Bankruptcy Questions

[AmberRose101]

Hi, have namechanged for this as I'm embarrassed & ashamed about it.

Am declaring bankruptcy as I co signed a remortgage with my ex husband, when I left him he stopped paying all the bills including the mortgage so the marital home was repossessed & the remortgage is currently at £65k. The only other debt is a credit card bill of £1k & a catalogue debt of £50. (plus see below) I'm going to declare in the new year but I have a couple of questions please:

1. Is the Official Receiver interview really 3-4 hours long? I read this on money saving expert.

2. I had an appt with the CAB on 10 December & they told me not to take out any more credit. I thought they meant new credit, which I haven't but I have an online account with a catalogue company. 3 days after my CAB meeting I added £200 onto the account in Christmas presents & yesterday got a letter from the CAB confirming what was discussed & there in black & white it says do not take out any more credit. I think I have been reckless & am now feeling sick to my bones. What will happen, what should I do. I can't take the things back, how stupid am I. It just didn't occur to me as I usually add stuff then pay for it the next month.

Please help me, I'm having trouble sleeping & when I do I dream about it, I think about it constantly & at new year last night I am already dreading the year ahead as its the year I go bankrupt. I'm irritable & on the verge of tears most of the time.

I cant help with the bankruptcy, but are you paying the £200 off in full next month?

If so then I cant see how it matters.

Please try not to stress. I got into a lot of debt years ago when my ex was bleeding me dry. I lost sleep for months. But then I had to just realise, its only money. Im not sick. It cant hurt me. Yes its stressful and yes its a setback, but its really not worth getting super stressed over.

Be kind to yourself.

Thanks for the reply goddess :)

I don't know whether to pay it off or not, I don't want to make it worse by paying it when I should just leave it alone :(

Hmm. Ask CAB I think.

If it was me I would probaby pay it but that could be the wrong thing to do.

www.stepchange.org/Howwecanhelpyou/bankruptcy.aspx

Just seen this from Step Change - are you getting help, too, from a reputable debt charity like this? Though, perhaps, your CAB is doing a good job for you.

As goddess says, please don't over worry about all this - there are solutions, especially if you know what's going on and can work closely with whoever is advising you.

In view of your circumstances, what does your mortgage company say or what are they prepared to do? Bankruptcy is a huge step - sometimes a very necessary one - but I guess you have looked at alternatives.

Whatever you do, don't let any of this get in the way of trying to feel positive about 2013 - and certainly make sure you look after yourself.

I'd be tempted to pay that £200 back if I could - but ask the CAB -
Good luck.

Is the £65k the outstanding balance once the house was sold on, or is £65k the full mortgage you owed before he stopped paying the bills? If the latter, definitely don't automatically go for bankruptcy! If the former, have you discussed all your options with the mortgage company? they may be willing to offer a partial repayment plan with the remaining balance written off rather than them receiving virtually nothing if you go bankrupt :)

In regards to the more recent credit, think you said it was with a catalog, speak to CAB. They should be able to tell you what to do for the best. They are not their to judge you.

Unfortunately I recently went bankrupt. As other posters have said make sure you explore all other options before you go down the bankruptcy route. If it definitely is the right option for you is it actually quite straight forward if a bit daunting. My telephone interview with the OR took about an hour. The OR was very nice and friendly.

Dont worry too much about the £200 - i doubt the OR will concerned about this. The OR interview can last a good few hours depending on how complex your case - but the standard interview for a fairly standard Bankruptcy would be about an hour to go over the forms and ask you any questions.

Have you taken any advice yet? have you any assets that would be at risk in a bankruptcy?

The OR interview can last as little as 45 minutes, depends on your situation. Be wary of the Trustee in Bankruptcy's fees. They are unscrupulous blood-sucking scumbags.

It is not a good idea to pay back the £200 now because it would be regarded as an unfair preference to the catalogue company. Basically, you need to treat all of your unsecured creditors equally, so you can't simply pay one off in full but not pay other credit card bills. The Official Receiver has the authority to reverse any payments made if they feel it has created an unfair preference. But as someone else said, it is such a low sum that it's unlikely to cause any major problems.

It is possible in some cases to retain property even in bankruptcy. Your CAB advisor should be able to tell you more about this.