Head out from the sand and terrified

Fizz_Bomb

Time_to_face_the_music wrote: »

Hi Fizz Bomb and welcome :hello:

The criteria for a Debt Relief Order (DRO) is changing next month from the current limit of £15,000 to £20,000. Please check this out before making any commitment to an IVA or DMP.

TTFTM x

Oh thanks for this TTFTM. I must be honest and a DRO is not something I have looked at at all, so know nothing about. Is this less harrowing in terms of Credit file or on strict repayments?
Thanks again

Time_to_face_the_music

Fizz_Bomb wrote: »

Oh thanks for this TTFTM. I must be honest and a DRO is not something I have looked at at all, so know nothing about. Is this less harrowing in terms of Credit file or on strict repayments?
Thanks again

Sorry I added the link late so it's not shown in your quote but it's there now. Check it out on the CAB website, it will still have impact on your credit file but the big advantage of a DRO is that it only lasts for one year.

TTFTM x

Poppy9

Your children should get free school meals if you are receiving other benefits. Assume you claim 25% council tax discount as lone adult in house.


Does mobiles include cost of childrens? If you are not tied into contract(s) then sim only is way to go. I'm with Virgin and myself and my OH pay £5 per month for 250 mins/UL text/1gb. We just came off contract and said that's what we wanted to pay and they said okay.


Do you not insure your home contents?

rockm87

Could you not work in the evenings? bar work, takeaway etc...just until your debt decreases.

definitely check out the boards for cheaper groceries, maybe switch supermarkets.

best of luck!

Fizz_Bomb

Poppy9 wrote: »

Your children should get free school meals if you are receiving other benefits. Assume you claim 25% council tax discount as lone adult in house.


Does mobiles include cost of childrens? If you are not tied into contract(s) then sim only is way to go. I'm with Virgin and myself and my OH pay £5 per month for 250 mins/UL text/1gb. We just came off contract and said that's what we wanted to pay and they said okay.


Do you not insure your home contents?

Unfortunately not entitled to free school meals, I assume because I get working tax credit etc.
I am tied in to mobile contract till May but certainly will switch to SIM only then.
I don't have any insurance, no TBH I don't own anything of real value since leaving ex and figured it'd save a monthly bill.

Fizz_Bomb

rockm87 wrote: »

Could you not work in the evenings? bar work, takeaway etc...just until your debt decreases.

definitely check out the boards for cheaper groceries, maybe switch supermarkets.

best of luck!

I have looked or bar work but am tied to only the 2 nights my ex has the children which is sunday and Monday, so as you'd imagine, not really the most popular nights. I am always looking though. I'd worry about being no better off however, as what I earned I'd probably lose in tax credits which is a sorry state of affairs I know

xxxJOJOxxx

Hi Fizz Bomb


Firstly well done for coming to terms your debt and getting your head out of the sand. I would like to add that you can do this. I too am a single working mum and since leaving my husband over a year ago have paid off all my debt.


I think the first step is taking control of your spending and staying within budget.


Some things that jump out at me are;


Gas £70. I pay about £3.83, £10 in winter
Electric £60. I pay £7 a week


Massive savings to be had here. Try and get in good routines. Possible switch suppliers.


Mobile phone £40. Is this on contract. Switch to lower when possible or sim only


I would reduce entertainment to nil for a couple of months until things are more level. Look at free things you could do instead. it doesn't have to be forever, but while your not covering your bills this needs to go.


Food - I had a very strict budget of £26 had my hardest times. I did this by weekly home delivery. Meal planned every week and picked a £1 delivery slot (no temptation or kids asking for things). This included all household items and all meals/desserts/snacks/milk/bread. Once I done it a few times, it was easy manageable and second nature. Old school boards really helped me out with this. Everyone has their own way and once you find yours you could definitely reduce this massively.


Tv licence/sat tv. Cancel this buy a android box for £30ish, no monthly fees unless you get something like netflicks. £6 a month ish. loads of things to watch (more than enogh) just need to investigate it a little.


Your spot on re working on a bar. tax credits would be reduced. I think your earn a extra .60p per hour. The only reason to maybe do this would for some free socialising. In that respect it is definitely worth it.


Money from Dad. You really need to approach this. My ex has the children slightly more than your does but still pays £200 a month. This makes a massive difference in the quality of life I can give the children. I wouldn't worry about what he declares or not, if your getting nothing now then your losing nothing. Its good he helps with school lunches however its not really enough. I personally would avoid the csa route for now, unless setting up a meting between you and your ex. You need to explain the situation to him. Even a extra £20 a week is something. Or maybe he pays all the school meals fee and buys the clothes? There must be some way to sort something between the two of you.


The first few weeks are the hardest, but your do fine. There is massive room for improvement. And as you pay things of it gets easier and easier. I would suggest tackling one thing a time/day. look at each thing and think, how can I reduce this?


