I’m desperate for advice help please!

John_ · 10 May 2020 at 2:20PM

Could you not defer the next year of your course and work full-time, and is your partner not able to work?
I think that as well as looking at income, there’s no point looking at things such as bankruptcy until you’ve worked out what’s going on with the spending, as otherwise you’ll just be heading down the same road again afterwards.

mwarby · 10 May 2020 at 3:03PM

nia_29 said:

mwarby said:

So as it stands your SOA would rule out a DRO as you have more than £50 left each month

You could increase you food a little perhaps to 200, your internet and phone seem very low, you could opt for fibre at say 20-30 a month

however even with these changes you’d be looking at an IPA of some £200 a month, if nothing changed it would be £7200 over the 3 years. In an IVA that would be £12000 (you’d end up paying more than the original debt due to IVA fees)

However when your income falls the IVA would struggle, unless provision was made upfront. I feel that an IVA isn’t suitable for the level of debt, the varying income and the lack of assets to protect

If you were bankrupt and you became a student, they would look at income and expenditure again, which would almost certainly drop the IPA amount, perhaps to zero

i would consider either a DMP or bankruptcy and would lean towards the latter as the DMP could drag on when your income drops

i notice you have credit cards with many of the subprime lenders, it’s possible you may struggle to get cards with them as soon as others do, as you’d be defaulting against them

The thing is that while I am a student I am still required to work a min of 15/16h that’ll be around £587.52 when I put my and my partners income in and include higher figures just in case it still says that I will get a 7220£ student maintenance loan. It’s one of the reasons why I think a DMP might be a better idea for me, because I believe my finances will improve specially after I graduate and can work full time.at the moment I’ve always paid everything in time but I’m paying £350 a month and not making a dent.

so when you are a student your income will be £587 but outgoings of £985 with the student loan covering the deficit. The student loan isn't considered as income for purposes of an IPA. If you went bankrupt as a student you'd not get an IPA and you'd be free and clear in one year and only pay the £680 bankruptcy fee. You would have to miss out on overtime for a year to avoid the IPA however, as you need to tell the IP when your circumstances change. Once discharged with no IPA you could do as much overtime as you wish in future with no risk of having to pay anything

StepChange_Aidan · 11 May 2020 at 4:01PM

nia_29 said:

I am going to be 29 years old next week an I’m in a financial mess! I owe £11.126 pounds in loan, catalog and cc debt ( all together) currently paying £350 a month just servicing debt and unable to make a dent to it.
I am currently working at a supermarket and making around 1200 a month with overtime but cannot get this debt down no matter how hard a try.
i am a mature student doing a science subject and will be transferring to a brick uni in September if all goes well.
I am utterly miserable and can’t sleep at night. I am trying really hard b it getting nowhere.
i decided to get advice from StepChange and the advised a IVA
we went through a budget ( I then read that is best to make sure all is covered and might need to change some stuff)
I got sooo many questions. Don’t know what to do!
It’s a IVA doable? Is the budget strict? I haven’t even learned to drive! I’ve been battling with this debt for so long than I haven’t been able to. Can I say save up something and buy a cheap car when I graduate?
i can pay something just no 350.
what would happen when I’m a student?
I feel so behind in life I don’t want to continue like this
I don’t know what to do

editing to add my SOA:
Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1[b]

Monthly Income Details[/b]
Monthly income after tax................ 1132 ( this is with overtime my contracted hours are 24.5 and I make a minimum of 899.64 a month, however I do overtime I plan of making a minimum of at least 5h per week) I work so a supermarket fo overtime is available constantly
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0[b]
Total monthly income.................... 1132[/b][b]

Monthly Expense Details[/b]
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 300
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 70
Electricity............................. 30
Gas..................................... 30
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 12
TV Licence.............................. 13
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 13
Groceries etc. ......................... 180
Clothing................................ 40
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 50
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 35
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 30
Entertainment........................... 35
Holiday................................. 40
Emergency fund.......................... 0[b]
Total monthly expenses.................. 918[/b]
[b]

Assets[/b]
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0[b]
Total Assets............................ 0[/b]
[b]
No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts[/b]

