Credit Cards mounting, want consolidation cannot get accepted? Help!

Shornuk

ADDED DEBT BREAKDOWN TO LAST PAGE

Hi, I just found this site and was hoping I might be able to gain some knowledge or advice from people here.

I currently have approx £10K of debt, about £8K on credit cards (Abbey, Egg, Citi and Barclaycard) and £2K overdraft.
On my current salary after paying all minimum payments im left with about £70 a month.

I am currently in rented accomdation with my partner and we are looking to clear are debts (she has about £2K on a credit card) in order to start looking at buying a property.

Ive been looking into a loan to consolidate the debt (as i deteste it being split up everywhere) and have applied to a few places, but everwhere so far has turned me down. (5-6 application to the likes of A&L, Staffloans+, etc)

Ive recieved a letter from Action Today group saying they can help and had a look on their website, (Here ) and it seems pretty interesting but im wary about contacting a company ive never heard of.

I know that If I can reduce my repayment slightly each month then I can get on top of my debt. (I am able to earn extra money by selling my artwork on ebay!)

Im just wondering if anyone has any advice to offer?
Is it best just to keep plugging away at the c cards or opt for a consolidation loan if I can get one somewhere?

Any help greatly appreciated!

Willsnarf1983

do a complete SOA of all loan outgoings inc APRS, all other monthyl expenses and complete income, by doing this people are more able to spot where cutbacks can be made

Will

Shornuk

Right I will do. (and thanks for the quick reply)
Ive been meaning to do it for sometime but have been putting it off! Time to face facts I suppose. I shall update over the next couple of days, im still keen to hear peoples thoughts.

Willsnarf1983

yup and another idea i like is to keep a pad and pen on u at all times and write down every expenditure...it shows u the wastage big time


Will

nearlyrich

Hi Shornuk and welcome to the debt free wannabe board...

I've not heard of Action Today either and I suspect they will "helpfully" take a chunk out of the money you could be paying off your debts.

The first thing to understand is that a consolidation loan just prolongs the time you are paying interest and usually costs more in the long run. Also if you consolidate then use the cards again you end up in a much worse position.

To get some useful advice you need to give us some more information about your income and outgoings, this forum is anonymous and we won't judge you..It's important to know where all your money goes, there are some great ways to cut down on the Old Style board

If you have a budget please post it here, if not then that's the first step to getting your debt under control, have look at the budget planner here. Take a look at Martin's Debt article too it's here...

There are organisations who can help you get debt free without charging you, The three places usually recommended on here are Consumer Credit Counselling Service 0800 138 1111, National Debtline 0808 808 4000, Citizens Advice or visit your local CAB centre.

Good luck and we'll have you house hunting in no time.;)

Shornuk

Thanks for the welcome. Im going to sit down and go through all my expenditures etc and update as soon as possible.
I know with a bit of hard work I can clear these debts an dim very determined now because its just getting a major starin and plays on my mind 24/7. Im not a shopaholic or anything like that but I have fallen inot the trap of putting things on Credit Card with a view to paying it at the end of the month and then never doing it!

Im sure the encouragement and advice on this board can only help spur on my determination!

** UPDATE **
I just did a quick check and it appears that Citi and Abbey are the highest interest rates at 24% and 22% apr respectively.
...and as starting point on my road to recovery I have just taken the scissors to my Barclaycard, Egg Card, Abbey Card and Citi Card - It starts here!

tomstickland

I don't see the need to consolidate.
You need to move the money to the cheapest rates - to one of the existing accounts or try for a 0% offer if you can. Then you need to make a start on the most expensive account. I also think you might need to make a real effort to minimise every single outgoing so you can really make an impact on the debts.

Shornuk

The problem i have at the moment is that it seems to be very hard to get accepted on any credit cards with 0% offers. I just get declined, the latest one I got was Citicard and that was about a year ago and they only gave £2k limit.

tomstickland

OK, so the next best thing is to see if you can move money into the lower APR accounts too. ie: minimise your most expensive debt.

mountainofdebt

Firstly, as already been said, list all your outgoings and incomings (think it would be helpful to list your partners as well) and full details of your debts such as balances, aprs, limits etc

To be honest I would stop applying for credit....the more applications you make the more desparate you seem to get credit which would ring alarm bells for financial institutions.

As Tom has said what you need to do is to jugle the debts, so that they are all on the lowest aprs possible , cut on your outgoings (and I've saved ££££s just by following simply things I've learned on this site) and put that money towards the debt but to maximise its effect you should put that money toward the debt with the highest apr. (hence why we need to know the aprs!)

It would also be worth knowing when your egg anniversary month is.

nelly_2

And pay off higher apr's the most ie the Citi and abbey. Pay the others at minimum and them two as much as you can. When they are done start on the others paying over the minimum.

Paying off the minimum on a £3000 credit card debt can last 30 years where as paying a little higher can drop that to one year.

This article by Martin Lewis explains it all in simple terms, and is one of the most eye opening things I have ever read It really is astounding and shows what can be done with just a little thought.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/cgi-bin/viewnews.cgi?newsid1095079865,8297