2nd Thread as didnt really get enough info first time round

scottyb84

I am asking this question again purely because I need a few more answers and maybe try and word it abit better for a better explanation.

I am currently a self employed brickie and have my own home. I am finding it hard to cope with this weather especially just after xmas. I am quite for into my overdraft (£1400) and am just getting a little worried now. I can survive for the time being but 2 weeks more of this bad weather and thats probably it. I just wanted to find out my best options.
I have an ISA account which has £1k+ and no other outstanding debts.
What are my best options?
I might just be able to get by and stay within my overdraft etc and if push comes to shove, borrow a couple of hundred from parents? or, get a credit card with 0% balance transfers? and if the credit card, how does this work? read that there are fees to transfer? and am I right in saying that there is literally no interest during the period stated? Sorry if I am being thick. Dont ever borrow money as I never buy if cant afford it.

Sorry again if questions seem dumb

Tixy

Why can't you take some of the money out of your ISA? it is likely to be cheaper than any commercial borrowing (though not borrowing from parents of course).

A credit card with 0% balance transfers would help you pay off an existing credit card debt. Which you do not seem to have.

What money do you need to spend? what do you need to buy? If they are things that can be purchased on a credit card then it would make more sense to look for a 0% purchase credit card, if you can get accepted for one.

On a 0% puchase credit card as long as you pay at least the minimum payment each month (usually around 2% of the balance) then you pay no interest for the duration of the promotional deal (often around 12months - depending on the card).

If you need cash then you could possibly look at a 0% money transfer card. This would transfer money in to your bank account to spend on what you wish. These do have a transfer fee of typically 4% of the amount you transfer.
Not very many cards have the money transfer option. If you have never had a credit card before then you may struggle to be accepted for one.

scottyb84

sorry I didnt state what my ISA was for. The ISA is my savings for my holiday to Las Vegas in June. I dont really want to dip in to this as will be harder to put it back. But put that in as just wanted to state my current status to see what people can come up with.
I also dont wish to purchase anything in particular its just cost of living, bills and mortgage etc that I will be struggling to pay so just looking at what options I have. It may not come to this at all but I am just preparing for the worst. I do currently have a credit card that I have had for a few years and have used it for emergencies when I went travelling but I wont touch that now.

R_P_W

Have you already paid for your holiday? Is your ISA for your spending money? Don't want to start by being negative but doesnt seem like you can afford a luxury like a holiday in Las Vegas.

You need to find an alternative income really to support your bricklaying - bad weather isn't a one off event - its going to happen all the time. So you either need an alternative way to earn or sufficient savings to support yourself through periods of no work. Maybe a bar job part time in the evenings would be flexible enough?

Tixy

Any borrowing that you take on (via credit card or whatever) will still need to be repaid, so it shouldn't be any harder to pay back in to your ISA than it is to repay a debt.

Why won't you use the credit card you have currently? Who it is with?
It might be worth seeing if the card provider would offer you a 0% purchase deal on that card. Which would mean you could put some of your spending on there in the next couple of weeks if you got stuck.

If I was in your position I would be looking at exactly what I need to pay out in the next few weeks for mortgage, bills, food etc, and assuming that the snow will continue and you won't be able to do any more more work for a couple of weeks.
Then you'll be able to work out if you will be able to manage on what ever is left on your overdraft limit, or if you need to consider additional borrowing.
You could perhaps also look at other ways to raise money in the short term e.g a second job as said above, or anything you could sell to raise cash.

sfax

It depends how much you can realistically put on a credit card. There are lots of things you either can't pay for at all, or that charge you. E.g. utility bills and council tax.

If you can put enough on credit cards to give you enough leeway then apply for a 0% purchases card (e.g. Tesco 0% for 16 months). This is cheaper than a 0% BT card because you aren't paying a 3-4% handling fee

grumbler

scottyb84 wrote: »

I am quite for into my overdraft (£1400)......
I have an ISA account which has £1k+

What you do makes no sense really.
ATM you effectively are borrowing money from an expensive overdraft to fund your ISA that yields you miserable interest. Just use your ISA to pay the overdraft off, then borrow from overdraft again when you need your £1K for the holiday (if you don't change your mind because of the lack of money).

Dabooka

It's not snowing inside mate, can you not look for an evening bar job or someting? Paid weekly usually too.

It's what I had to do when I was a casual worker years and years ago, worked a bar job evenings and weekends and kept Monday -Friday 9-5 free for my 'proper' job.

sfax

Agree with grumbler on the overdraft. You are losing money unnecessarily.

scottyb84

grumbler wrote: »

What you do makes no sense really.
ATM you effectively are borrowing money from an expensive overdraft to fund your ISA that yields you miserable interest. Just use your ISA to pay the overdraft off, then borrow from overdraft again when you need your £1K for the holiday (if you don't change your mind because of the lack of money).

Having seen this written down in black and white i see that this is the best option but I am going away in June and getting a card with transfers with 18 months etc would be easier to pay off as longer.

scottyb84

Tixy wrote: »

Any borrowing that you take on (via credit card or whatever) will still need to be repaid, so it shouldn't be any harder to pay back in to your ISA than it is to repay a debt.

Like I said above, I need it over a longer period