Finally facing up to the issues

beardy007

Hello all

Okay, here goes.....

I am currently around £44,000 in debt. £35k of credit cards, £5k overdraft, £4k store cards. My take home salary is around £2k per month but my debt repayments are around £800 per month plus £750 rent and you can see there isn't much left to pay other bills and put food on the table. My partner works part-time but her income is only about £800 per month and she has her own debts and childcare to pay which eats up a lot of this.

I have not run up the debt due to an extravagant lifestyle, more just trying to live a life and borrowing more to pay off what is owed. This has all happened very slowly over the past 10 years or so but it has come to a head as, for the first time ever, I am faced with making a payment on a credit card or paying the rent - things have got that bad and it scares me to death that I've let it get this way.

I own very little but have a decent, respectable job. Think the idea of bankruptcy scares the hell out of me probably more for the stigma element rather than anything else. However, I am faced with the fact that trying to pay £44k off will leave me with no life (not that I've had one over the past three or four years).

I am not behind on payments on any of the debts and have some low interest deals on a couple of them which makes the idea of missing a payment worrying as the repayments will shoot up.

What I want to know is, can bankruptcy be refused if I start the process now? Should I stop repayments on everything?

Any help/support/advice will be greatly received.

TheGardener

Well done - first step towards a better financial future taken by coming on the board :T
It is often said on these boards that it rare to find a case where there is no solution.

Next step is to speak to one of the free debt charities Stepchange, CAB etc. Stepchange have a good debt remedy form on their website which is good for getting a realistic view of things as a starting point.

As you have come to this board I'm guessing you are considering the idea of Bankruptcy? Important to know in order to give you the most appropriate advice:
1) Do you own your own home?
2) Are you in a job that might be affected by becoming BR (Accountant etc) ?
3) do you own a vehicle that is worth more than £1000 or is on a credit/lease agreement.

Read all the welcome posts - do an SOA and post it up so we can look as see where we can help and take a deep breath - you will be fine. the only thing about BR I regret is not doing it sooner and risking my health and relationships due to the stress of carrying debts I never had a hope in he1l of paying off.

beardy007

Thanks for your reply.

In response:

1) No, I do not own my own home (but would like to at some point, which us one of the reasons I am contemplating BR)
2) No
3) No, I own a 10-year-old car with 127k on the clock (again, another reason for doing this as I will need a new car soon but have no funds to pay for one)

Excuse my ignorance, what is an SOA?

beardy007

Now know what SOA is, will sort and get uploaded shortly.

Kerry511

Firstly I just wanted to say hi and welcome to the board.
I do not have much advice as I have only recently become a bankrupt myself.

A few things I can say, when I decided bankruptcy was my only option it scared me to death! The advice I got from this forum was amazing, so kind and I couldn't have done it without their support!

Now I have done it I feel amazing, I am still having a few hiccups (currently dealing with them) but I still feel it was by far the best decision and my main regret is not doing it sooner!

I am sure others will be along to give you advice but really I just wanted you to know your not alone and it will get easier :-)

I have tried to update my journey along the way (feel free to read my posts) it may give you an insight as to what will happen once you get the ball rolling :-)

Good luck and all the best! ;-)