Ask a StepChange (formerly CCCS) counsellor a bankruptcy question

Kerry511

Thank you guys for the info!..... very much appreciated!

CIS

Kerry511 wrote: »

Thank you guys for the info!..... very much appreciated!

Do you have a partner living with you ? (or a joint tenant/owner who isn't your partner).

Craig

Kerry511

I have a husband who has also gone bankrupt the same time as myself...... thanks Kerry

CIS

Kerry511 wrote: »

I have a husband who has also gone bankrupt the same time as myself...... thanks Kerry

In which case the Council Tax will be cleared in full to 31 March 17 - if he hadn't also gone bankrupt then he would have been responsible for the payments.

Craig

Kerry511

The official receiver has not mentioned anything to either of us about paying an IPA with just income tax and council tax...... do I just put the money aside until I hear from him? He did say there would be no IPA as we didn't have enough money to pay into one......but I assume everyone who is employed (hubby is) will have an IPA until end of tax year.......As we will have the council tax money spare each month now until April ?. Thank you Kerry

StepChange_Rachael

Hi Kerry

Thanks for your reply.

It would be the decision of the Official Receiver (OR) whether they decide to set up an IPA. If they’ve said that there won’t be an IPA then I’d assume that he won’t be setting one up for this tax year either.

As Bankruptcy is based on your individual situation I’d suggest checking with the OR to make sure this is definitely the case.

If there’s money available that would normally be paid towards the council tax before you get confirmation from the OR, then I’d suggest saving this aside in case the OR does set an IPA and asks for these payments.

It’s uncommon for an IPA to be set for a period of less than 36 months, so I’d assume that it’s unlikely there would be one set for this short period.

I hope this helps.
Rachael

Kerry511 wrote: »

The official receiver has not mentioned anything to either of us about paying an IPA with just income tax and council tax...... do I just put the money aside until I hear from him? He did say there would be no IPA as we didn't have enough money to pay into one......but I assume everyone who is employed (hubby is) will have an IPA until end of tax year.......As we will have the council tax money spare each month now until April ?. Thank you Kerry

KPNuts

Hi
My partner has been served a bankruptcy petition and it's very likely it will go ahead. Given part of the process requires my partner to provide details of her income and outgoings, will I need to provide details of the household costs? We have separate finances and I look after all the household bills (the house is in my name). The outstanding debt was from a time before we met and while I want to support her I don't wish the bankruptcy and request for outgoing costs to affect me. Is there any requirement in law for me to comply and if not, and I don't provide outing cost info, will this affect my partner's bankruptcy process?
Thanks

nw1974

I've done a few debt calculators which come back telling me to declare myself bankrupt. i have employer shares in the company i work for, do i lose my shares or have to sell my shares if i go bankrupt? i owe 9000 my shares are worth around 3400.

StepChange_Rachael

Hi

Welcome to the forum and thanks for your post.

They'll initially ask for your partner’s household finances, you don’t have to give information of your financial situation. It’s not a legal requirement. However, the Official Receiver (OR) who’ll overlook the Bankruptcy may want to check that your partner is paying a fair contribution towards the household bills based on their income.

The reason the OR will do this is because it stops people declaring Bankruptcy and not having to pay anything into the Bankruptcy, because there is nothing left to set as an income payment arrangement (IPA).

An IPA can last up to 3 years and is normally set by the OR if there is money left over after household bills and general living costs are paid, which is over £20 per calendar month.

One thing to take into consideration is that the OR will look into your partner’s assets and beneficial interest. If your partner has high value assets or have paid towards a mortgaged property even if it’s not mortgaged in their name, it could be seen they have an interest in that property and the OR may look to release that equity.

You’ve not mentioned if the property is in your name as a rental property or a mortgaged property but it’d be worth seeking legal advice if the house is mortgaged and the Bankruptcy does go ahead.

You could also contact the Insolvency Service for more information.

Your partner could explore alternative solutions to the Bankruptcy going ahead. If your partner wanted to discuss suitable alternative solutions then they can contact us for a second opinion.

You partner can complete an online assessment of their financial situation using our anonymous Debt Remedy tool.

Once Debt Remedy’s completed it’ll let your partner access a personalised action plan which details our advice and recommendations.

Thanks
Rachael

KPNuts wrote: »

Hi
My partner has been served a bankruptcy petition and it's very likely it will go ahead. Given part of the process requires my partner to provide details of her income and outgoings, will I need to provide details of the household costs? We have separate finances and I look after all the household bills (the house is in my name). The outstanding debt was from a time before we met and while I want to support her I don't wish the bankruptcy and request for outgoing costs to affect me. Is there any requirement in law for me to comply and if not, and I don't provide outing cost info, will this affect my partner's bankruptcy process?
Thanks

Fiver007

Hello all, I'm new here after finally facing unto the mess me and my hubby are in..

Together we have around 68k unsecured debt which is a mixture of cc's and loans. We are currently deciding which is the best solution to our problem.. IVA or bankruptcy?

We have a mortgaged property that us worth 165k and the mortgage outstanding is 138k, however we purchased this house a new build in 2010 and the builders put in a 15% deposit which they want back in 2020, therefore most of the equity in the property has a charge on it and what belongs to us is very little (2k ish)

We are currently not in any arrears with any creditors including our mortgage provider but only because we have to use cc's to get through.

A couple of weeks ago I went through the budget calculator with Stepchange over the phone and they concluded that we have 1200 pounds a month available income after our outgoings (this calculator obviously doesn't include the repayments we currently have to creditors which is just short of 2k a month, hence we've racked the cc's up).

So basically my question is, how likely is it that we will be forced to find alternative accommodation is we apply for bankruptcy? Is there any way of finding out for definite before we commit to applying? How much are people normally expected to pay towards their bankruptcy for the 3 year period? is it all the available income I mentioned earlier (1200)?

IVA questions.. do they also base your repayments on the leftover available income? Is there any room for manouvre from time to time to accommodate for things like Christmas and holidays (I'm not talking Caribbean 5*). We have 2 young children and I feel at the minute that an IVA is a commitment to pretty rubbish quality of life for the next 5 years. Also, my job means that my monthly wage is variable depending on the shifts I've worked (days, nights and weekends all different rates) Do I need to pay more if I get a better wage because I've worked lots of nights for example?

Sorry for the million questions but I don't know where to start to be honest.

Many thanks in advance x