www.iva.co.uk

Currently owe around 32k including an unsecured amount (16k) on my Together Mortgage along side various credit cards etc.

I own my own flat which has no equity in it and my situation has changed recently with having to take a 35% pay reduction and my current lodgers are moving out in april and will therefore lose a large amount of disposable income. At present I have no one who can move in, in there place.

Therefore very soon I am going to get in to financial difficulty meeting all my monthly payments and im dreading my quarterly Gas/Electric bills.

Therefore I need to try and sort my situation, I dont know who to turn to or trust. I get the impression all IP's are out to make money out of my downfall and will only give one sided opinions.

Also is a DMP better if I dont really want to affect my credit rating etc.

Im very worried about having to feed/cloth etc myself with the £100 an iva will leave me.

IPs are good people but who works for free? Speak to a couple of debt advisors for free and impartial advice on all yur options. If an iva feels best to you, don't let the fees put you off. My iva is a lifesaver and many posters feel the same. I am grateful to be able to pay someone to get my life back on track! I would be paying interest and charges into infinity otherwise. My iP fees over five years prob equate to less than a year of interest and charges...plus there is an end in sight. Good luck x

Hi, your best bet is to speak to 2 or 3 reputable companies, try www.iva.com for a list of companies and some reviews of these, the IP fees will be agreed by the creditors at the meeting, I personally think you have the wrong impression about IP's wanting to make money our of your downfall and only giving one sided opinions. A good company will give you advice on all debt solutions not just IVA's. Within a DMP your credit rating will still be shot as you won't be paying your full contractual payment to your creditors.

I would definitely discuss your circumstances with 2 or 3 companies to ensure you get impartial advice which is case specific to you. When I first enquired all debt solutions were discussed thoroughly with me.

I spoke to an adviser today from a company I wont name but it just felt like there were pushing me into a sale, and the people I spoke to had seemed like a salesman.

Remember the debt industry has received alot of bad press for a reason.

Hi
I agree that the debt industry sometimes receives some bad press, but if you do as Lesley suggests and visit iva.com and look at the feedback from various companies you will also see that there are some excellent companies out there. I also think the number of positive posts on this forum is testomony of that. Good luck in your search.

There are some excellent companies out there but as in every profession there are some good and some bad, if you didn't feel comfortable with the company you contacted today then that isn't the company for you, you'll know when you're happy to proceed with a company, it took me a few phone calls to find my IP. x

Finding an IP seems easy, however what if you go through the whole process and bearing in mind im told u dont have to make ur regular payments while ur IVA is being prepared. You then find out it isnt accepted, surely I will just be left with a load of back charges etc.

I could struggle on by as is or try an IVA. I do have a loan that is paid off next year which will free up £210 a month. I fear losing basically my life (in the social way) trying to struggle on by on a tiny amount.

I can understand your fears welch9 and wonder if to enter a DMP for a year until the loan is paid off is an option for you. A good company will discuss all options with you, IVA's, DMP's and Bankruptcy. In general an IVA proposal will be the best offer on the table and a very high percentage from a good IP are accepted. If you feel you want to you can make pro-rata payments to your creditors in the run up to the creditors meeting.

One thing to consider -- do nothing and you will have far less than that £100 per month the IVA payments MIGHT leave you with. Until the I&E has been worked through you can't really make any decisions.

You need to speak to a few IP's to see, apart from anything else, who you feel comfortable with. Finding an IP is easy -- finding a good one you can work with needs a little research. Have a word with a few who post on here.. advice is free.

I would like to know what figure roughly people have been left with after all expenses are paid out.

Seems no one is very forthcoming, and I understand it depends on a case by case basis, but there must be a rough rule of thumb?.

Hi again! You have nothing to lose by speaking to two or three more IPs. If you are insolvent, you do need help but it can take time to accept this (over two years in my case)!

no rule of thumb I am afraid .... take your income -- subtract the money required to pay all of your essential expenses, what is left goes to the IVA.

Expenses include everything, down to dentist, TV licence, petrol, haircuts. Have a look on the CCCS website, they have a budget planner there which will give you an idea. When I did the CCCS planner it gave me a disposable income of £550, however, according to my IP I was being overly harsh with some of my outgoings and he re-worked the figures and I now pay £440.

There is no rule of thumb I'm afraid, as Foggy says all disposable income after reasonable expenses goes to creditors. After all, an IVA is to pay back as much of your debt as possible. It isn't easy learning how to budget but 5/6 years is a short time compared with your life span, and the end result of freedom from debt is imeasurable.

So working on that method, a simple drink down the pub is off the list, a meal with a friend is out the question, a weekend to london is gone.

I dont know whether I can live like that, im only 28 and live for the weekends.

You could still do some of those things if you cut your spending on other items that were included in your budget, but the high life is out I am afraid, afterall, it was the highlife that got most of us into debt