Making the decision

XYZ1000

Hi

I am just wondering how some of nice people that have gone bankrupt managed to make that decision. I know some of may not of had a choice and differant circumstances than mine. It's just I have struggled for ages and wonder and wonder but that's as far as it ever goes. I just keep pushing myself to the limit to pay my debts that's going to take until around 2026 to pay off. I rent i don't have anything of value to be repossessed. My job wouldn't be affected.
I get that it must be a stressfull process but I keep thinking it has to be better than this for the next 13 year. So guys how did you go from being undecided to starting the ball rolling?

easygoingchap

XYZ1000 wrote: »

Hi

I am just wondering how some of nice people that have gone bankrupt managed to make that decision. I know some of may not of had a choice and differant circumstances than mine. It's just I have struggled for ages and wonder and wonder but that's as far as it ever goes. I just keep pushing myself to the limit to pay my debts that's going to take until around 2026 to pay off. I rent i don't have anything of value to be repossessed. My job wouldn't be affected.
I get that it must be a stressfull process but I keep thinking it has to be better than this for the next 13 year. So guys how did you go from being undecided to starting the ball rolling?

Spk to Stepchange debt charity for advice and they recommended it which, if I am honest , surprised us as we thought of Iva . Mulled it over, spoke with cab ( who, for us, were dreadful) and spoke with stepchange again and realised it was the only way for us. Going BR was tough, the months since July when we petitioned have been even worse so don't believe the hype that you get to sleep at night - we don't . But, and it's a big but, we are 3 months in- 9 months to go until AD and 36 months of IPA just started so there is a glimmer of light appearing at the end of a very long and very dark tunnel. That light makes it all worthwhile as we keep on telling ourselves .

Don't be fooled into thinking it is easy - we will never be able to get a mortgage again, be 6 yrs until a proper bank account mobile phone etc make it very hard indeed. I am yet to find one happy BR but it isn't as bad as worrying about the worst thing that can happen - it has so now dust ourselves down and crack on as well as we can

philnicandevan

Finished work on health grounds nearly 6 and a half years ago, small ammount of debt (around 11k) no way of paying it back spoke to cccs (step change as it is now) they suggested bankruptcy sent paperwork took me a few weeks of fine tuning turned up atcourt then an interview with the OR straight after allin all done in under an hour.


Mortgages are "difficult" but not impossible after discharge....i've had a proper bank account since discharge nearly 6yrs ago..I consider myself one of the lucky ones..it affects different people different ways from experiance it floored me totally but I bounced back and now life is better than it was for sure

greenpastures

I know what you are saying, I am a very ordinary married mum of 3, unfortunately due to a failed business and to be honest living beyond my means I racked up a lot of debt. I spoke to the Cccs at the time and they put me on a debt repayment plan, I paid this for 6 months had my review and finally looked at the end time when my debt would be finished - I would be nearing my sixties! This is when reality set in, the Cccs were fantastic and I couldn't have done it without them, they were honest with me and said bankruptcy was the only viable option, they went through the forms with me on the phone I then saved the £750 court fee although it took me around 9 months to do this.
I went to court and the lady who checked my forms and took the Money was very nice, I told her I was terrified in case the judge wanted to see me - which he did.
The lady took me to his chambers and asked if I'd received advice and was I sure I wanted to this, I had no option, he signed me off and I was bankrupt. The lady and the judge were so kind I burst into tears, the lady gave me a hug and wished me well.
I got back to my car and the dam burst and the relief was overwhelming.
So it took time to make the decision and time to actually go through with it but I was discharged last Saturday writing this made it feel like yesterday but I don't regret it one bit I needed to be debt free and made a decision to do this before I was 40, which I turned this year.
I'm finally debt free and not afraid to answer the phone or open my mail - not that I get much nowadays thankfully.
It's not a light decision but I wish you well whatever you decide.
Good luck.

TheGardener

Do the StepChange online remedy tool - free and confidential. I did and when the 'remedy' came back BR - I couldn't take it in - I did it 4 times (and got the same answer each time) before I finally realised that was what I needed to do or face penury into retirement. My only regret is that I battled on for so long sinking deeper and deeper.
Do the online thing then call StepChange to discuss it - they were amazing.
And keep coming back here to ask questions - you will have loads, we are a friendly lot and will help were we can

dacdesigns

I have just been advised to go bankrupt by stepchange, I can't believe it! I really don't know what to do, I have made it so I can scrap onto a DMP for 10 years but this is with no air to breath, no room for error. I'm gutted and feel very upset, I have my own thread in the debt free wannabe forum and have sat here all night hitting refresh hoping for some good advice, I've had one reply all night, I need to go sleep for work but can't. I feel your pain!

Action_Jackson

After a few years of constant fire fighting with creditors, and one particularly bad year of county court action, I decided enough was enough.

Being BR isn't great, but at least there is a definite end to it, just 12 months (3 years of payments though if you get an IPA).

Each individual needs to carefully weigh up the pros and cons for their own circumstances. For some it can be a disaster, for others, nothing really changes. Certainly for someone with no assets and whose job will not be affected, it's worth serious consideration.

It gives you a chance to plan a future free of debt, rather than being stuck in an endless financial quagmire.

Life is too short to be a debt slave.

TheGardener

dacdesigns wrote: »

I have just been advised to go bankrupt by stepchange, I can't believe it! I really don't know what to do,

Take the advice you have been given by StepChange, going BR is no worse than were you are now and is the beginning of road to things getting better. I struggled on for years and as I have said in other posts, I should have just done it and made a new start. I lost countless nights sleep and although BR was not an overnight cure - now a few months in, I do sleep all night and the panic attacks that used to overwhelm me sometimes in the night have gone. Chin up! start taking positive action and move forward and come back here for support and advice

AndyBSG

For me the decision was made VERY logically, one of the biggest things with BR is to try and get past the embarassment/stigma associated with it.

The three main factors for me were simple.

- Do I own anything I cannot afford to lose(i.e. a house)? No, I was renting at the time and had zero savings.

- What was my total debt, how long would it take to pay off and what damage would I do to my credit rating in that time? For me it was just shy of £40k which would have taken me over a decade to pay off and I would have racked up some CCJ's/late payments/missed payments in that time that would have made my credit history junk anyway

- What impact would a BR have on my future in terms of work, etc? There were some effects as I write software mainly in the financial sector so i've missed out on the odd job here and there but for most people this wouldn't even be an issue.

When I looked at it like that the decision was simple and it's one that i'm glad I made. I'm not proud of being BR but the simple fact is going BR allowed me to sort my life out.

6 years later i'm now very financially stable and getting on with my life. If I never went BR I would still be struggling now and stressed with my life in a rut I and unable to get out of it.