Best way to clear debt?
Discussion
I've got approx 12k of outstanding debt with various creditors. I am currently using a company called Gregory Pennington to manage all the payments, however they take a rather large cut of my money as a thankyou for arranging payments with my creditors. I want to move away from this and perhaps pay a bit more (currently paying ~£90 a month, only about £70 goes to my debt). The only reason I've stayed with them, is that I rarely, if ever, hear from any creditors anymore and it just makes things easier for me. However my debt is barely going down at all despite all the interest being frozen.
Is it best if I arrange with each creditor to make a payment for £xxx a month or should I refer to CCCS or similar?
Any other advice appreciated.
I don't have much money to play with as I only earn just over £1.1k a month and always run out of money each month. However I've not took out any additional credit for several years. I only have an overdraft of £100 which I usually dip into, the bank don't charge me for it though.
Is it best if I arrange with each creditor to make a payment for £xxx a month or should I refer to CCCS or similar?
Any other advice appreciated.
I don't have much money to play with as I only earn just over £1.1k a month and always run out of money each month. However I've not took out any additional credit for several years. I only have an overdraft of £100 which I usually dip into, the bank don't charge me for it though.
Interest free credit card? It will peobably be more than £90 a month though. a management company seems an expensive waste.
You need to get the interest rate down, the more of your money paying the dept the better, not just servicing it.
What kind of dept is it, could you pay it all off with a loan?
What's your credit score like?
You need to get the interest rate down, the more of your money paying the dept the better, not just servicing it.
What kind of dept is it, could you pay it all off with a loan?
What's your credit score like?
Hi, without knowing too much about your debt or your circumstances it's hard to say.
I've helped a few folk manage their debt over the last year- friend and family.
What I would say is, read what I'm about to say below. Itll help if you see the bigger picture.
As I don't know you i'll make it clear and simple- it might also help someone else who reads this.
First...
You have Said you earn around £1100 per month. Is this fixed or is there scope to earn extra? If not through your primary source of income then looking at other ways to make money might help you. I.e- second job, working weekends or evenings for a few hours. Ultimately anything you make on this could and should go directly into paying your debt.
Then look at your outgoings- is there a way to reduce this? You mentioned you scrape by, is the majority of your £1100 mi us your £90 debt outgoings on necessities?
Things like mortgage/rent, food, travel expenses, gas, electricity etc are an absolute must and need to go before anything else- including your debt. If you spend money going out or on leisure etc then look at how you could reduce this. Then look at ways to reduce your food, gas, electricity spend.
After yourve did this you should have a balance of what 'free cash' you have each month.
It will obviously be more than the £90 you pay to the debt management company.
Call each company you owe money to and get a balance. Once this is collated work out how much you can pay each company each month. Call them and offer this to them.
It should leave you in a stronger position and save you money.
Your paying over 20% to this company for the pleasure of being a middle man. In the short term doesn't seem bad but £20 per month over say 4 years stacks up - £1k.
Look at it from another angle- if you had a pn extra £1k to pay your debts- where would you pay it.
Ultimately this is pretty simple stuff but totally understand your position.
If I were you I'd be cutting my outgoings, aiming to make more money through working more and call each of your creditors to offer a payment plan that you can afford.
The other route is taking out a debt consolodation loan but the likelyhood is - as you have very little money to move around, you won't be offered the best terms which isn't good. Its also a very dangerous trap and easy to end up with more debt.
It may be that since you have entered a debt plan you might not be able to get credit too.
Drop me a pm if you want a little bit of help
I've helped a few folk manage their debt over the last year- friend and family.
What I would say is, read what I'm about to say below. Itll help if you see the bigger picture.
As I don't know you i'll make it clear and simple- it might also help someone else who reads this.
First...
You have Said you earn around £1100 per month. Is this fixed or is there scope to earn extra? If not through your primary source of income then looking at other ways to make money might help you. I.e- second job, working weekends or evenings for a few hours. Ultimately anything you make on this could and should go directly into paying your debt.
