Please can you view my SOA? x

**tinkerfoos**

Please could someone have a look over my SOA. Im not sure where we could cut back!!

A few things to point out before are:

1 - We have the use of 2 cars but one (including fuel) is completely paid for by my husbands work. Mine is necessary due to location but not used daily

2 - The family loan was an agreement when we moved house, was lent to me by my grandad but is paid back to my mum and covers her living expenses after a change of circumstance on her part and so is non negotiable

3 - the house we rent out is in negative equity and so it appears we are stuck with that! the house value in assets includes the value of both properties.

4 - mobile phone payment is 2 contracts at £38 each - we are stuck with these for at least a year each, after that will go to sim only!

5 - i havent budgeted for clothes and MOT etc as we generally dont buy ATM and the MOT is done where i work and paid off as and when!

6 - Holiday is something we are also "tied" too, but I feel like it should be cancelled! I am working on DH re this! no budget for entertainment ATM as we do what we can as and when and its on back burner due to holiday!!


Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 684
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2282.5
Benefits................................ 81.2
Other income............................ 520
Total monthly income.................... 3567.7

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 660
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 496.5
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 135
Electricity............................. 40
Gas..................................... 40
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 29
Telephone (land line)................... 22
Mobile phone............................ 78
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 44
Internet Services....................... 3.75
Groceries etc. ......................... 240
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 30
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 21.19
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 20
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 5.75
Buildings insurance..................... 20
Contents insurance...................... 11.2
Life assurance ......................... 28
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 0
Holiday................................. 100
Emergency fund.......................... 0
(Unnamed monthly expense)............... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 2076.39


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 240000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 242000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 117500...(660)......4.19
Secured Debt.................. 96500....(496.5)....4.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 214000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Overdraft......................3000......0.........18
HSBC Credit Card...............2500......50........17.9
Barclaycard ...................6700......150.......22.5
Family.........................10440.....460.......0
HSBC Loan......................24439.....475.......0
DFS............................350.......27........0
Barclaycard ...................9700......220.......6.9
Total unsecured debts..........57129.....1382......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,567.7
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,076.39
Available for debt repayments........... 1,491.31
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,382
Amount left after debt repayments....... 109.31

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 242,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -214,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -57,129
Net Assets.............................. -29,129

Thank you xx

dancingfairy

Lol. Your SOA is currently saying you are overspending by 25,346 a month :eek: That's impressive You'll feel much better once you've switched the figures on the HSBC loan around to get it corrected.
I think from a brief look you're probably just about making the minimum payments each month?
Can you downgrade the contracts at all? would they let you switch down a level even if you can't cancel completely?
With the sky can you again downgrade or cancel completely?
The holiday you can't afford right now from what I can see. It's that or the MOT and any car expense that might crop up. Are you booked or have you just said to family/friends you will go? Can you switch to somewhere cheaper? If not then after the holiday you really will have to look at this and see if you can afford to go away next year.
df

dancingfairy

It appears you owe 58k is that right? I assume the HSBC loan is 24k and it's the wrong way around?
df

**tinkerfoos**

oh for goodness sake! you can tell Im new! Altered now thank you!

the holiday is a difficult one! we cancelled last year and that cost us £150 to move it, we moved it to Feb this year and have since done the same again (at a cost of another £150!!) to go with the group of friends we should have gone with last year! so we have paid out around £700 already! x

dancingfairy

o.k with the holiday then maybe you are stuck with it for now. It's good that you have 109 'spare' a month as you will probably need this for clothes and the MOT. Some of your options are (in no particular order):
1) making the minimum payments as you are now and overpaying where possible. only options to pay more are to cut down expenses if possible (others can advise on this) or upping your income.
2) bankruptcy.
3) an IVA.
is there any equity in your current house? could you sell this and move back into the other one?
You could have a chat with one of the debt charities such as National Debtline, Stepchange or your local CAB to see what they recommend. Stepchange as has an online debt remedy you can do which will give you a rough idea.
You appear to be sort of borderline between paying it back over a fairly long period of time say 5/6 years including interest or taking a more drastic step such as bankrutpcy or an IVA. There is no right or wrong and it will be very much a personal choice for you.
df

WelshKitty85

Hello, welcome and well done for posting. I am a relative newbie here but from just a quick glance it looks like there are a few areas you can cut back. Can you negotiate with sky at all? I currently pay around 40 per month but that includes unlimited calls, broadband and line rental too. Also, what about cutting back on your grocery shopping? I manage on around 200 per month for a family of 2 adults and 2 children and that is usually plenty.
Good luck with it all.

