In crisis don't know where to start

In_Search_Of_Me

Just to say welcome & big hug for you! Have a look at old style board for where you can save on groceries etc; see if you can reclaim any charges (ie I just gt 250 back in mort fee for writing a simple letter thanks to the site!) start a spending diary, flog stuff on ebay and post on here! It can be done and it's really quite incredible what you can save when you set your mind to it! I just saved loads just by ditching my gym card and getting free tv instead of paying for additional channels. Your mobile is very high BTW...Is your council tax on the right banding? Again I just changed mine & saved a fortune plus got a rebate check. Possibly the most important thing is DONT panic! I know its hard (it does get better, honest!) and dont keep applying for credit until you know your credit score....Get the facts & go from there...Keep posting & big hug for you!

BWZN93

If you are living on your own, do you recieve the single person discount on your council tax? If not, reclaim the overpayments for that too!

Jo x

Jacks_xxx

Darling you are definitely NOT a bad person! :eek: A bad person wouldn't care so much about it now would they?

Now...let's have a look....

So basically we need to

• make some cutbacks in your outgoings,
• organise your debt so it costs you less,
• and pay it off in the most efficient and cost effective way.

I could do with seeing the interest rates on those cards hon - it would help us to prioritise what to pay off first because if you just keep giving them the minimum each month you'll be doing it for decades. (I wish I was kidding!)


Account Subscription - is that connected to your overdraft? I think that might be a place to start.


How about opening another bank account and treating your overdraft as another bill to pay? Get rid of the monthly charge as soon as you can, and when you pay the overdraft off close the account.


If you start up an Alliance and Leicester account through Quidco they'll even give you £50! :dance:

http://www.quidco.com/finance/bank-accounts/


Next...How about applying for a 0% balance transfer credit card to transfer some of the debt onto? You can find one to suit you here:

http://www.moneysupermarket.com/cards/credit_card.asp


or you could look at these at Quidco for cashback

http://www.quidco.com/finance/credit-cards/


Or ring your current CC lenders and ask them to give you a better rate. (we did!)


We still definitely need to get all the info together and fill in the Snowball calculator.

http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx


and it would be good to know where the rest of your salary goes so that you can decide if you can make any cutbacks there.


And...Can you cut back on your Orange and Virgin Media costs?


Even if your phone is on contract you can ring up and renegotiate your deal to one that costs less amonth or one that suits your need better so you don't go over the "free" calls/texts.


Plus the last time I looked you could get phone, lots of tv channels, and internet from Sky for about £26 a month.


If you've got to the bottom of this post and you're feeling abit overwhelmed by my rampant bossiness you could always go and see the CAB, and they'll help you contact everybody - plus they have a bit of clout and your creditors are less likely to say no.


Either way, keep us informed about how you're getting on sweetie,


Take care,

Love Jacks xxx

System

Hi all, hope you had a good day!

So achievements for today are: Have reduced my Orange Plan to a £30 one. Less talk minutes, which I don't use, and same texts so shouldn't affect my life! Also transferred £1700 from the Virgin Card to my new 0% Ulster Bank Card.

In the process of investigating, however, I did discover that I had exceeded the limit on my Virgin Card and they will be charging me an extra £58 this month!!!!!!! I didn't even know it was possible to exceed the limit on a credit card. Is it lawful to make these charges?

wannabefreee

gOOD FOR YOU!!!! ONE DAY AND YOU HAVE SAVED YOURSELF ££££££'S IN INTEREST!!! TOGETHER WE WILL ALL CRACK IT!!!

In_Search_Of_Me

Well done you! Check the dates re charges as I was charged for paying EARLY but because it was an automated system it didnt recognise the payment! I always ring & try to get them to remove extra charges, no harm trying, but dont pay late with CC's as this WILL affect your credit rating. Banks/card co's are getting more cautious with lending now though because of the dire financal state of the markets. Another big hug for you...keep up the good work - it does get easier!