Then look at your outgoings- is there a way to reduce this? You mentioned you scrape by, is the majority of your £1100 mi us your £90 debt outgoings on necessities?
Things like mortgage/rent, food, travel expenses, gas, electricity etc are an absolute must and need to go before anything else- including your debt. If you spend money going out or on leisure etc then look at how you could reduce this. Then look at ways to reduce your food, gas, electricity spend.
After yourve did this you should have a balance of what 'free cash' you have each month.
It will obviously be more than the £90 you pay to the debt management company.
Call each company you owe money to and get a balance. Once this is collated work out how much you can pay each company each month. Call them and offer this to them.
It should leave you in a stronger position and save you money.
Your paying over 20% to this company for the pleasure of being a middle man. In the short term doesn't seem bad but £20 per month over say 4 years stacks up - £1k.
Look at it from another angle- if you had a pn extra £1k to pay your debts- where would you pay it.
Ultimately this is pretty simple stuff but totally understand your position.
If I were you I'd be cutting my outgoings, aiming to make more money through working more and call each of your creditors to offer a payment plan that you can afford.
The other route is taking out a debt consolodation loan but the likelyhood is - as you have very little money to move around, you won't be offered the best terms which isn't good. Its also a very dangerous trap and easy to end up with more debt.
It may be that since you have entered a debt plan you might not be able to get credit too.
Drop me a pm if you want a little bit of help
Odie said:
Interest free credit card? It will peobably be more than £90 a month though. a management company seems an expensive waste.
You need to get the interest rate down, the more of your money paying the dept the better, not just servicing it.
What kind of dept is it, could you pay it all off with a loan?
What's your credit score like?
I don't think I'd get approved for any kind of credit card, especially one with no interest! All the interest with any creditors is frozen so whatever money goes to them does actually reduce the debt, just very slowly. You need to get the interest rate down, the more of your money paying the dept the better, not just servicing it.
What kind of dept is it, could you pay it all off with a loan?
What's your credit score like?
The debt is a mixture of a large loan, overdraft & credit cards
Garym85 said:
Hi, without knowing too much about your debt or your circumstances it's hard to say.
I've helped a few folk manage their debt over the last year- friend and family.
What I would say is, read what I'm about to say below. Itll help if you see the bigger picture.
As I don't know you i'll make it clear and simple- it might also help someone else who reads this.
First...
You have Said you earn around £1100 per month. Is this fixed or is there scope to earn extra? If not through your primary source of income then looking at other ways to make money might help you. I.e- second job, working weekends or evenings for a few hours. Ultimately anything you make on this could and should go directly into paying your debt.
Then look at your outgoings- is there a way to reduce this? You mentioned you scrape by, is the majority of your £1100 mi us your £90 debt outgoings on necessities?
Things like mortgage/rent, food, travel expenses, gas, electricity etc are an absolute must and need to go before anything else- including your debt. If you spend money going out or on leisure etc then look at how you could reduce this. Then look at ways to reduce your food, gas, electricity spend.
After yourve did this you should have a balance of what 'free cash' you have each month.
It will obviously be more than the £90 you pay to the debt management company.
Call each company you owe money to and get a balance. Once this is collated work out how much you can pay each company each month. Call them and offer this to them.
It should leave you in a stronger position and save you money.
Your paying over 20% to this company for the pleasure of being a middle man. In the short term doesn't seem bad but £20 per month over say 4 years stacks up - £1k.
Look at it from another angle- if you had a pn extra £1k to pay your debts- where would you pay it.
Ultimately this is pretty simple stuff but totally understand your position.
If I were you I'd be cutting my outgoings, aiming to make more money through working more and call each of your creditors to offer a payment plan that you can afford.
The other route is taking out a debt consolodation loan but the likelyhood is - as you have very little money to move around, you won't be offered the best terms which isn't good. Its also a very dangerous trap and easy to end up with more debt.
It may be that since you have entered a debt plan you might not be able to get credit too.
Drop me a pm if you want a little bit of help
As above it's credit cards, loan & overdrafts. I've helped a few folk manage their debt over the last year- friend and family.
