Horrible Realisation

oops123

i have just realised that i have done a very stupid thing:rolleyes: My daughter has just finished university and my son has completed one year.
Helping them out left me with credit card debt, store and catalouge debt as well as an overdraft and loan. I re mortgaged my house with a company that lent to high risk debtors.......i was up to date on all my debt but had missed two mortgage payments......

Of course i have run my cards back up and now have the loan as well:o

My wage is now swallowed by my overdraft. My sons loan is late and i am struggling to give him fares to uni etc. I dont know where to start...... my husband is disabled on benefits, i have two other dependant kids :eek:
Please help !!!!!

millies_daddy

First thing I'd suggest you do is make an accurate list of your monthly income and outgoings as well as a list of the outstanding balances. Contact your local Citizen's Advice Bureau ASAP. Debt counsellors there will help you prioritize and make appropriate arrangements with the unsecured debts. Essentially they'll be talking about you taking charge, paying your essential bills like Mortgage, Council Tax and Utilities bills first and then dealing with your unsecured debts after that. You've made the first hard step of realising the problem....I'm sure you'll find a way outr. Good Luck

Lemon_Tree

just to say hi, and that you will soon get people who know more than me to help you out. But the first thing they are likely to suggest is to post a SOA, so it may pay to get started on one straight away

pinkshoes

Your son at uni can get help from a hardship fund! He must go see people at the Student Union ASAP and tell them the situation - they will help, so try not to worry about that!!

Maybe be honest with him and your daughter about your financial situation. If you were my mother, then I would want to help/support as much as possible!

wyebird

Definitely get your son to explain the situation to the uni, there is all sorts of stuff available as we found when my OH lost his job part way through a year, and we were still being assessed on the previous year's income, and, if they know, they will do all they can to help :-)

fc123

If you are on Disability benefit , your son MAY be entitled to £2700 pa "grant" plus he may qualify for a £1000pa bursary from the university on top......worth checking with student finance...hope this helps. Persons whose family income is below £15000pa get this grant.

Tustastic

Very well done for posting oops123 - you'll get so much kind support here from the been-there, done-that debt experts.
Have you explained to your two older children just how tight money is? How about sitting down with them to plan? Do they have part-time jobs? They could start looking now for seasonal work over the Xmas uni holiday period. They could help you do a carboot for a share of the proceeds. They could take packed lunches. I'm sure they'll help you some more, if there's more that they can reasonably do. All the best - the only way is up now.