otherwise the spiral is going to continue and I'm not going to find a resolution.

mandyh42

This is only my 2nd posting on this forum. I posted yesterday and i was "thanked for the post" by stepchange Rachael but I havent had a reply to my question. I understand that the forum is very busy and that they have lots of replies to make but can anyone tell me - will I defo get a reply ? tia

mum2one

mandyh42 wrote: »

Hi I hope u can help. We r on a dmp with stepchange and have been since 2011 all going good. Have recently applied to call credit for r individual credit files. As expected they were poor 1 out of 5 fir both of us lots of defaults and a ccj for my husband. Heres the question r neighbours have just recently sold there house very quickly and at a very good price. This made us start thinking - we have 6 years left on r mortgage, we owe 45k on the dmp and 75 on the mortgage r house is worth 180k .....could we get out of r situation, get a new mortgage, be debt free and start again in a new home ???? Who do we speak to ??? The last thing we want is not to b able 2 get a mortgage. .......weve come thru a lot and r working hard for what weve got.

As an outsider, I would say that if you did sell your house for 180k, take out estate fees (5k - random figure for quickness) 75k owed and 45k debts, - thats 125k gone - that would leave 55k spare.

You said youve both got defaults, ccj, mortgages are getting harder to get, you say you have 6 yrs left on mortgage, how long do have on dmp. If its longer than 6 yrs at the end of the mortgage you'd be in a better position to re-evaluate the dmp.

It may well be worth ringing step change and speaking to an advisor that way xx

StepChange_James

mandyh42 wrote: »

Hi I hope u can help. We r on a dmp with stepchange and have been since 2011 all going good. Have recently applied to call credit for r individual credit files. As expected they were poor 1 out of 5 fir both of us lots of defaults and a ccj for my husband. Heres the question r neighbours have just recently sold there house very quickly and at a very good price. This made us start thinking - we have 6 years left on r mortgage, we owe 45k on the dmp and 75 on the mortgage r house is worth 180k .....could we get out of r situation, get a new mortgage, be debt free and start again in a new home ???? Who do we speak to ??? The last thing we want is not to b able 2 get a mortgage. .......weve come thru a lot and r working hard for what weve got.

Hi Mandy,

I'm really sorry about the delay in replying to your message.

I'm not a mortgage advisor, so can't get into specifics, but I'd say that it's quite tough to get good mortgage deals if your credit rating isn't great. There are lots of other factors that feed into mortgage decisions though, so it's never quite that simple.

A lot would depend on how much equity you'd have in the new place you moved to. If you were planning on looking at downsizing to somewhere cheaper then you've probably got a higher chance of getting a mortgage.

With you already being a client of ours you can talk to one of our team that can advise on these sorts of things. I'll send you a PM with a contact number for one of my colleagues who can give more detailed advice.

Apologies again for the delay in getting back.

Kind regards

James

StepChange_James

wishing4kissing wrote: »

I have been reading this thread and can see people have had plans put in place etc. My question is can people who own their own homes have these sorts of things put in place to help or would the creditors just insist I sell my home?

Hello,

It would depend on the debt solution you were looking at. I'll run through the main ones (assuming your based in England) and the implications for homeowners:

Debt Relief Order (DRO): These aren't available to homeowners as there are strict criteria on assets you're allowed to have.

Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA): These are available to homeowners but there will usually be a stipulation that you'll be expected to try and remortgage to raise a lump sum to pay towards your debts alongside monthly payments. This can sometimes be worth agreeing to as IVAs will allow for some of your debts to be written off.

Bankruptcy: You can go bankrupt if you own a house but there's a risk of losing the property if there's equity available in it. For this reason it's worth being very careful before going bankrupt if you own a property.

Debt Management Plan (DMP): These are fine for property owners. It's an informal arrangement to pay reduced amounts to unsecured debts, so you carry on paying the mortgage/secured loans in full.

If you get in touch with us we'll be able to talk you through your options and give you advice tailored to your circumstances (contact details are in my signature below).

Kind regards

James