What I would say is, read what I'm about to say below. Itll help if you see the bigger picture.
As I don't know you i'll make it clear and simple- it might also help someone else who reads this.
First...
You have Said you earn around £1100 per month. Is this fixed or is there scope to earn extra? If not through your primary source of income then looking at other ways to make money might help you. I.e- second job, working weekends or evenings for a few hours. Ultimately anything you make on this could and should go directly into paying your debt.
Then look at your outgoings- is there a way to reduce this? You mentioned you scrape by, is the majority of your £1100 mi us your £90 debt outgoings on necessities?
Things like mortgage/rent, food, travel expenses, gas, electricity etc are an absolute must and need to go before anything else- including your debt. If you spend money going out or on leisure etc then look at how you could reduce this. Then look at ways to reduce your food, gas, electricity spend.
After yourve did this you should have a balance of what 'free cash' you have each month.
It will obviously be more than the £90 you pay to the debt management company.
Call each company you owe money to and get a balance. Once this is collated work out how much you can pay each company each month. Call them and offer this to them.
It should leave you in a stronger position and save you money.
Your paying over 20% to this company for the pleasure of being a middle man. In the short term doesn't seem bad but £20 per month over say 4 years stacks up - £1k.
Look at it from another angle- if you had a pn extra £1k to pay your debts- where would you pay it.
Ultimately this is pretty simple stuff but totally understand your position.
If I were you I'd be cutting my outgoings, aiming to make more money through working more and call each of your creditors to offer a payment plan that you can afford.
The other route is taking out a debt consolodation loan but the likelyhood is - as you have very little money to move around, you won't be offered the best terms which isn't good. Its also a very dangerous trap and easy to end up with more debt.
It may be that since you have entered a debt plan you might not be able to get credit too.
Drop me a pm if you want a little bit of help
My wage is fixed although i get a quarterly bonus up to £250 (before tax). I don't think I can handle a 2nd job right now, barely get any free time as it is.
My outgoings are reduced as far as possible really, although the main expense is my car. Costs a lot to run but with the amount of money I've ploughed into it, there's no way I'm selling up. I'd get hardly anything for it and be unable to buy anything more reliable (it's worth at most, £3k if I'm lucky).
My fixed monthly outgoings are;
£60 car insurance (renewal this month - let's hope I can get a better price!)
£40 gym - not stopping my gym membership. I've been to all the local ones and mine is the best for my needs.
£3 breakdown cover.
£21 for my internet
£93 to debt management
£300 rent & bills (living at home at present. pay £300 and buy my own food)
£150 food - approx
This leaves me just over £400 for fuel and keeping my car on the road. If I have car tax due or something breaks then I'm completely skint for the month.
Really can't see anywhere to cut outgoings but all signs point to my car! The only source of enjoyment I have really. If I had to drive something s
t I'd get bored really quickly. Hopefully after I get new rear brakes this month I won't need to spend any money on it for a while except fuelAny ideas?
On the assumption someone else is paying the line rental, I think you can probably shave a tenner off your internet bill with ease.
And I have to say that you could economise on your car a little if you are serious about clearing the debt. for someone in that much trouble financially I find it hard to justify.
And I have to say that you could economise on your car a little if you are serious about clearing the debt. for someone in that much trouble financially I find it hard to justify.
Acehood said:
As above it's credit cards, loan & overdrafts.
My wage is fixed although i get a quarterly bonus up to £250 (before tax). I don't think I can handle a 2nd job right now, barely get any free time as it is.
My outgoings are reduced as far as possible really, although the main expense is my car. Costs a lot to run but with the amount of money I've ploughed into it, there's no way I'm selling up. I'd get hardly anything for it and be unable to buy anything more reliable (it's worth at most, £3k if I'm lucky).
My fixed monthly outgoings are;
£60 car insurance (renewal this month - let's hope I can get a better price!)
£40 gym - not stopping my gym membership. I've been to all the local ones and mine is the best for my needs.
