Just had card declined need some help please!!!

Hewie29

Hi all

I am new here, but have been lurking for many years and have taken some great advice from many posters so thanks for all that.

I need some more help now though, as from my title I have been food shopping today and had my card declined, had to put the shopping on my credit card EEEK don't like doing that.

Any way have got an SOA to post so would like some advice please!!

Here goes:

Income:

Hubby: budget for 1200 but most months its around 1400 with overtime
Me: 425 option for extra in next couple of months
Child Allowance:119.75
Tax Credits: 42.24

Total: 1786.99
Out goings:

Mortgage: 538.81 fixed until feb 08
Mgm: endownment: 53.14
Electric: 40
Gas: 45
Mgm: Endownment: 74.73
Orange broadband: 17.99
Scottish Equitable:13.78 Life ins for part of mortgage that is repayment
O2 x 2@20 each = 40
Spec Savers: 15.50
Scottish widows: life ins:16.54
L&G endownment: 96.12
TV payments :37.00 have cancelled sky to pay this quicker and should be finished by end of year.
Tv Licence: 10.99
BT: 11.00
Pipex: around 5.00 per month phone calls
Council Tax: 91.66
Water 32.50

Then put in 90.00 per month for 2x car tax and insurance, house ins and car servicing.
Need to cars hubby works shifts and i work in opposite direction, live in a sleepy town in the southwest and public transport in rubbish.

Then have food and petrol,
Food around 280 that would be a dear month
Petrol around 100 per month for both

I save 8.50 per week for kids clubs

Credit cards
Capital one 0 % interest £500, pay 25 each month
Virgin 0 % interest £450 pay 25 each month
HSBC 0 % interest £864 pay 35 each month
Next 100 pay 10 each month
LLoyds 900 pay min each month

Overdrafts to limit on A&L account £700 and Lloyds Tsb £2500
Total outgoings £1748.76

Try to say some of hubbys overtime as going to visit brother in Cyprus in August, Mother in law has paid for flights very kindly.

Well think thats it.
Thanks in advance

Hewie29:o

brummiebabe

Just my 1st thought -why have you got 3 endowments? Will look back over your SOA and see what else I can see.

Well done for posting - your SOA is very detailed and I'm sure the regular DFWs will be along soon x

Hewie29

Hi Brummiebabe

We have 3 endownments as we have remortgaged a few times over the number of years end everytime ended up having to take out more endownments, will be trying to sort this out when the fixed rate finishes in Feb.

Cheers

brummiebabe

HAve you taken these out in recent years? I thought they weren't being sold any more (due to their poor return) I know when we moved house 7 years ago and tried to increase our endowment - I was told they no longer sold them, as they weren't meeting the expected target. We got rid of ours and changed to repayment. I know you can claim if you feel you've been unfairly sold and endowment policy.....although that's a whole other thread;)

Nothing else really obvious jumps out at me - your food shopping seems reasonable, although you could try the OS grocery challenge to see if you can save a bit there -it's good fun!!

angelavdavis

Well done for switching to 0% on the credit cards.

Anything to Ebay to throw at the cards? Some of them aren't huge and you could make a real difference to your monthly payments if you got them down a bit.

What is specsavers for? If its contacts, does this deal include your tests? I would price up the separate arrangement to see if you can buy your contacts online (Asda do a good deal apparently) and then the tests separately - it might be cheaper.

Roll on your mortgage review time, you are currently paying out £762 per month for your mortgage including all those endowments which is half your OH's income! I don't know how much your mortgage is for or the loan period, but that is almost as much as borrowing £118000 on a repayment mortgage over 25 years (assuming a 6% rate). However, roughly working out your incomes and what a bank would generally lend you, this would only amount to £80.5k (that is £524.77 per month at the same rate/term as above). So you are overstretching yourself with these payment arrangements, no wonder you are having problems.

Personally, when its review time for the mortgage, I would see whether the endowments are worth much, as mentioned, many have seen poor returns. If they are worth it, I would then cash them in and pay off the credit cards (and cut them up, freezing one for an emergency) and then put the rest toward paying off the capital, then remortgage for a lower amount. It all depends on the amounts but it might give you a better deal. You will need to watch that you can borrow enough in another form to cover your mortgage via a repayment for example.

Hewie29

Hi thanks for the replies

In Feb we hope to cash in the endownments is they are worth anything and pay off any existing debts and then the rest on the capital of the mortgage, should be able to borrow enough, mortgage is 125,000 house is worth 170,000. Went to the bank a few months ago and asked what they would lend us and they didn't seem to think there would be a problem.

Spec savers is for hubby's contact lenses, this includes tests, he has funny eyes and this is the best way for him to go.

Thanks