[Deleted User]

**tinkerfoos** wrote: »

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 684
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2282.5
Benefits................................ 81.2
Other income............................ 520
Total monthly income.................... 3567.7

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 660
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 496.5
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 135 - Over 10 or 12 months? If over 10, switching to 12 will reduce it by £22-50pm.
Electricity............................. 40
Gas..................................... 40
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 29
Telephone (land line)................... 22
Mobile phone............................ 78 - Go SIM only/PAYG, ASAP.
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 44 - Dump and go Freeview/Freesat, at least until debts cleared.
Internet Services....................... 3.75 - This seems high. Look for a better deal.
Groceries etc. ......................... 240
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 30
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 21.19
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 0
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 20
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0 - Never?
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 5.75
Buildings insurance..................... 20
Contents insurance...................... 11.2
Life assurance ......................... 28
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 0 - Never?
Holiday................................. 100 - This is a lot. Can you reduce?
Emergency fund.......................... 0 - You need something in here.
(Unnamed monthly expense)............... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 2076.39


Assets
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 240000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 242000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 117500...(660)......4.19
Secured Debt.................. 96500....(496.5)....4.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 214000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Overdraft......................3000......0.........18
HSBC Credit Card...............2500......50........17.9
Barclaycard ...................6700......150.......22.5 - This is the one to clear first.
Family.........................10440.....460.......0
HSBC Loan......................24439.....475.......0
DFS............................350.......27........0
Barclaycard ...................9700......220.......6.9
Total unsecured debts..........57129.....1382......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,567.7
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,076.39
Available for debt repayments........... 1,491.31
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,382
Amount left after debt repayments....... 109.31

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 242,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -214,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -57,129
Net Assets.............................. -29,129

At first sight, it doesn't look like you are doing too badly, but I'm guessing you don't actually have £109 left.

Some, presumably goes on entertainment?

Maybe a DVD or 2, trip to the cinema, night in with a takeaway and a bottle?

Also, I notice you have nothing listed for the Emergency Fund.

As a home owner, rather than a tenant, the Emergency Fund is vital as, without it, one major incident (eg. boiler breakdown) will send you straight to borrowing again.

You really need to hit the Barclaycard hard because, at your current rate of paying, it's going to take 93 months to clear, and it'll cost more in interest, than the current balance.

Paying just an extra £50pm to it, will reduce the payment period by 41 months and, more importantly, roughly halve the interest paid.

**tinkerfoos**

Just realised what i forgot!

the 2nd Barclaycard isnt in my name, its in mums. Ive posted to a step change advisor on here before and they have advised that they wouldnt be able to take this debt, or the family one into account and so based on that my SOA would actually look like i had the £460 and £220 available to spend monthly!

My internet/phone and sky are a package deal we are also stuck with!

C Tax is over 10 months - we were told we couldnt go to 12 :-(

Welshkitty - i will definitely be trying to reduce my grocery shopping, thank you.

Bedsit bob - that is a scary fact! more in interest than balance!! will have to look at overpaying there when i can thank you x

[Deleted User]

**tinkerfoos** wrote: »

A few things to point out before are:

3 - the house we rent out is in negative equityHow much?) and so it appears we are stuck with that! the house value in assets includes the value of both properties.

4 - mobile phone payment is 2 contracts at £38 each - we are stuck with these for at least a year each, after that will go to sim only! They may not allow you to cancel, but they may allow you to downgrade the package, call them up, plead poverty and see what they say - the worst that they can say is NO. Also, if the handsets are particularly valuable, consider selling them and just using the SIMS in cheapo phones

5 - i havent budgeted for clothes and MOT etc as we generally dont buy ATM and the MOT is done where i work and paid off as and when!In the long run it is probably better that you do budget for these things as its the unplanned expenses that could put you over the ende

6 - Holiday is something we are also "tied" too, but I feel like it should be cancelled! I am working on DH re this! no budget for entertainment ATM as we do what we can as and when and its on back burner due to holiday!!when will this be fully repaid? Is the £100 pm you are saving going to cover all holiday costs, including spending money?


Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Household Information
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 1
Number of cars owned.................... 1

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 684Any way to increase? Overtime? Promotion? New job? Second job?
Partners monthly income after tax....... 2282.5As above?
Benefits................................ 81.2
Other income............................ 520I presume that this is the rent on your second property?
Total monthly income.................... 3567.7

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 660
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 496.5I presume that this is the mortgage on your second property? Can you switch to interest only, even in the short term it would help you over pay on some of your higher interest debt? (maybe not an option if in NE)
Council tax............................. 135Is this over 10 or 12 months? If 10 ask your local council if you can spread over 12 (some will, some won't)
Electricity............................. 40Although neither sound ridiculous, check every 6-12 months that you are on the best tariff for your area (online/DD/duel fuel dicounts etc)
Gas..................................... 40as above
Water rates............................. 29Again, not high, but if this is not a water meter, consider if one would be cheaper
Telephone (land line)................... 22
Mobile phone............................ 78as mentioned above, see if they will let you downgrade even if you can't cancel
TV Licence.............................. 12
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 44consider cancelling, switch to freeview, freesat, or Now TV, Love film as cheaper alternatives
Internet Services....................... 3.75
Groceries etc. ......................... 240Again not high, but maybe could reduce a little? Drop brands, meal plan, batch cook, cook from scratch etc
Clothing................................ 0think you should have a little here, even if just for child
Petrol/diesel........................... 30Given how infrequently the car is being used is there any alternative you could use for transport? bike, online grocery shopping, walking, bus, train?
Road tax................................ 10
Car Insurance........................... 21.19
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0as above, would budget for this
Other child related expenses............ 20what does this cover?
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0never?
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 5.75
Buildings insurance..................... 20
Contents insurance...................... 11.2
Life assurance ......................... 28
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 20
Haircuts................................ 10
Entertainment........................... 0again, I'd budget something
Holiday................................. 100
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 2076.39[/b]


Assets
Cash.................................... 0where do you keep money for non-monthly expenses, presents, holiday etc
House value (Gross)..................... 240000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2000 Consider if there are alternatives to having the second car (maybe even irregular taxi's would work out cheaper over the long term? You could sell car and overpay highest interest charging debt and save in running costs (Tax, MOT, Insurance, petrol)
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 242000


Secured & HP Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 117500...(660)......4.19
Secured Debt.................. 96500....(496.5)....4.2
Total secured & HP debts...... 214000....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Overdraft......................3000......0.........18if you're not paying anything towards this every month, does that mean that it is increasing monthly?
HSBC Credit Card...............2500......50........17.9
Barclaycard ...................6700......150.......22.5This is your highest charging debt - are you able/have you tried to switch it to a lower rate?If/when you have any additional income/spare cash over pay towards this debt as the interest rate is highest
Family.........................10440.....460.......0this will be fully re-paid in under two years, and will free up a big chunk of money then to throw at higher charging debt then - you really just need to get a plan together to get through the next two years then your debt will reduce much more rapidly - I also think that many, if not all, of the formal debt remedies (bankruptcy, IVA, DMP etc will not be open to you unless you are prepared to include ALL debts, including this one)
HSBC Loan......................24439.....475.......0interest rate?
DFS............................350.......27........0
Barclaycard ...................9700......220.......6.9
Total unsecured debts..........57129.....1382......-


Monthly Budget Summary
Total monthly income.................... 3,567.7
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 2,076.39
Available for debt repayments........... 1,491.31
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 1,382
Amount left after debt repayments....... 109.31Do you actually have this spare £100 at the end of every month? (once holiday paid of this will increase to £200, although I think you need to include other things in your SOA including prescriptions, dentist, MOT, clothes etc). If you don't see this £100 then keep a spending diary to see where it goes - note down everything that you spend money on from the really big things to the really small things, and everything in between

Personal Balance Sheet Summary
Total assets (things you own)........... 242,000
Total HP & Secured debt................. -214,000
Total Unsecured debt.................... -57,129
Net Assets.............................. -29,129

Thank you xx

Comments above, HTH,

D9

[Deleted User]

**tinkerfoos** wrote: »

My internet/phone and sky are a package deal we are also stuck with!

How long till you are out of contract?

C Tax is over 10 months - we were told we couldn't go to 12 :-(

Who told you this, and when?

dancingfairy

It used to be the case that you could only pay over 12 months but I think the government made a ruling that you could pay over 12now?
df