£3 breakdown cover.
£21 for my internet
£93 to debt management
£300 rent & bills (living at home at present. pay £300 and buy my own food)
£150 food - approx
This leaves me just over £400 for fuel and keeping my car on the road. If I have car tax due or something breaks then I'm completely skint for the month.
Really can't see anywhere to cut outgoings but all signs point to my car! The only source of enjoyment I have really. If I had to drive something st I'd get bored really quickly. Hopefully after I get new rear brakes this month I won't need to spend any money on it for a while except fuel
Any ideas?
Sorry to sound rude but maybe its time to wake up and get in the real world. 12k debt and paying £70 per month of this will mean it will take around 14 years to complete. Just stoping the gym and using that £40 will knock 5 years of this repayment. Have you asked your parents if they will help you out and half your rent or something along those lines to help you clear your debt. My wage is fixed although i get a quarterly bonus up to £250 (before tax). I don't think I can handle a 2nd job right now, barely get any free time as it is.
My outgoings are reduced as far as possible really, although the main expense is my car. Costs a lot to run but with the amount of money I've ploughed into it, there's no way I'm selling up. I'd get hardly anything for it and be unable to buy anything more reliable (it's worth at most, £3k if I'm lucky).
My fixed monthly outgoings are;
£60 car insurance (renewal this month - let's hope I can get a better price!)
£40 gym - not stopping my gym membership. I've been to all the local ones and mine is the best for my needs.
£3 breakdown cover.
£21 for my internet
£93 to debt management
£300 rent & bills (living at home at present. pay £300 and buy my own food)
£150 food - approx
This leaves me just over £400 for fuel and keeping my car on the road. If I have car tax due or something breaks then I'm completely skint for the month.
Really can't see anywhere to cut outgoings but all signs point to my car! The only source of enjoyment I have really. If I had to drive something s
t I'd get bored really quickly. Hopefully after I get new rear brakes this month I won't need to spend any money on it for a while except fuelAny ideas?
Have you thought about a new job? why not just see if anything is about even if you only get £10 a month more after tax it is more to pay of your debt.
I feel for you as I have seen a very close friend go through the same thing and in the end they did give up the gym just to save the extra £45 a month.
Good luck tho
Andy_GSA said:
CCCS or Payplan or one of the other free debt management advisors. No point paying a debt management company when you can get the same service for free so getting the debt reduced more quickly.
I will speak with CCCS tonight and see if they can help me out.Seems like the best option to utilise the money available to me and pay it off a bit quicker
davepoth said:
On the assumption someone else is paying the line rental, I think you can probably shave a tenner off your internet bill with ease.
And I have to say that you could economise on your car a little if you are serious about clearing the debt. for someone in that much trouble financially I find it hard to justify.
I have cable from Virginmedia so I don't have to pay for line rental. There's no reduction on price - I'm not cutting the speed of my internet as I need it for work occasionally and the 1mbit upload helps with VPN connections. Any slower and it'd be useless.And I have to say that you could economise on your car a little if you are serious about clearing the debt. for someone in that much trouble financially I find it hard to justify.
dazp said:
Sorry to sound rude but maybe its time to wake up and get in the real world. 12k debt and paying £70 per month of this will mean it will take around 14 years to complete. Just stoping the gym and using that £40 will knock 5 years of this repayment. Have you asked your parents if they will help you out and half your rent or something along those lines to help you clear your debt.
Have you thought about a new job? why not just see if anything is about even if you only get £10 a month more after tax it is more to pay of your debt.
I feel for you as I have seen a very close friend go through the same thing and in the end they did give up the gym just to save the extra £45 a month.
Good luck tho
I'm not stopping the gym. Alongside my car it's one of the few luxuries I have and I enjoy lifting weights. Have you thought about a new job? why not just see if anything is about even if you only get £10 a month more after tax it is more to pay of your debt.
I feel for you as I have seen a very close friend go through the same thing and in the end they did give up the gym just to save the extra £45 a month.