[b]Unsecured Debts[/b]
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Aquacard ......................3769.3....144.......34.89
Nationwide loan ...............2958.4....102.......12.5
Tesco .........................1422.74...25........0
Very card......................210.9.....18........39.9
Argos cars ....................233.73....13........29.9
Nationwide overdraft ..........950.......20........39.9
Capital 1 .....................450.......12........30.04
Barclaycard ...................1081.75...34........18[b]
Total unsecured debts..........11076.82..368.......- [/b]
(Lots of credit cards that I used because I was alone in the country and they were my safety net when things broke I used them, I have chopped them of since and haven’t use any since February)
[b]
Monthly Budget Summary[/b]
Total monthly income.................... 1,132
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 918
Available for debt repayments........... 214
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 368[b]
Amount short for making debt repayments. -154[/b]

[b]Personal Balance Sheet Summary[/b]
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -11,076.82[b]
Net Assets.............................. -11,076.82[/b]

To give more info I am due to continue a chemistry degree this September at a brick uni F/T and due to my immigration status I am elegible for a student loan as long as I continue working (15/16h or maybe less) the online calculator says I should receive around £7k? But I am thinking of the worst case scenario and assuming that I’ll only get £3k that would still let me pay the 110 that I’ve offered to pay plan.
i spoke to a few places the StepChange guy kept going on about an IVA and I could feel I was being pressure something didn’t feel right so I said I wanted to think about it.
payplan suggested a Dmp which I feel might suit me better as I believe I can stick to the repayments and I can up them during the holidays with overtime and after I finish my degree to get rid of this quicker.
At the moment I’m able to meet my repayments with lots of overtime but I’ve been trying for years to make a dent and I just can’t. Aquacard alone I’m paying 140 and they’re charging me 100 in interest alone.
I strongly believe I can pay it off but not if they continue charging NG this amount of interest.
thank you for your replies guys!

Edit for more information:
The thing is that while I am a student I am still required to work a min of 15/16h that’ll be around £587.52 when I put my and my partners income in and include higher figures just in case it still says that I will get a 7220£ student maintenance loan. It’s one of the reasons why I think a DMP might be a better idea for me, because I believe my finances will improve specially after I graduate and can work full time.at the moment I’ve always paid everything in time but I’m paying £350 a month and not making a dent.

Hi Nia,

Thanks for posting. I’m sorry to hear about how you’re feeling and I hope we can help.

Are you sure that the advisor you spoke with was from StepChange? As Mwarby has said, unfortunately we are seeing a number of companies calling themselves StepChange or using similar branding on their website. These often turn out to be fee-charging firms who provide IVAs.

A StepChange debt advisor would normally review your budget and discuss a few debt solutions with you. You certainly shouldn’t have felt pressured into an IVA. If you’re not certain I’d recommend getting in touch with us to confirm. Our contact details can be found on our website.

Based on your SOA, it would seem that a DMP would be a better option, as you’d be able to make one affordable monthly payment towards the debts, which can be amended when your situation changes.

Kind regards,

Aidan

nia_29 · 13 May 2020 at 12:21PM

StepChange_Aidan said:

nia_29 said:

I am going to be 29 years old next week an I’m in a financial mess! I owe £11.126 pounds in loan, catalog and cc debt ( all together) currently paying £350 a month just servicing debt and unable to make a dent to it.
I am currently working at a supermarket and making around 1200 a month with overtime but cannot get this debt down no matter how hard a try.
i am a mature student doing a science subject and will be transferring to a brick uni in September if all goes well.
I am utterly miserable and can’t sleep at night. I am trying really hard b it getting nowhere.
i decided to get advice from StepChange and the advised a IVA
we went through a budget ( I then read that is best to make sure all is covered and might need to change some stuff)
I got sooo many questions. Don’t know what to do!
It’s a IVA doable? Is the budget strict? I haven’t even learned to drive! I’ve been battling with this debt for so long than I haven’t been able to. Can I say save up something and buy a cheap car when I graduate?
i can pay something just no 350.
what would happen when I’m a student?
I feel so behind in life I don’t want to continue like this
I don’t know what to do

editing to add my SOA:
Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1[b]

Monthly Income Details[/b]
Monthly income after tax................ 1132 ( this is with overtime my contracted hours are 24.5 and I make a minimum of 899.64 a month, however I do overtime I plan of making a minimum of at least 5h per week) I work so a supermarket fo overtime is available constantly
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0[b]
Total monthly income.................... 1132[/b][b]

