DMP? help please.

sweetpeas_2

Hi,
I am posting this very bravely as I've gotten to the end of my rapidly fraying rope and don't know what else to do.

My very basic SOA (im sorry i dont know interest rates etc)

mortgage £479.12/mth- bal 75'000ish
secured loan £464.85/mth- bal 44'000 ish
loan £181.31/mth bal £8800
gas electric £160/mth (got in some arrears unknowingly now trying to scrape back)
Insurance/car running/petrol etc: approx £250/mth
c/tax £86/mth
phone/net/satelite £150/mth
credit cards:
hsbc : £50/mth balance £2000
cap 1: £55/mth balance £750
vanquis: £25/mth balance £450
aqua card: £60/mth balance £950
natwest overdraft £2000 no monthly payment
hsbc overdraft £2000- £40/mth

food: £200/mth

TOTAL OUT: £2201.28


dh wages: £1373
me wages £581
dh and me 2nd jobs: £250

TOTAL IN: £2204

So, if there is any extra to pay out at any point, we cannot afford it, as all our cards are maxxed out and the over drafts are at their very limit. So we have no spare at all.
I struggle to feed us all on £40-50 a week and feel like i really cant take any more at all.
we constantly have to borrow off my mum when extra things crop up, like for instance some tow rag keeps putting our car window through when its parked on the street- £60 a go and has happened 3 times in the passed 6 months.

i cant cope anymore and need to think of some other options, if there are any. ive tried to cut down on things, but theres nothing else that we can rid of, its all debt repayment now.

can someone please give me some info on what a dmp plan is? and if it could help us? ive heard about it but dont know what it is. can it help people in my situation and what does it entail? can we keep our house and mortgage or what? ive really no idea.

please help me someone, i cant cope with it anymore.


nog x

rayday2

A DMP is where you stop paying the minimums on cards, loans etc and offer them what you have left over after all your living costs are met. A company (or yourself!) negotiates with the debt companies to stop the interest and your accounts usually go into default - although that depends on the individual creditors concerned - not all do!

A DMP basically puts the balance right again, instead of you worrying about paying your cards and then saying I have £20 left for food, you budget for your food, mortgage, hair dressing, emergency savings basically everything and then say right after all those I have £x amount left to share amongst my creditors.

If you want more help or advice go on the national debt helpline website they have info you can download tonight and read, or I believe on the CCCS website there is a debt remedy or soemthing you can do.

earthmother

Could I just check that your Phone etc figure is right - £150 a month? That is very high - you could easily get a basic broadband, calls and TV package for between £30 and £50, so there's £100 straightaway.

A visit to the OS board might be worth a go too - they can get your shopping well into budget for, what I am assuming from your SOA is, a household of 2.

poorandindenial

Hi there and well done for taking this first step.

You need to contact one of the debt counselling charities to see what your best course of action is. CCCS also have an online tool that you can use to see what your options are.

Here is a link to info about them: LINK

Now, you really do need to know what the intrest rates are on all the loans and the accurate balances, you won't be able to calculate an accurate DMP (if you go down that route) without them; if you don't go down that route then you will need to know them to see what you should throw money at.

Right, now for the SOA, there are a few things that look like they could be cut back.

Cutbacks:
phone/net/satelite £150/mth - you CANNOT afford all this, what exactly does it include??? people may have useful hints to reduce it if they know precisely what it covers
Insurance/car running/petrol etc: approx £250/mth - as some little git keeps on putting your window thorugh - is this absolutely necessary?? could you use public transport instead?? also what does this break down into, you might be able to reduce your insurance premiums or other running costs.
gas electric £160/mth - I know you are in arrears but could you renegotiate the repayment with them so that it is more reasonable?

How many people is the food for?? If it is just you and OH you may well be able to cut this down with a bit of planning, downgrading and the help of the lovely peoople on the Old Style board.

You also need to think about the things that crop up from time to time that you might need money for - birthdays, haircuts, clothes etc. They may be rarities now but sometimes they are unavoidable and you might want to have a small amount of money to allow you to deal with them.

OK, now that is my harsh bit over, I really feel for you and hope that you are able to get yourself back on an even keel, please speak to a debt counselling charity (please don't speak to anyone that asks you to pay to set up a DMP) and please make sure that you look after yourself. There will be a solution for you, it may be hard work and take a long time but there will be a way out.

Good luck and all the best.

sweetpeas_2

thank you all for your kind replies.
The food bill is for 2 adults 2 kiddies, and i struggle to get what we need with ds packed lunches etc (i dont get him any of the expensive stuff, he has homemade juice as it were, and sandwiches and fruit).

the gas/electric £160/mth is actually AFTER the negotiation, it was going to be over £200 between them before i rung them. the £150/month is phones, broadband and house phone, and satalite. i know these arent essential and i will be looking to get rid of them all soon, except the mobile phones, as we do need these for security (ou second jobs are in a pub, and i have to walk home alone on my own at middnight most nights- so wouldnt really be safe without it)

i am now going to have a look at the cccs website and see if theres any info on there i can make sense of.

thanks again for your help and support.

nog x

poorandindenial

If your phones are mainly for security you could look at going pay as you go and ditching the contracts on them, you can get some great payg deals if you shop around a bit and it should slash the amount it costs you each month (assuming this probably accounts for 30-60 a month for two phones if they are on contract).

Let us know how you get on with cccs.

Nicki_Sue

Do contact the CCCS. I did last week as things here have disintegrated dramically finacially (why oh why didnt I find MSE earlier?!). They were very nice and understanding, not at all condescending and were very clear on how a dmp would work. They have set up at 1.5hr phone appointment for a time convenient for me and I have a pack and papers on their way via post to work through (expenses etc). We feel so much happier now that we've started the process of actually doing something rather than being ostriches'
I hope you find a pro-active solution that suits you.

Nicki_Sue

Re the mobiles. If you are contracted you may have to pay a "get out" fee which can be hefty - especially for a newer phone. Ours was going to be £295 (not an option!). I leftit a few days and rang back telling them I had decided to leave the provider in favour of another as I was looking for a cheaper package. they bent over backwards to accomodate rather than lose my custom and I now have a package which costs £25 a month and includes a stupid amount of texts and free minutes. I've never gone over the £25.
Keep this is mind.

Bismarck

Hi, well done for posting....

Can I just check I've not missed something...you've got kiddies but no mention of Tax credits...are you getting everything you're entitled to? I think the site to go to is entitledto.co.uk...

Keep your head up and keep with us....I've been here since before Christmas and wow...just wish I'd found it earlier!

movingforward2010

im single and its bad it must be 10 times worse having a family to feed (hugs)

just to let you know im with tiscali for max Broadband and phone line rental (includeds eve and wkend calls) for £24.46 a month
if you have mobiles - possibly negotiate a retention tariff ? - im getting 400 mins and 1000 texts plus unlimted o2 to 02 for £15 a month

sweetpeas_2

hi guys,
ive took the first step tonight and went on the CCCS website for some budgeting advice. I am waiting for my Debt remedy booklet to come now... hope this helps somewhere

I have reduced the satalite/phone/broadband package down to £59.20/month. which is still quite alot i know, but a £59 saving on this months bill.

I am also going to contact British s00ding gas tomorrow to negotiate a small reduction in the bills. Gas is very much so in debit and id prefer to pay more on that then electric. so im going to see about reducing electric by £20-30/mth.

slowly reducing stuff and im going to keep looking tomorrow at things to reduce.

x