Good luck tho
I have thought about a new job but I'm quite happy where I am and there's room for progression, it'll just take a bit of time. I'm doing well at this job so far and starting again would be silly. Hoping to be promoted fairly soon and get a pay increase but we have a pay & recruitment freeze for the forseable future. I also don't have much in the way of qualifications or experience to get a better job than I have now. Similar jobs pay a lot less with other companies it seems.
fido said:
^Cycle to work and cancel Gym membership. Exercise and save money.
I always thought there was something ironic [in an Alanis Morissette way] about driving to the gym.
As above - I lift weights, I don't do cardio. Cycling to work is an option but as there's no showers at work I don't like the idea of it tbh. I also haven't got a bike so that's just another expense.I always thought there was something ironic [in an Alanis Morissette way] about driving to the gym.
Short of purchasing a squat rack, barbell & bench there's no other options for my kind of training. Not that there's room in my house for any gym equipment.
Stuart70 said:
Give up the gym membership, sell the car. You can't afford them. Get another job. Repay the money and regain your life.
You took other people's money in loans and credit cards. Repay them....
Not a very nice message, but the truth...
I see where you're coming from and I must sound like a "negative nancy" in this thread... but there's always that transistion where you sell your car and have no transport. Living in the sticks I have no way to get to work without a car - no public transport links here and nobody at work lives remotely near me. I have no savings to buy a new car with. You took other people's money in loans and credit cards. Repay them....
Not a very nice message, but the truth...
What car would you recommend? Currently I have a Clio 182 and it's worth at most £3k but I'd likely get nearer £2k for it. What can I buy that's cheap, FUN & reliable without ridiculous miles on it for that price?
I really can't stress enough that I am not quitting my gym membership.
Honestly, a £500 banger. Get £2,500 for the Clio and pay £2,000 of your debt. Halve the cost of the insurance, add 50% to fuel economy ; pay these savings towards your debt.
Not clear what job you are doing and what hours. If you are doing more than 60 to 70 hours a week currently then you are underpaid or there must be a huge amount of progression available. If you are doing fewer hours, get another job. Bar work gives you a social life at the same time....
I am a miserable to$$er on this, but it is hard to maintain self worth and success in your situation. Getting the debt off your shoulders and taking responsibility and control will reward you more than having free time. and it will free you up to move through life getting ph cars and enjoying your success.
Just my opinion obviously....
Not clear what job you are doing and what hours. If you are doing more than 60 to 70 hours a week currently then you are underpaid or there must be a huge amount of progression available. If you are doing fewer hours, get another job. Bar work gives you a social life at the same time....
I am a miserable to$$er on this, but it is hard to maintain self worth and success in your situation. Getting the debt off your shoulders and taking responsibility and control will reward you more than having free time. and it will free you up to move through life getting ph cars and enjoying your success.
Just my opinion obviously....
Acehood said:
As above it's credit cards, loan & overdrafts.
My wage is fixed although i get a quarterly bonus up to £250 (before tax). I don't think I can handle a 2nd job right now, barely get any free time as it is.
My outgoings are reduced as far as possible really, although the main expense is my car. Costs a lot to run but with the amount of money I've ploughed into it, there's no way I'm selling up. I'd get hardly anything for it and be unable to buy anything more reliable (it's worth at most, £3k if I'm lucky).
My fixed monthly outgoings are;
£60 car insurance (renewal this month - let's hope I can get a better price!)
£40 gym - not stopping my gym membership. I've been to all the local ones and mine is the best for my needs.
£3 breakdown cover.
£21 for my internet
£93 to debt management
£300 rent & bills (living at home at present. pay £300 and buy my own food)
£150 food - approx
This leaves me just over £400 for fuel and keeping my car on the road. If I have car tax due or something breaks then I'm completely skint for the month.
Really can't see anywhere to cut outgoings but all signs point to my car! The only source of enjoyment I have really. If I had to drive something st I'd get bored really quickly. Hopefully after I get new rear brakes this month I won't need to spend any money on it for a while except fuel
Any ideas?