Monthly Expense Details[/b]
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 300
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 70
Electricity............................. 30
Gas..................................... 30
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 12
TV Licence.............................. 13
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 13
Groceries etc. ......................... 180
Clothing................................ 40
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 50
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 35
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 30
Entertainment........................... 35
Holiday................................. 40
Emergency fund.......................... 0[b]
Total monthly expenses.................. 918[/b]
[b]

Assets[/b]
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0[b]
Total Assets............................ 0[/b]
[b]
No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts[/b]

[b]Unsecured Debts[/b]
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Aquacard ......................3769.3....144.......34.89
Nationwide loan ...............2958.4....102.......12.5
Tesco .........................1422.74...25........0
Very card......................210.9.....18........39.9
Argos cars ....................233.73....13........29.9
Nationwide overdraft ..........950.......20........39.9
Capital 1 .....................450.......12........30.04
Barclaycard ...................1081.75...34........18[b]
Total unsecured debts..........11076.82..368.......- [/b]
(Lots of credit cards that I used because I was alone in the country and they were my safety net when things broke I used them, I have chopped them of since and haven’t use any since February)
[b]
Monthly Budget Summary[/b]
Total monthly income.................... 1,132
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 918
Available for debt repayments........... 214
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 368[b]
Amount short for making debt repayments. -154[/b]

[b]Personal Balance Sheet Summary[/b]
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -11,076.82[b]
Net Assets.............................. -11,076.82[/b]

To give more info I am due to continue a chemistry degree this September at a brick uni F/T and due to my immigration status I am elegible for a student loan as long as I continue working (15/16h or maybe less) the online calculator says I should receive around £7k? But I am thinking of the worst case scenario and assuming that I’ll only get £3k that would still let me pay the 110 that I’ve offered to pay plan.
i spoke to a few places the StepChange guy kept going on about an IVA and I could feel I was being pressure something didn’t feel right so I said I wanted to think about it.
payplan suggested a Dmp which I feel might suit me better as I believe I can stick to the repayments and I can up them during the holidays with overtime and after I finish my degree to get rid of this quicker.
At the moment I’m able to meet my repayments with lots of overtime but I’ve been trying for years to make a dent and I just can’t. Aquacard alone I’m paying 140 and they’re charging me 100 in interest alone.
I strongly believe I can pay it off but not if they continue charging NG this amount of interest.
thank you for your replies guys!

Edit for more information:
The thing is that while I am a student I am still required to work a min of 15/16h that’ll be around £587.52 when I put my and my partners income in and include higher figures just in case it still says that I will get a 7220£ student maintenance loan. It’s one of the reasons why I think a DMP might be a better idea for me, because I believe my finances will improve specially after I graduate and can work full time.at the moment I’ve always paid everything in time but I’m paying £350 a month and not making a dent.

Hi Nia,

Thanks for posting. I’m sorry to hear about how you’re feeling and I hope we can help.

Are you sure that the advisor you spoke with was from StepChange? As Mwarby has said, unfortunately we are seeing a number of companies calling themselves StepChange or using similar branding on their website. These often turn out to be fee-charging firms who provide IVAs.

A StepChange debt advisor would normally review your budget and discuss a few debt solutions with you. You certainly shouldn’t have felt pressured into an IVA. If you’re not certain I’d recommend getting in touch with us to confirm.

Based on your SOA, it would seem that a DMP would be a better option, as you’d be able to make one affordable monthly payment towards the debts, which can be amended when your situation changes.

Kind regards,

Aidan

Hi Aidan, I am sure he was a stepchange rep and I was also surprised(maybe I didn’t explained my situation properly) so I decided to consult with Payplan and after going over my budget with them I’ve decided to do a DMP.
thanks for your time

nia_29 · 13 May 2020 at 12:24PM

StepChange_Aidan said:

nia_29 said:

I am going to be 29 years old next week an I’m in a financial mess! I owe £11.126 pounds in loan, catalog and cc debt ( all together) currently paying £350 a month just servicing debt and unable to make a dent to it.
I am currently working at a supermarket and making around 1200 a month with overtime but cannot get this debt down no matter how hard a try.
i am a mature student doing a science subject and will be transferring to a brick uni in September if all goes well.
I am utterly miserable and can’t sleep at night. I am trying really hard b it getting nowhere.
i decided to get advice from StepChange and the advised a IVA
we went through a budget ( I then read that is best to make sure all is covered and might need to change some stuff)
I got sooo many questions. Don’t know what to do!
It’s a IVA doable? Is the budget strict? I haven’t even learned to drive! I’ve been battling with this debt for so long than I haven’t been able to. Can I say save up something and buy a cheap car when I graduate?
i can pay something just no 350.
what would happen when I’m a student?
I feel so behind in life I don’t want to continue like this
I don’t know what to do

editing to add my SOA:
Household Information[/b]
Number of adults in household........... 2
Number of children in household......... 0
Number of cars owned.................... 1[b]

Monthly Income Details[/b]
Monthly income after tax................ 1132 ( this is with overtime my contracted hours are 24.5 and I make a minimum of 899.64 a month, however I do overtime I plan of making a minimum of at least 5h per week) I work so a supermarket fo overtime is available constantly
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0[b]
Total monthly income.................... 1132[/b][b]

Monthly Expense Details[/b]
Mortgage................................ 0
Secured/HP loan repayments.............. 0
Rent.................................... 300
Management charge (leasehold property).. 0
Council tax............................. 70
Electricity............................. 30
Gas..................................... 30
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 12
TV Licence.............................. 13
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 13
Groceries etc. ......................... 180
Clothing................................ 40
Petrol/diesel........................... 0
Road tax................................ 0
Car Insurance........................... 0
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 0
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 50
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 35
Buildings insurance..................... 0
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 0
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 40
Haircuts................................ 30
Entertainment........................... 35
Holiday................................. 40
Emergency fund.......................... 0[b]
Total monthly expenses.................. 918[/b]
[b]

Assets[/b]
Cash.................................... 0
House value (Gross)..................... 0
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 0
Other assets............................ 0[b]
Total Assets............................ 0[/b]
[b]
No Secured nor Hire Purchase Debts[/b]

[b]Unsecured Debts[/b]
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Aquacard ......................3769.3....144.......34.89
Nationwide loan ...............2958.4....102.......12.5
Tesco .........................1422.74...25........0
Very card......................210.9.....18........39.9
Argos cars ....................233.73....13........29.9
Nationwide overdraft ..........950.......20........39.9
Capital 1 .....................450.......12........30.04
Barclaycard ...................1081.75...34........18[b]
Total unsecured debts..........11076.82..368.......- [/b]
(Lots of credit cards that I used because I was alone in the country and they were my safety net when things broke I used them, I have chopped them of since and haven’t use any since February)
[b]
Monthly Budget Summary[/b]
Total monthly income.................... 1,132
Expenses (including HP & secured debts). 918
Available for debt repayments........... 214
Monthly UNsecured debt repayments....... 368[b]
Amount short for making debt repayments. -154[/b]

[b]Personal Balance Sheet Summary[/b]
Total assets (things you own)........... 0
Total HP & Secured debt................. -0
Total Unsecured debt.................... -11,076.82[b]
Net Assets.............................. -11,076.82[/b]

To give more info I am due to continue a chemistry degree this September at a brick uni F/T and due to my immigration status I am elegible for a student loan as long as I continue working (15/16h or maybe less) the online calculator says I should receive around £7k? But I am thinking of the worst case scenario and assuming that I’ll only get £3k that would still let me pay the 110 that I’ve offered to pay plan.
i spoke to a few places the StepChange guy kept going on about an IVA and I could feel I was being pressure something didn’t feel right so I said I wanted to think about it.
payplan suggested a Dmp which I feel might suit me better as I believe I can stick to the repayments and I can up them during the holidays with overtime and after I finish my degree to get rid of this quicker.
At the moment I’m able to meet my repayments with lots of overtime but I’ve been trying for years to make a dent and I just can’t. Aquacard alone I’m paying 140 and they’re charging me 100 in interest alone.
I strongly believe I can pay it off but not if they continue charging NG this amount of interest.
thank you for your replies guys!

