Exhausted all options

geeka

Hi all, i'm new to this board and am to the point of deciding on bankruptcy. I just have some questions and just some guidance really on my situation.
I am about 25k in debt and have no equity in my house or no savings and an x reg polo worth 2.5k. i can no way pay the debts off for 20 years at the min payment. i've been through the cccs and debt managment plans but its not getting me anywhere.
questions i have:
will i lose my house?
will i lose my car?
what happens after i am bankrupt with the OR payment i have to make, how much might it be?
where can i live and what proof do i need to show how much i'm paying??
what happens when i become bankrupt bank account and living on money wise???

i know its the right option to do it and start again but its just all scary.
thanks
Tim

Scarlett.1974

Hi Tim,

Welcome to MSE Have you discussed this as an option with CCCS? They've been advising me this week and have been totally brilliant, so I'd advise you call them and see what they say.

I'm no expert, not by a long shot, so can't really answer your questions (I'm just starting the process myself), but:

will i lose my house? Not necessarily. But obviously if you want to keep it you'll need to be able to keep up with your mortgage and any secured debts you have.
will i lose my car? Again, not necessarily. It will be up to your OR, each case is treated individually, there are no hard and fast rules unfortunately. You have to be able to convince him/her that you need it. Note, "need", not "want".
what happens after i am bankrupt with the OR payment i have to make, how much might it be? This will all depend on how much surplus income you have
where can i live and what proof do i need to show how much i'm paying?? If you do not keep your house then private renting may be an option for you. Have a read of my BR diary, a little further down the page - I've posted some info on there about private renting and BR.
what happens when i become bankrupt bank account and living on money wise??? Read the sticky at the top of the board about "bank accounts for BRs". Your accounts you hold now will almost certainly be frozen and you will need to open a new one. It is very much advised that you do this after the BR itself

Hope that helps a little. Keep posting and don't be afraid to ask any questions you have.

All the best,
Scarlett xx

piggeh

Hi Geeka,

Cant advise on house as I didnt own one. With regards the car it depends on your ability to persuade the Official Receiver that you need it for your own personal circumstance. The OR in my case said I would have to sell the car but I it varies case to case.

OR payments are worked out on your surplus income, but they allow expenditure for a quite numerous array of items so you can still afford most things you can currently.

If you need to rent then many agencies will credit check you, but private listings (in the paper etc) seem to not do so and would be a source of accomodation if you did lose your house.

Bank account wise there's banks like the Coop bank who will give you a basic bank account. Generally you'll only have a cash card (or at most a visa electron). You can get a pre pay card if you need a facility for online purchases etc.

With regards to bank accounts being frozen it's advisable to withdraw any money from the account before declaring as you wont be seeing it again, especially if you need it to cover living expenses or the application fee.

I was in the same boat - I worked my DMP at lasting around 8 years but I couldnt afford the payments anyway. I was basically living at home with no social life and it was a very stressful time. Once the OR worked out what I could actually afford and allowing for expenses, etc, it would have taken me 20 years to pay my debts off, and was a massive relief once I declared bankruptcy to have all the banks off my back and to be able to get on with my life.

Homework

If there is no equity in the house there is no advantage to your creditors in selling it. They would incur costs in doing so which defeats the purpose of trying to maximise money towards the debt.

geeka

i'm defo going for bankruptcy but just waiting to start my new job permy wise so i have some stability.
with the house do you think they will apply a future charge against any profits???

hanspans

not sure, but welcome aboard and hopefully people will be able to help you. you sound dertermined. best to get all the advice and rremember knowledge is power! inform yourself about the pros and cons and then you'll make the best decision.

debt_doctor

Hi,

With your house if you can get someone to buy out the OR's interest for £ 1.00 plus low cost conveyencing ( £ 250 ) you should be able to keep your houseif you can afford the mortgage / secured loans.

With the car you will lose it unless you can prove you need it for work.

Any contribution from yourwages will depend on if after all essential expenditure you have more than £ 100 per month spare. We can check that out if you post your SOA

Dont forget to get advice from a debt charity first


Best

DD