OberonSH

Yay! Go you for making a start. Dont forget to get hold of the council and see if they have put your single person discount on, and if you qualify for any help from the govt.

jimmo

I don’t know how much things have changed over the years but, for different reasons, I was in a similar financial position to you and went down the route of re-mortgaging, consolidation loans etc. The trouble was that I then continued to use my credit cards and built up even more debts.
About 15 years ago, with debts a bit higher than yours I went to the CAB and “qualified” for specialist debt councillor advice.
The councillor was absolutely brilliant. A statement of affairs is important but a realistic budget for living is far more important.
The advice I received was to ensure I kept a roof over my head and could live reasonably. Pay the mortgage or rent. Pay the gas, electricity, council tax and water rates first because the people you are paying certainly have the ultimate power to disrupt your life in a big way.
Next, ensure you have enough money to live on. Much to my surprise the councillor encouraged me to include the obvious basics like food and clothing but also an occasional night out and an annual holiday.
Just as an example I budgeted for running 2 family cars because my wife and I had jobs in opposite directions from our home. That was accepted as being reasonable by the councillor.
Then, what you have left each month is the amount you can afford to pay your creditors. Apportion that between them according to the amount of debt.
I had to open a basic bank account and get our salaries paid into that in order to isolate the overdraft and ensure the bank did not grab our salaries.
The first thing the councillor then did was to approach all my creditors, tell them how much they could get each month and ask them to freeze the interest charges. I was absolutely amazed when they all agreed. What an amazing feeling that was when each of them notified me that they were freezing the interest “until further notice.”
Then we started to rebuild our lives, having enough money to live a fairly frugal but OK lifestyle. A basic bank account allows you to set up direct debits and standing orders for the basics but we had no cheque books and no credit cards. For anything else we had to pay with cash. Inconvenient, yes but you can live with it and it really is good discipline.
The information you have posted suggests that you are really not as badly off as I was at my lowest point and, as other people have said, you have made a huge step admitting that you are in trouble but I really fear that trying to preserve your credit rating now is not really in your interests.
Your credit rating may be shot anyway but if it is still intact you will face huge interest charges on your existing debts. I really think that it is better to take the bull by the horns, admit you’re in a mess and get it sorted. Freezing the interest was the huge step for me. To be honest it was no bad thing that I could not get any credit at the time but I survived. 15 years later I now have a number of credit cards with a combined credit limit of £35,000 and debts of £200.
You really can get through this but the fundamental point is that we all have to live on our income.

System

Hi, I must admit the idea of having no access to credit terrifies me as I have always had that safety net. I've always had the discipline to control things before but this year has been so hard! Well, I have the APRs now for my credit cards which are as follows:

Sky 19.9%
Citi 17.2%
Virgin 15.9%

I also have the Ulster Bank card at 0% for the time being, but I think I am running out of cards to rate tart with!

RAS

Ashamed_of_Bristol wrote: »

Well, I have the APRs now for my credit cards which are as follows:

Sky £2140 19.9% Min: £76 - this is what you pay off first as the APR is highest
Citi £3544 17.2% Min: £106
Virgin :£4377 15.9% Min: £64.80

Overdraft: £1260 - what is the APR on this? Is it an agreed overdraft?

I also have the Ulster Bank card at 0% for the time being, but I think I am running out of cards to rate tart with! Do you have any more credit limit on this?

OK, you say you moved £1700 from the Virgin card to the 0%. Can you pay £1700 off the Sky card with the spare credit on the Virgin card as this would reduce your interest payment 4% on the APR and the interest paid by 20%?

If you have any spare on the Ulster card use it to pay off as much of possible on the Sky card. Or get cheeky and ring both Sky and Citi tell them you are looking to pay off a whack off your credit cards and at the current APR, it will be them. Can they reduce your APR?

finally, you have to get the spends under control. Do as BAUK asked and get out the bank and card statement and work out what you spend money on. Plus, keep a spending diary to see where the little bits go.