Ok, I dont want this to sound harsh but unfortunately it may come across that wayMy wage is fixed although i get a quarterly bonus up to £250 (before tax). I don't think I can handle a 2nd job right now, barely get any free time as it is.
My outgoings are reduced as far as possible really, although the main expense is my car. Costs a lot to run but with the amount of money I've ploughed into it, there's no way I'm selling up. I'd get hardly anything for it and be unable to buy anything more reliable (it's worth at most, £3k if I'm lucky).
My fixed monthly outgoings are;
£60 car insurance (renewal this month - let's hope I can get a better price!)
£40 gym - not stopping my gym membership. I've been to all the local ones and mine is the best for my needs.
£3 breakdown cover.
£21 for my internet
£93 to debt management
£300 rent & bills (living at home at present. pay £300 and buy my own food)
£150 food - approx
This leaves me just over £400 for fuel and keeping my car on the road. If I have car tax due or something breaks then I'm completely skint for the month.
Really can't see anywhere to cut outgoings but all signs point to my car! The only source of enjoyment I have really. If I had to drive something s
t I'd get bored really quickly. Hopefully after I get new rear brakes this month I won't need to spend any money on it for a while except fuelAny ideas?
I think your looking for a magic wand to be waved and wipe your debt clear.
I'll let you in on why I feel I was in the position to help friends and family- I learned the hard way.
I wasted over £40k in 9 months when I was 18. I had to make some real tough decisions but I did it without anyones help. Heres how I did it...
I took on a second job- I used this as my leisure money as the work was in a bar and cash in hand. I didnt touch my bank account from one month to the next.
I was fortunate enough that I had a work van which meant I didnt have to put much fuel in the car and didnt pay to get to/from work.
I made every effort to reduce my outgoings.
This meant- Changing my mobile phone to PAYG from contract, Reducing my shopping spend (I downshifted- more to come on that), I cancelled my gym membership and started jogging and exercising outside- I did treat myself to a sauna/swim/steamroom every friday which cost £4- in effect saving me £20 per month.
The result was- I was debt free within 18 months. I then, only very recently reduced a close family members debt through close management from £26k to being debt free in 27months. The banks told me It would take 11 years!
So...in the grand scheme of things- I would fully recommend the following.
Car insurance- Shop around...I shopped around for my mrs Audi TT insurance and she was set to pay £492- I got it for £319. (Also worth checking the cashback sites like greasypalm etc for cashback offers)
Gym- £40 is a reasonable price for a good gym but if your only doing cardio then the gym is a serious waste of time and money.(My fiancee is the manager of a gym and I took this advice from her).
breakdown cover- £3. Potentially nothing to save and at £3 is good value. check your not covered through your current account though.
Internet- £21. Cant grudge that, Just make sure its the best price on the market. If you have sky or virgin it might be cheaper as a package- maybe thats what youve got. I know the best price on the market right now is around £16 incl line rental.
Debts- £93. There is very much room to change this. Once I get to the end it might help more.
rent and bills- £300...You still stay with your folks? Dont want to pry on their finances but explain your situation and offer to reduce it- Even in the short term..say 6 months. If they reduced it to £200 then £600 spent on debt is reducing it by 5% in a short period of time. If Im being honest- £300 per month seems steep. Very steep. You can rent a room from me for £300 with internet and youd be paying 1/3 of my mortgage in the process!
food- £150. Unless your already buying the cheap brands then theres definetly money to be saved here. Its plain and simple. Check for offers
£400 car - No idea what your car is but obviously fuel, servicing and tax play a huge part in this...
Do you realise your £3k car is costing you £6k per year to run.
In all honesty- I reckon you could save over £200 per month on outgoings. This is an absolutely best case scenario but the biggest savings are to be made from- saving a bit on food...lets say £20 per month. Also the £20 odd you pay the debt management company. Also by freezing your gym membership (£40) and negotiating with your folks that you reduce your rent(£100) to help you out of a sore spot for a while- If they agree. Take them for some dinner. It might cost a few quid but they are helping you out.