Edit for more information:
The thing is that while I am a student I am still required to work a min of 15/16h that’ll be around £587.52 when I put my and my partners income in and include higher figures just in case it still says that I will get a 7220£ student maintenance loan. It’s one of the reasons why I think a DMP might be a better idea for me, because I believe my finances will improve specially after I graduate and can work full time.at the moment I’ve always paid everything in time but I’m paying £350 a month and not making a dent.

Hi Nia,

Thanks for posting. I’m sorry to hear about how you’re feeling and I hope we can help.

Are you sure that the advisor you spoke with was from StepChange? As Mwarby has said, unfortunately we are seeing a number of companies calling themselves StepChange or using similar branding on their website. These often turn out to be fee-charging firms who provide IVAs.

A StepChange debt advisor would normally review your budget and discuss a few debt solutions with you. You certainly shouldn’t have felt pressured into an IVA. If you’re not certain I’d recommend getting in touch with us to confirm.

Based on your SOA, it would seem that a DMP would be a better option, as you’d be able to make one affordable monthly payment towards the debts, which can be amended when your situation changes.

Kind regards,

Aidan

Hi Aidan, I am sure he was.
I was also surprised so I decided to consult with Payplan and after going over my budget with them I have decided to do a DMP.
Thank you for your time

nia_29 · 13 May 2020 at 12:28PM

mwarby said:

nia_29 said:

mwarby said:

So as it stands your SOA would rule out a DRO as you have more than £50 left each month

You could increase you food a little perhaps to 200, your internet and phone seem very low, you could opt for fibre at say 20-30 a month

however even with these changes you’d be looking at an IPA of some £200 a month, if nothing changed it would be £7200 over the 3 years. In an IVA that would be £12000 (you’d end up paying more than the original debt due to IVA fees)

However when your income falls the IVA would struggle, unless provision was made upfront. I feel that an IVA isn’t suitable for the level of debt, the varying income and the lack of assets to protect

If you were bankrupt and you became a student, they would look at income and expenditure again, which would almost certainly drop the IPA amount, perhaps to zero

i would consider either a DMP or bankruptcy and would lean towards the latter as the DMP could drag on when your income drops

i notice you have credit cards with many of the subprime lenders, it’s possible you may struggle to get cards with them as soon as others do, as you’d be defaulting against them

The thing is that while I am a student I am still required to work a min of 15/16h that’ll be around £587.52 when I put my and my partners income in and include higher figures just in case it still says that I will get a 7220£ student maintenance loan. It’s one of the reasons why I think a DMP might be a better idea for me, because I believe my finances will improve specially after I graduate and can work full time.at the moment I’ve always paid everything in time but I’m paying £350 a month and not making a dent.

so when you are a student your income will be £587 but outgoings of £985 with the student loan covering the deficit. The student loan isn't considered as income for purposes of an IPA. If you went bankrupt as a student you'd not get an IPA and you'd be free and clear in one year and only pay the £680 bankruptcy fee. You would have to miss out on overtime for a year to avoid the IPA however, as you need to tell the IP when your circumstances change. Once discharged with no IPA you could do as much overtime as you wish in future with no risk of having to pay anything

Thanks for the advice, but I've decided to go for a less drastic option and do a DMP with some budget adjustments i should be debt free in 5 or 5 and half years and the budget that I arranged with PayPlan is actually more generous that I initially thought.

loujenkins1967 · 14 May 2020 at 8:58AM

Hi there,
I have just sold some shares and would like to know if it is worth paying my step daughter’s IVA off early for her. She is currently renting a home and wants to now want to get a mortgage. So 2 questions
1/ Is it better for me to repay the debt to improve her chance of getting a mortgage?

2/ How much should I offer the IVA - the closing balance is £5200 and she has been paying the IVA for 1 year.

thsnkyou in advance

loujenkins1967 · 14 May 2020 at 9:00AM

58AM

Hi there,
I have just sold some shares and would like to know if it is worth paying my step daughter’s IVA off early for her. She is currently renting a home and wants to now want to get a mortgage. So 2 questions
1/ Is it better for me to repay the debt to improve her chance of getting a mortgage?

2/ How much should I offer the IVA - the closing balance is £5200 and she has been paying the IVA for 1 year.

thsnkyou in advance

DiamondLil · 14 May 2020 at 9:06AM

loujenkins - you need to start a thread of your own. No-one will see your posts on this thread.

I’m desperate for advice help please!

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