Debt issues, not sure what to do

[ParisStilton1]

I have around 7k of debt all in all, I'm on 1200-1300 per month and I am paying back 500-600 per month in debt repayments. Rent is 450 then transport is 70, phone bill, food so as you can imagine I'm left with nothing each month.
I have had debt issues for about 5 years now and now 30, nobody else to blame but myself.
I haven't been making flash purchases or anything just didn't know how to manage money, zero hours contracts and an abusive ex when I was 25 who took money from me.

I own nothing of value, nothing I can really sell, occasionally sell clothes etc. But it's barely scratching the surface.

I have zero in savings, need to get my boyfriend a birthday present and really need a new phone as mine freezes constantly, unsure how I'm going to afford either.

I've currently got £6 until Monday and can't afford my transport to work so I'm walking 4 miles each way. Doing surveys to make money.

I owe 1000 overdraft which I live in so interest every month, 1300 on a bank loan which adds interest every month, 950 on credit cards i maxed out without understanding how they work, 3560 on a high interest personal loan and around 350 on smaller loans.

I have no ccjs, defaults etc. But can't get credit anywhere, even high interest payday loans won't touch me.

It's got to the point where I am robbing Peter to pay Paul so to speak.

I'm aware of different debt solutions but feel so ashamed it's come to this, i am only making the minimum payments each month which I am meeting but interest added on means it will take years.
I know that iva or dro will stay on my file for 6 years, I'm terrified of anybody finding out and worried nobody will want to be with me . But I feel that I don't have much choice.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading, sorry it's so long, it helped to get it all out.

I don't want a champagne lifestyle just want to be out of the red and to be able to save some and have some money for treats sometimes or things I need.

There are some excellent charities helping with money issues, Stepchange or CAP are both brilliant, they won’t judge you and they will help negotiate with creditors etc. You don’t need to be buying presents just now - if your boyfriend cares about you he’ll understand things are a bit tight just now. You’re not the only person whose struggled with debt please don’t be ashamed.

Contact step change. Do it now.
They will help you to freeze all interest, snd work out a budget if what you can actually afford.
If you can't get through on the phone, they have lots of tools on their website you can use to sort out the situation yourself. £7k can be managed with their help. Good luck. Been there myself in the past, its crap.

As an Insolvency Practitioner I would urge you not to consider an IVA but to contact Stepchange or Christians Against Poverty. They will be able to help and their plans are perfect for people in your circumstances. An IVA would be too expensive and totally unnecessary despite what may be said by some salespeople. Good luck, you can do it.

Thank you so much. I will contact them, if I get a DMP though won't it lead to Ccjs eventually?

Step change. Call them right now.

You will be able to get your repayments down to a manageable amount and stop the crazy interest as well. You’ll have to pay all the debt back and it will take time but it’s very very doable.

Once you have done that. Make yourself a budget. If your “crap” with money you need to write down every single incoming/outgoing you have. Everything from a bar of chocolate to a weekly shop.

Meal plan and stick to it. Shop accordingly.
Have a sort out and start eBaying
Pay all your bills

Then whatever you have left... I used to place my “spending” money in weekly sealed envelopes and it was like a little competition to keep my spends under what I had budgeted so I could save even £2, it was a win. Then at the end of the month I would save my money and pay off more of my debt.

You can totally do this!

Step change!
I was in the same situation as you and they saved my life.
They put me on a DMP and contacted my creditors on my behalf to freeze all interest and arrange a small affordable monthly repayment to each of them. It took 4 years to pay them all back and it ruined my credit rating for around 6 years. 8 years later and I now have a good credit rating, no debt at all and good savings. The defaults have been wiped from my credit report (they get wiped after a few years of paying them back) and I never had any CCJs.
Just to warn you everything including your credit cards and overdraft etc will all have to go on the DMP. As your repayments to them all will be very affordable to you (I think I paid around £20 per month to each creditor) I was left with more money to live on from my salary

Definitely talk to Step Change. My partner has a DMP through them; it didn't lead to a CCJ and my understanding is that a big part of their function is to avoid people getting to that stage.

However, if you have defaults, or if you end up with defaults later, they will show up on your record. I'd really urge you to talk in detail to StepChange if you can, not just about what they can do now but about the future.

I wouldn't worry about a present for your boyfriend - it's an optional extra and he'll understand (and if he doesn't he's bad for you).

Don’t be ashamed- these things can happen to anyone

Agree with others - contact stepchange ASAP and I’m sure they will help you get those repayments down to a more manageable level

Step change
I'm on a debt management plan (my debts were much higher-do not feel bad about it - sometimes we all make crap decisions).
My credit is rubbish but the debts are going down and I actually have a bit of money left at the end of the month.
I have defaulted on all my debts but no ccj's.

Thank you everyone, have contacted them and feel better already.

Forget about borrowing any more money, that rarely solves the issue, more kicks the can down the road for a bit.

If you have little spare income, no foreseeable expectation that your income will increase in the next year or two and no assets, it could be that a Debt Relief Order is the most appropriate solution. Don't worry about anyone finding out, lots of people are in debt, and it's unlikely they'll find out anyway.

While you're waiting to talk to Stepchange, you can have a go at getting a good sustainable comprehensive budget together. This must include a proper amount for food and other sundry groceries like toiletries, sanitary protection, cleaning products, batteries, lightbulbs etc etc, travel to work and all your bills, a reasonable amount for your mobile - ie one that will enable you to have a phone, but obviously not the latest iphone, go to the dentist, hairdresser etc etc and a bit for emergency savings. This is all higher priority than your debts so you should cover all your essentials and your creditors will have to share the rest. Stepchange should help you get the interest frozen so you get out of debt faster if you don't qualify for a DRO

www.moneysavingexpert.com/budgeting-debt-help/

Contacted them and in the process of sending off forms, hopefully getting debt payments down from over 500 a month to 120!! Feel so happy, can start to enjoy life a bit more now.

Brilliant! @ParisStilton1. The first step is often the hardest.

That’s so amazing.

Now look at some budgeting tools next.

Great OP! You will get there :)

I was in the same position a couple of years ago. You will get it sorted and feel better soon enough. I managed to get to the point where I was making minimum payments on everything and then overpay on the highest interest stuff one at a time until they were gone. It’s a great feeling when you get it paid off. You will get there! The key think I learnt was to put some money aside to save so that if emergencies happened I don’t need to rely on credit. I can only afford to save £50 a month but it was a lifesaver when my car broke.

Well done! That’s great news. Just please remember to save that money and use as much as you can to pay the debt off.

Great news OP!

I can only afford to save £50 a month but it was a lifesaver when my car broke

This sort of thing is key to staying out of debt. If you run a car, a home or have pets, any of these will need money spending on them sooner or later so you really should be putting money aside for these eventualities before you spend on non essentials. Likewise paying for insurance, Christmas, school uniforms etc etc.

Great that you have spoken to Step Change!

I would recommend getting on the money saving expert website and in particular the debt free wannabe section of the forum.

You will find lots of people in your position and worse who are at various stages in realising their journey to becoming debt free. There is some brilliant advice there from very knowledgeable people too.