So....If you save £200per month- that would mean you can pay around £270 to your debts.
Looking at it another way...instead of having debts for 14 years...its under 4.
All in all, I think you will need to make some tough decisions. after outgoings you dont earn enough to service your debts to anything near a comfortable level. You say you dont have time for a second job- Nobody wants to work all the hours there is but for some, even short term- Its the only option.
Short term pain= long term gain.
No idea what age you are but I shiver at the thought of having a debt- Other than a mortgage for any longer than a couple of years.
PM me if you want a bit of help.
You write 2 lists.
The heading on the First list says
Essential.
1) Rent/Mortgage Interest
2) Council Tax
3) Gas/Electric
4) Water
5) Food
6) Cleaning Materials (From Bleach to Shampoo)
The Heading on the Second list says
Not Essential.
1) TV Licence
2) Sky
3) Mobile Phone and Broadband
4) Car
5) Fags
6) Clothes
7) Holidays
8) Tea, Coffee, Meals out, Beer.
Then you list ways of making more money.
1) Sublet a room to a student
2) Get a Part Time job as a Bettaware Seller,
3) Over-Time
4) Sell all the st in your attic
Then you Get rid of everything on list 2. Reduce the cost of everything on list 1, and Do all of list 3.
I spoke to a guy last week who had paid off a £74 K mortgage in 2 years on a PRE-Tax income of £35K.
HOW ?
The heading on the First list says
Essential.
1) Rent/Mortgage Interest
2) Council Tax
3) Gas/Electric
4) Water
5) Food
6) Cleaning Materials (From Bleach to Shampoo)
The Heading on the Second list says
Not Essential.
1) TV Licence
2) Sky
3) Mobile Phone and Broadband
4) Car
5) Fags
6) Clothes
7) Holidays
8) Tea, Coffee, Meals out, Beer.
Then you list ways of making more money.
1) Sublet a room to a student
2) Get a Part Time job as a Bettaware Seller,
3) Over-Time
4) Sell all the s
t in your atticThen you Get rid of everything on list 2. Reduce the cost of everything on list 1, and Do all of list 3.
I spoke to a guy last week who had paid off a £74 K mortgage in 2 years on a PRE-Tax income of £35K.
HOW ?
Alternative point of view:
You're not paying interest on the debt, so having the debt costs you nothing. You're only paying £70 a month, why make life hard for yourself by paying more if the cost is nil? Cut out the middleman, sure, but if you can pay the debt over 14 years at zero cost, then that's your best option.
Consider your career, what are your prospects and how should your income change over the years? If it's likely that in income will be double what it is now in a few years time, the repayments will become more affordable, so it makes sense to delay it from that point of view too.
All of the above is predicated on the cost of servicing your debt being zero.
You're not paying interest on the debt, so having the debt costs you nothing. You're only paying £70 a month, why make life hard for yourself by paying more if the cost is nil? Cut out the middleman, sure, but if you can pay the debt over 14 years at zero cost, then that's your best option.
Consider your career, what are your prospects and how should your income change over the years? If it's likely that in income will be double what it is now in a few years time, the repayments will become more affordable, so it makes sense to delay it from that point of view too.
All of the above is predicated on the cost of servicing your debt being zero.
paulrockliffe said:
Alternative point of view:
You're not paying interest on the debt, so having the debt costs you nothing. You're only paying £70 a month, why make life hard for yourself by paying more if the cost is nil? Cut out the middleman, sure, but if you can pay the debt over 14 years at zero cost, then that's your best option.
Consider your career, what are your prospects and how should your income change over the years? If it's likely that in income will be double what it is now in a few years time, the repayments will become more affordable, so it makes sense to delay it from that point of view too.
All of the above is predicated on the cost of servicing your debt being zero.
This advice is NOT for someone with money issues encourages the wrong mindset. You're not paying interest on the debt, so having the debt costs you nothing. You're only paying £70 a month, why make life hard for yourself by paying more if the cost is nil? Cut out the middleman, sure, but if you can pay the debt over 14 years at zero cost, then that's your best option.
