I’m a buffoon who is in 25K of debt and can’t think straight.HELP ME!

bathgatebuyer

I wouldn't worry about what is otherwise a really good credit score. To give you a clue, mine is 'very poor' at 435 / 1000 and that's with my debts now down at a 6th of what they once were. I guess the damage has been done!

There's loads of info on this website, plenty of friendly non-judgemental 'been there, worn the t-shirt' types who will be better placed than I to offer the best advice. Truth is, you will have to make some harsh decisions to help make your situation easier, with things like the contract mobiles and Sky being the easiest to turn into moneysavers as opposed to ongoing costs. At the moment, my luxury is Setanta Sports at £9.99 a month with no contract and provides me with all the sport I can watch. Sure Sky would be nice, but with freeview, there's always something for me, even if it is BBC News 24!

I also changed my electricity supplier with uswitch (although as someone has already mentioned, use Quidco and qualify for cashback) and should save about £30 a quarter. Not a huge amount, but every little helps, and if you can make a similar saving with your Gas bill to, then there's £20 saved per month. Add in your Sky Savings of £41 a month, plus some tweaking of your Mobiles and that's £61 per mnnth at least which is a great start! If you can do without the dental insurance, then there's another £18 a month, so nearly £80 a month saved already. It's easy for us to make suggestions, but it's ultimately for you to decide what you can and can't do without.

Look at the other options to your phone and broadband suppliers through uswitch too, as well as for your credit cards as it may be that there are more suitable alternatives out there.

TheAble

Do you have any assets at all - did the debts accrue through buying things that now have a cash value that could be realised?

Jacks_xxx

:hello: Hi again my lovely,

I was wondering how you've been getting on. (I'm glad to see those evil Next and Additions interest rates are gone. Ooh and a CC too? Cool. :cool:

I'm glad the Snowball gave you a new way of looking at the debts - even if it was scary! My debt free date was set to be some time in 2028 when I had my Light Bulb Moment but it's May 2010 now and I'm hoping to shave even more time off that.

I know we're meant to be saving money but it might be worth subscribing to one of the Credit ref agencies for a while so that you can keep an eye on your rating and apply for another 0%CC if it goes back up.

But having said that I was accepted for a 0% Sky card with a £3000 limit only days after having been turned down by egg so some lenders seem to actively like those of us with dodgy credit! (I wonder why that is?!)

Have you talked to CCCS or filled in their online questionaire to see what they recommend for you? They might provide another perspective or another set of options...

https://www.cccs.co.uk/debtremedy/(poc4k2mixocxuk45g2leawqu)/Start.aspx?hp=2

I hope you're feeling a bit more positive.

Love Jacks xxx