newbie help please

jodie114

hiya everyone, i have been reading this forum fo some time, and finially got up the courage to post my SOA and hopefully people might be able to help.
i am looking for what to do now, do i look into consolidation ( credit rating is not great), hanging on, an iva etc...
thanks.

OH income (monthly): 1230
my income(monthly) 380 ( incapacity benefit)
tax credits; 40 PM
child benefit 72 PM

TOTAL INCOME : 1722


OUTGOINGS - ALL PM

mortgage: 408
c.tax :120
water:20
gas + electric 60
car insurance 30
house insurance 30
petrol 90
food 220
virgin (bb, tv + phone) 70
virgin cc: 28 ( 1200 total - 1700 limit) 21%
egg cc:30 (1900 total - 2000 limit) 15%
alliance&leicester cc: 35.00 ( 1800 total - 200 limit)
morgan stanley cc: 15 ( 900 total - 1000 limit) 5.9% life of card
hsbc cc: 10 ( 600 total - 1500 limit) 18%
sainsburys cc: 35.00(1700 total - 1700 limit) 4.9% life of balance
liverpool victoria loan 225(approx 14000 to pay 5 years left of 7 year loan) 5.6%
hyundai car loan 320 (approx 2 years of a 5 year loan 8000 left to pay) 13%

total outgoings: 1716


total left +8

now my oh earnings are based on a flat week and he can get the odd shift, bringing in on average another 150 a month, but do we scrimp and save till the car loan is paid off(giving us some capital to overpay) or do something now but extend payment periods?

phew - thats better getting that down on paper. thanks

liz105

Hi,

Can you please include your debts, totals and monthly payments etc, if there are any (Im assuming by mentioning IVA etc that this is an issue?)

also there's nothing in there for birthdays, xmas, car maintenance, food shopping, phone, internet, petrol etc.

have a read of southern scousers sticky at the top of the page for first time posters.

jodie114

yes, it posted before i was ready, better list now
thanks

liz105

ah, great minds eh, you edited quicker than I could type!

liz105

Many ppl on here dont recommend consolidation and I would have to agree.

But, aside from that, call CCCS or Payplan or CAB first thing in the morning. These are debt charities that can get you on a DMP, best thing being that they dont take any fees. Dont go for anyone that takes a % of your cash for themselves.

Consolidation is frowned upon as many many people have found that they put everything onto one loan then kept on spending on the cards, new car etc and ended up 3 or 4 times worse off.

jodie114

lol me and my eager tab finger.. also wanted to add, the house is worth approx 170,000 and the mortgage is 65,000 with 22 years to run.(hopefully getting this down by overpayments once the inital bits are sorted.

jodie114

hoping a bump might get some much needed advice!
ta

painted_lady

Consolidation didnt work for me, I tried it twice. On the 3rd attempt (Jan 06) I was refused a loan. I was devastated. It forced me to look at my debts and pay them off instead. I took a long hard look at my budget, what I was spending money on, cut back on what I didnt need, got better deals, got 0% for credit cards. I ebay, sell on amazon, have a financially productive hobby (photography) and while I was working, I did a few extra hours. Only 2 or 3 extra hours a week made a difference (and also made me popular with the new manager!). It was totally shocking to see how much debt I had (£17,000) and scary as I was 28 and always assumed I would be debt free by 30. I was 30 in June this year and my debt now stands at approx £5000, with credit card debt at just over a thousand. I was lucky enough to get a £9,000 windfall in December, which is how I have managed to pay so much off, but still have paid a lot off through working hard, adequate financial planning and thinking :money: Martins mantra "DO I need it, will I use it, can I get it cheaper"
Its amazing how much you can save by simple things like adequate meal planning and shopping round for deals on everything, even being cheeky helps!