Good luck x


ps how old our your children?

dancingfairy

Hi, it might be worth doing a budget for when you are a student, just to get a feel for how much you are likely to spend.
In terms of the debt, then you could apply for a DRO. It's like a mini bankruptcy and would wipe all your debts (it costs a lot less than bankruptcy as well). An advantage is that it gives a clean slate, rather than taking years to pay off but you will need to look at how you will manage as a student as it would be awful to go for the DRO and then find after a few years being a student you had another problem. The downside is though , it is a form of insolvency.
Any of the options from a dmp, to an IVA to banruptcy or a DRO will damage your credit file, a lot of it is temporary (it will affect your credit file for at least 6 years) but in the end can be repaired but you will always need to declare insolvency when asked. Certainly things like bankruptcy can affect whether you can get a mortgage in future, I'm not sure whether a DRO would to the same extent or not.
Certainly a lot to think about.
You can, of course, arrange a temporary dmp/token payments for 6 months or so and review the situation then. Obviously this means 6 months may have been wasted if you end up going for a DRO or something anyway but gives you a bit of breathing space.
Definitely have a chat through all the options with Stepchange.
df

Fizz_Bomb

xxxJOJOxxx wrote: »

Hi Fizz Bomb


Firstly well done for coming to terms your debt and getting your head out of the sand. I would like to add that you can do this. I too am a single working mum and since leaving my husband over a year ago have paid off all my debt.


I think the first step is taking control of your spending and staying within budget.


Some things that jump out at me are;


Gas £70. I pay about £3.83, £10 in winter
Electric £60. I pay £7 a week


Massive savings to be had here. Try and get in good routines. Possible switch suppliers.


Mobile phone £40. Is this on contract. Switch to lower when possible or sim only


I would reduce entertainment to nil for a couple of months until things are more level. Look at free things you could do instead. it doesn't have to be forever, but while your not covering your bills this needs to go.


Food - I had a very strict budget of £26 had my hardest times. I did this by weekly home delivery. Meal planned every week and picked a £1 delivery slot (no temptation or kids asking for things). This included all household items and all meals/desserts/snacks/milk/bread. Once I done it a few times, it was easy manageable and second nature. Old school boards really helped me out with this. Everyone has their own way and once you find yours you could definitely reduce this massively.


Tv licence/sat tv. Cancel this buy a android box for £30ish, no monthly fees unless you get something like netflicks. £6 a month ish. loads of things to watch (more than enogh) just need to investigate it a little.


Your spot on re working on a bar. tax credits would be reduced. I think your earn a extra .60p per hour. The only reason to maybe do this would for some free socialising. In that respect it is definitely worth it.


Money from Dad. You really need to approach this. My ex has the children slightly more than your does but still pays £200 a month. This makes a massive difference in the quality of life I can give the children. I wouldn't worry about what he declares or not, if your getting nothing now then your losing nothing. Its good he helps with school lunches however its not really enough. I personally would avoid the csa route for now, unless setting up a meting between you and your ex. You need to explain the situation to him. Even a extra £20 a week is something. Or maybe he pays all the school meals fee and buys the clothes? There must be some way to sort something between the two of you.


The first few weeks are the hardest, but your do fine. There is massive room for improvement. And as you pay things of it gets easier and easier. I would suggest tackling one thing a time/day. look at each thing and think, how can I reduce this?


Good luck x


ps how old our your children?

Thank you so much. My kids are 3 and 7.
I would love to be able to cut my food bill, as I feel I definitely spend too much. This week, I skipped my usual Monday 'big shop' where I usually spend about £70 and just picked up milk, bread, fruit, cheese etc for about £15. Granted, I'd done a big shop last week so still had bits and pieces but I'm wondering if u can really cut back here every week. Do you recall what you used to buy for your £26?
I'm tied into my mobile until May unfortunately.
Which gas and electric supplier are you with?
Thanks so much X

Fizz_Bomb

dancingfairy wrote: »

Hi, it might be worth doing a budget for when you are a student, just to get a feel for how much you are likely to spend.
In terms of the debt, then you could apply for a DRO. It's like a mini bankruptcy and would wipe all your debts (it costs a lot less than bankruptcy as well). An advantage is that it gives a clean slate, rather than taking years to pay off but you will need to look at how you will manage as a student as it would be awful to go for the DRO and then find after a few years being a student you had another problem. The downside is though , it is a form of insolvency.
Any of the options from a dmp, to an IVA to banruptcy or a DRO will damage your credit file, a lot of it is temporary (it will affect your credit file for at least 6 years) but in the end can be repaired but you will always need to declare insolvency when asked. Certainly things like bankruptcy can affect whether you can get a mortgage in future, I'm not sure whether a DRO would to the same extent or not.
Certainly a lot to think about.
You can, of course, arrange a temporary dmp/token payments for 6 months or so and review the situation then. Obviously this means 6 months may have been wasted if you end up going for a DRO or something anyway but gives you a bit of breathing space.
Definitely have a chat through all the options with Stepchange.
df

Thank you very much Dancing Fairy. The word insolvency just petrifies me. But I know this can't go on. I'm currently adding around £200 a month to my credit card to make up for the short fall, which is eventually going to run out. I'm ashamed to admit this, but the very thought of cutting up that final card scares me because then I have no fall back if I'm short for something next time.
Would ringing my creditors (mint, tesco, Barclays) be a worthwhile shot to see if they'd reduce my minimum payments for 6 months? Or is that usually unheard of? Barclays and tesco are both currently interest free for at least 1 more year, and I could probably just squeeze my mint card on to one of those to make that interest free too...so I wouldn't be asking them to freeze Intrest, just reduce my payments.
That said though, I can't see my circumstances changing at all in the next six months other than being worse off if the government plans of reducinb tax credits do go ahead so it could be as you say, a waste of six months. Oh, so confused!