DMP Mutual Support Thread - Part 12

motivated wrote: »

Hi BDFSH

I reduced our payments to each one to around half (generated from the NEDCAB site so all the payments were worked out for us based on our I & E form but we paid them token payments for a few months first. I told them it was due to car repairs and big vet bills that I need to pay. This gave us time to stash some money away and that alone removes an awful lot of stress too. I added in the letters that I would be paying tokens for x amount of months and would resume payments on a certain date and they were still fine. All responded pretty quickly too and I didnt send ours recorded delivery either.

I think you'll find your creditors are used to it by now and will be ok with it.

I understand your worries though I felt exactly the same

Edit: I even had a review phone call from PRA group asking if the £1 payments were affordable for us :rotfl:

Thanks Motivated

PRA :rotfl::rotfl::rotfl:

Did you get any settlement offers?? I wish I had given myself a couple of months before resuming payments now but hey ho!! At least I may get one month to save a few pennies. I have told them I will continue payments in September. Once the acceptance letters (hopefully) come in would it be best to write to tell them the standing order will be set up to make payments on 28th of each month just to keep them updated?

Appreciate your advice

BDFSH x

Having remortgaged 4 times over the years to consolidate my debts and reduce the total monthly payments, I have always thought of my mortgage as being mostly house purchase and partly debts.

However, having reached the age of 50 and taking out my 25 year mortgage at the age of 24, it has occurred to me that I should have finished my mortgage repayments last year.

This means that my current mortgage debt of £70,003 is entirely made up of consolidated debt, so after thinking that my debts added up to £34,614, they do in fact add up to £104,617.

That is a lot of money made up of 26 years of spending beyond my means and not thinking of my mortgage as a debt.

I did actually look into remortgaging for a 5th time to include my £34,614 of unsecured debt until I discovered this forum and DMP's.

So thank you to everyone who posts on here for saving me from myself and to anyone reading this who is thinking of consolidating either by remortgaging or adding a secured loan to your mortgage - DON'T DO IT!!!

motivated wrote: »

Totally agree DMP tiger

Consolidating debts very rarely if ever works. Been there done that. It is in fact just moving it elsewhere.

M

Not only does it move the debt elsewhere, it leaves the mind thinking that I have no debt, the credit cards empty and the overdraft at zero - primed and ready for more spending :eek:

Hi All good hope everyone having a good Thursday. Just updated my figures and outstanding debt is now at less than 4K and hopefully on the final straight.

though i would say i've found the last couple of months pretty hard going, dont know if because its so close i dont want to reduce any DMP payments to extend it so trying to deal with unexpected expenses price hikes on stuff since last year within what i've got. But on a positive note means im sharpening my debt saving skills again just as i head into dfd world so hopefully well practiced when the day arrives.

Also saw a great post the other day post dfd saying they were a bit out of sorts so also manage my expectation of elation when it comes too.

have a good day all

DMP_Tiger wrote: »

Not only does it move the debt elsewhere, it leaves the mind thinking that I have no debt, the credit cards empty and the overdraft at zero - primed and ready for more spending :eek:

Groan... been there and done that

I kick myself some days when I think back to the moment we signed on the dotted line for a secured loan to consolidate (which is, effectively, the same as re-mortgaging :mad:) Had we not done that, some 10 years ago - not only would we have been debt free many moons ago, but would probably be close to being mortgage free

So - lesson to anyone even considering that option - DONT

I imagine back then DMPs were not really known about, or even existed - and I certainly never even thought about googling anything to do with debt-management. Fast forward - it's great these options now exist and the information is more widely available.