Trying to get myself debt free - consolidating debt?

Bertie60 · 16 January 2019 at 7:17PM

Hi, I'm new here!

Bit of background info: I'm 29, I am back living with my parents. I don't have a "proper job" at the moment. I am doing freelance work while I finish off my Masters dissertation which is due in at the beginning of February. I am looking to get a full time job once that is done. I got myself in a lot of debt while I was at uni the first time around for my BA and then afterwards when I was made redundant from a full time job and couldn't keep up with payments.

My debts are something like this:
Very account: £1,500 (now a CCJ)
Halifax student overdraft: £2,700
Halifax current account: £300
HSBC current account: £120
Vanquis card: £1,000

These have all gone to various debt collectors as I ignored them for a couple of years and got myself into a bit of a mess. At the moment I am paying off around £150 a month between them all in separate payments. I would rather just have one monthly payment of a lower amount while I am trying to get a job. I don't earn a set amount with my freelance work, so sometimes I struggle to cover the cost of these debts and my phone bill (which is £53 a month).

I really don't know the best way to go about consolidating this into one payment. I was hoping to do it for a couple of months until I find a job. When I get a job, I'll use the first couple of wages to pay off the Halifax and HSBC current accounts and then pay off a couple of hundred on all of the others as I don't actually have rent or a car to pay for right now.

Where should I go to get advice about all of this? I've seen things about loans etc and I just don't understand it all. I obviously have a very bad credit rating and I just want to pay these off as soon as I can.

Thanks in advance!

enthusiasticsaver · 16 January 2019 at 8:00PM

Consolidation is not a good way to repay debt and you will not get a good rate or even approved if you are not working and have a bad record. I think you should carry on as you are. Have they all frozen the interest charges?

Bertie60 · 16 January 2019 at 8:07PM

They're all with debt collector companies now as I ignored them a few years ago. I've gone through my finances with them, but it's hard to say what I am earning when it is different each month. I'm not unemployed, I am self employed and some months are better than others but it is not a stable income. I'm just struggling to pay all these different amounts each month and would prefer to pay less until I can get myself stable with a full time job.

StokieBecks · 16 January 2019 at 8:10PM

The CCJ is priority. Have they actually issued a CCJ on this already or have you just had the forms? The court will have decided on a monthly amount to clear this debt. If you don't pay this they can enforce with baliffs.

Your phone bill is ridiculously high - when is your contract up? Get a sim only deal as soon as you can.

What other outgoings have you got apart from tge debt repayments and your phone bill?

Hard as it may be you need to find a "proper job" alongside your studies and earn as much as you can to get these paid off.

With the other debts. Pay them £1 a month until you are in a better place finacially. You need to start building an emergency fund to cover any unexpected costs that may crop up

cado1 · 16 January 2019 at 8:14PM

From one who has learned the hard way DO NOT CONSOLIDATE into another loan

Bertie60 · 16 January 2019 at 8:14PM

StokieBecks wrote: »

The CCJ is priority. Have they actually issued a CCJ on this already or have you just had the forms? The court will have decided on a monthly amount to clear this debt. If you don't pay this they can enforce with baliffs.

Your phone bill is ridiculously high - when is your contract up? Get a sim only deal as soon as you can.

What other outgoings have you got apart from tge debt repayments and your phone bill?

Hard as it may be you need to find a "proper job" alongside your studies and earn as much as you can to get these paid off.

It is an actual CCJ. They had me paying £100 a month off at first, but I spoke to them back in June last year and it is now £50 a month.

My phone contract is up in May, I can't do anything about it until then. Unfortunately I took it out when I was employed and before I decided to go back to uni.

I only have two weeks left until my dissertation is due in. I have been managing okay with my freelance work, averaging around £800 a month. Now I'm back with my parents and don't have rent to pay (it was £500 a month!) I do have a bit more money, but work has dried up a bit over the Christmas period. I haven't missed any payments for a long time now, I just wanted to see if there was anyway I could have it all as one payment. Looks like that is not the case and I should just carry on as I am until I get a full time job and can afford to pay off more.

Bertie60 · 16 January 2019 at 8:20PM

cado1 wrote: »

From one who has learned the hard way DO NOT CONSOLIDATE into another loan

Thank you! I think I'm just going to carry on as I am. I've already started applying for jobs and have had an interview. All being well, I will have a job within the next month and I'll start paying off more on my CCJ for a start.

Trying to get myself debt free - consolidating debt?

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