Not a lot...but still

scarlet07

Hi,
My debts aren't as bad as I had first thought, but they're enough to have been giving me the jitters.
I have checked all the credit reference agencies and they came up with the following debts.

Natwest £2,966
Aqua £393
Orange £158
Hsbc £8

I'm just wondering whether it would be worthwhile getting myself a Debt consolidation loan, to pay off all the balance of the outstanding credit or arrange to repay in installments, or maybe whether i can get some of the debt reduced.

I know it sounds bad, but i don't want to contact the companies just yet as i don't want them hassling me until i've decided which one to do.

Any advice would be a great help.

Thanks!

~Beanie~

Well surely you can get rid of the £8 straight away?

Cosolidation is rarely a good idea. Are you up to date with all your payments to your creditors? If you can post an SOA then maybe the someone can suggest areas where you could save money to help pay your debts off quicker.

moneymabel

Hi Scarlet,
Just wanted to post so you know someone is reading (although i expect most people are out sunbathing!)
Other people who are more knowledgable will be along late but in the meantime i do know that a consolodation loan is very rarely recommended as you will be paying it off for so long and with such an immense rate of interest. what we need to see is your s.o.a (statement of affairs) basically your incomings and outgoings each month, rent/mortgage ,bills, mobile, internet etc, we may be able to save you some money on those things and then see how much you have spare to pay your debts.
there is a company called cccs (you can find the details on the site) who help people with debts to sort them, give advice etc impartially. Be carefull tho coz i think there is a company with a similar name who charge, i think there is a sticky at the top of the debtfree wanabee board with the details.
please hang about and i'm sure some others will be about to answer your query.

tyllwyd

What's the situation at the moment - are you paying anything towards these debts? If not, when did you last contact these companies?

bargainbetty

Hiya,

Somewhere on here there is a snowball calculator that lets you see how much each debt costs. Pay the minimum off each per month, and then throw every spare penny at the debt with the highest interest rate.... that will be accruing the highest charges.

Try this before you even think about consolidation - it's expensive, extends your debt, and doesn't really teach you how to manage your money. Trust me.... I know!!

Good luck

sparky0107

Hiya scarlet107,
Added 2 links below kid 1 is the snowball calculator. this tells you your debt free date & the other is so you can post your SOA (statement of Affairs), you will need your outstanding balances & APR's plus your minimum payments. The good people on here will come along & give you some excellent help & advice, I think the first piece of advise will be to steer well clear of consolidation loans, the only one who benefits from these things is the lender.

http://www.whatsthecost.com/snowball.aspx?country=uk

http://www.makesenseofcards.co.uk/soacalc.html

Good luck & once again welcome

**Amy**

:hello:

Definitey agree with:

1) Consolodation loans are very rarely a good idea

2) Post an SOA (Statement of Affairs).

This way we can probably help you work out payments etc. and maybe even to cut down on your monthly spend, so that you can afford to pay off the debts.

:beer:

GeorgeUK

You may also be able to get a 0% CC to transfer the balance to. That way you won't be wasting money on interest and all your money will go towards paying off the debt.

It depends on what repayments you can afford each month.

rog2

scarlet07 wrote: »

I'm just wondering whether it would be worthwhile getting myself a Debt consolidation loan, to pay off all the balance of the outstanding credit.

Please, please do not consider a 'Consolidation Loan'.

I, like many others on this board, have been down the 'consolidation' route and have paid a very heavy price for it. As you, yourself, admit - your loans are not that high and there are many other, less painful ways to tackle debt than the dreaded 'consolidation'.

You could start by posting a full statement of affairs (SOA) listing all of your debts, with your income and expenditure. Most of us were very surprised to see just how much we could 'shave off' of our expenditure, without having to lead a frugal existence. Any 'surplus' could be used to throw at your debts, and you will be amazed at how quickly you will be able to clear them.

Then, talk with one of the Free Debt Counselling Charities, such as CCCS - 0800 138 1111, National Debtline - 0808 808 4000 or your local CAB, to discuss your options. These options could include a DMP 'Debt Management Plan' or negociating 'Full and Final Settlements' with your creditors, whereas a consolidation loan is just 'going into more debt'.

Good luck

scarlet07

Hi, i just wanted to say thankyou for all the replies.
I've been sick the past couple of weeks and couldn't bare to turn on the computer.
So i'm now going to start writing down all my incomings and outgoings.
I'm currently on new deal so can't afford to pay a lot...which companies won't be happy with i know...watch this space

GeorgeUK

Sparky has posted a good link to the soa calculator which should help you with that.