Consider your career, what are your prospects and how should your income change over the years? If it's likely that in income will be double what it is now in a few years time, the repayments will become more affordable, so it makes sense to delay it from that point of view too.
All of the above is predicated on the cost of servicing your debt being zero.
Fact is it's a £14k debt
There is a lot of fat in the list of costs you list.
Firstly we shop at Waitrose (and Costco now and again) for two adults a baby and pets we spend roughly £400pcm. Now we do upgrade to get some really nice things plus nappies etc. So £200pcm... Yet your a single living with your parents... Firstly why are you not all buying food together and preparing wholesome meals which would be cheaper and good family time.
When I lived alone i frequently went for beans on toast or beans in jacket potatoes or tinned tuna. Money was tight for a good 9 months before I managed monthly food shopping which included 12cans beer a week total £50pcm.
Gym sorry needs to go. You can buy dumb bells etc used on gumtree for very very little infact most what you list you'd easily get for a max of two months gym membership. But frankly get outside do burpees reps of 50 at a time. To build up your chest and shoulder strength get into a handstand with legs against the wall then pressup in that position - very hard
I am a landlord £300pcm for a room.... Um maybe your parents are trying to force you out? That's crazy high plus you have to pay for Internet wtf so £321 PCM. Madness.
Really you should say the £300pcm is all inclusive ie food lodgings and Internet.
You don't mention mobile phone cost? Do you not have one?
£400pcm for the car so that's fuel tax ins and servicing... Sorry that's too high a % of your salary to run a car - when you are in financial difficulty. Sell the car buy a £500 max car you could dump £2k into the debt and instead of spending £6k a year on running the car half that so your dumping in an extra £3k into clearing the debt so on this you could carry on doing your gym etc overpaying your parents get milked on food and within three years be debt free.
You will clearly push back about not selling the car but once the debt is cleared then you can buy another. You have spent £14k on something or just overlived your income for a period of time. Now deal with it £90pcm is criminal payback IMHO really focus on it - if you combined the sale of the car plus downgrade the rent plus no gym plus halve your food you would clear this debt in 15-18months...
That's the carrot - and if you could then get a weekend job that 15-18 months will plummet. Seriously think about this it will be for a short period of time maybe only a year if you do all the above and second weekend job. It's a real option OR say meh I like 14 years of this dragging on.
The other thing is once this debt is cleared if you follow on some of these changes you could quickly save up to buy the 182 back for cash so maintain debt free or buy something better and faster again with saved up money. Do this and it will be a great position for you.
It might sound harsh but you need to realise the dire 14 year situation or the carrot of 1 year with clear hardships for a year.... Personally I'd man the f
k up and do it in a year when you do it you will feel so good. The other tip is make sure you keep a tracker of where you are and where you have come from plus the key date dEBT FREE DAY. Good luck.
CCCS or Payplan are the places to go - that will rid you of the middle man payment and give you more to pay towards the debt.
However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
Migsy said:
CCCS or Payplan are the places to go - that will rid you of the middle man payment and give you more to pay towards the debt.
However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
What do they think about Gym membership?However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
Also car costs... Can it or downgrade te car to reduce the outgoings?
Welshbeef said:
Migsy said:
CCCS or Payplan are the places to go - that will rid you of the middle man payment and give you more to pay towards the debt.
However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
What do they think about Gym membership?However, both of those will want Income and Outgoings sheets and they'll be advising you what is/isn't acceptable in terms of your outgoings. There are guideline amounts they'll have and work to, in order to get your creditors to accept the payments they offer on your behalf.
Get yourself over to the forum on www.moneysavingexpert.com and have a look at some of the posts - there are many people in a similar position to yourself and they'll probably be more detailed information on the living allowances.
Good luck with sorting it.
Also car costs... Can it or downgrade te car to reduce the outgoings?
You do need to be aware that if any financials change (ie. salary increases) you are expected to advise them, as that additional needs to go towards the debt. In any event, there are regular reviews (I think it might be annually).
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