Stressed!

spendz2much

Hi

My GF left me unexpectedly just after xmas and i really let it get to me. Rather stupidly I started going out lots drinking lots and burying my head in the sand! Rather stupidly over the last 6 months I've run up a personal debt of £5k

This debt is made up of £4.5K overdraft and £500 credit card.

The house we bought together is currently up for sale but if and when it sells there wont be any equity so i cant rely on this to pay off the debt.

I've finally taken my head out of the sand and realise now that I have to do something about it before it gets even more serious. The person I'd usually speak to about my problems was her but she's gone and I daren't tell my parents as they'll be dissapointed and may kick me out of home so I've come on here for some support/advice.

Today I've taken the first step and cut up my credit card.

My income is £1400 a month take home.

My outgoings are:

£500 per month to cover the mortgage and costs associated with the house

£36 per month car insurance

£25 per month mobile phone bill

£83 personal loan repayment (£1500 borrowed when we bought the house to buy things. This will be paid of in Jan 2009)

I'm really really worried about my situation it's effecting my health and I can't stop thinking about it, don't know what to do. Any advice or support will be gratefully received!

payingfornowt

Hello ther S2m.

Im no expert but from your income and expenditure you dont seem to be in too bad a shape (theres a lot worse incl me).

You should do a spending diary. It really helped me to see where all my cash was going. Also there is an SOA calculator to help with monthly budgets.

Good luck, hopefully somebody else will be along to help you soon.

Bismarck

spendz2much wrote: »

I daren't tell my parents as they'll be dissapointed and may kick me out of home so I've come on here for some support/advice.

...


I'm really really worried about my situation it's effecting my health and I can't stop thinking about it, don't know what to do. Any advice or support will be gratefully received!

why would your payment kick you out over this? Sure they'd not be pleased but I can't imagine making things worse for you to be a solution.

If it's affecting your health I'm sure they'd rather know and want to help....

MrsTinks

http://www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html fill this out and post the details here and we'll have a look

beanielou

Hi & welcome~You have had some great advice so far
Can u maybe get a wee part time job to help you out meantime & that will help you get out of the house as well & give you less time to think about things.
The great news is that this is dealable & you are in the rght place.

tallyhoh

Is that correct, £4.5k on overdraft & £500 on credit card? or the other way round?

What interest rate are you paying on your overdraft? would it be cheaper to put things on a 0% credit card for a while & clear your overdaft & then use the money you are currently paying on your loan to pay the credit card as the loan should be cleared by then?

I dont normally suggest using credit cards but used sensibly they can help.

Please put up a detailed SOA, the people on here are wonderful at squeezing the last drop out of your income.

EmptyPurse

First off, you're not alone. I split up with my boyfriend just after Easter and decided that spending was the best way to cheer myself up - the silliest purchase I made has to be a sterling silver antique eggcup that just happened to be engraved with my initials. Why on earth did I think I needed that????!!!!

You've taken a step in the right direction by recognising your problem. It'll take a couple of months before you manage to break your old habits completely and get on top of your new budget - I'm still struggling with things popping up from the Bad Old Days. But don't give up; there's so much friendly help and support here that you'll soon be on the road towards clearing those debts. Why not start by doing a full SOA so you can work out how much money you can afford to chuck at the debt each month?

spendz2much

I'm paying 6.9% EAR+ on my overdraft and 15.9% EAR+ on my credit card so surely I'm better of with more in my overdraft?

Will credit card companies let you switch overdrawn balances from current accounts?

tallyhoh

I actually was thinking of you getting a 0% CC & putting day to day spending on it therefore reducing the burden on your overdraft. Having a quick look at the offers, I can see some 0% for 9 and 6 months.

With a bit of juggling & tightening your belt, hopefully, by the time it comes to clear the CC you may have spare money & plus you would have the payments presently allocated to your loan repayment.

Please pop a SOA on here, it would really help.

spendz2much

Below is my SOA. As I've split with my GF I've halved things like mortgage payments and house/life insurance to reflect my contribution.

I'm not paying council tax as the house is empty and i've cancelled the water/electric.

Hope this is the right thing to do??

Any feedback appreciated!

Statement of Affairs and Personal Balance Sheet

Monthly Income Details
Monthly income after tax................ 1408
Partners monthly income after tax....... 0
Benefits................................ 0
Other income............................ 0
Total monthly income.................... 1408

Monthly Expense Details
Mortgage................................ 400
Secured loan repayments................. 0
Rent.................................... 0
Management charge (leasehold flat)...... 0
Council tax............................. 0
Electricity............................. 0
Gas..................................... 0
Oil..................................... 0
Water rates............................. 0
Telephone (land line)................... 0
Mobile phone............................ 25
TV Licence.............................. 0
Satellite/Cable TV...................... 0
Internet Services....................... 0
Groceries etc. ......................... 0
Clothing................................ 0
Petrol/diesel........................... 60
Road tax................................ 16.5
Car Insurance........................... 36
Car maintenance (including MOT)......... 15
Car parking............................. 0
Other travel............................ 57
Childcare/nursery....................... 0
Other child related expenses............ 0
Medical (prescriptions, dentist etc).... 0
Pet insurance/vet bills................. 0
Buildings insurance..................... 13
Contents insurance...................... 0
Life assurance ......................... 12
Other insurance......................... 0
Presents (birthday, christmas etc)...... 0
Haircuts................................ 5
Entertainment........................... 80
Holiday................................. 50
Emergency fund.......................... 0
Total monthly expenses.................. 618

Assets
Cash.................................... 300
House value (Gross)..................... 78000
Shares and bonds........................ 0
Car(s).................................. 2200
Other assets............................ 0
Total Assets............................ 80400

Secured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Mortgage...................... 65000....(400)......6.7
Total secured debts........... 65000.....-.........-

Unsecured Debts
Description....................Debt......Monthly...APR
Overdraft......................4400......0.........6.5
Credit Card....................470.......9.59......15.9

beanielou

Whats other travel?
Entertainment is a wee bit high?