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Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 11:22 am
by adrian5
Do I have to be in arrears with my creditors to apply for an IVA ? I am currently paying off all that I can and just meeting my minimum payments on everything but I am left with nothing spare each month !!

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 11:38 am
by Oliver
Hello

To be eligible for an IVA or for Bankruptcy you need to be Insolvent.

To be Insolvent you will have neither the assests to pay your debts off (eg, home equity etc...) or the disposable income (this is your total income less all your reasonable living costs (food, travel clothing etc....) and your rent / mortgage), to afford to meet your monthly creditor payments.





Best Regards
Oliver

Thomas Charles and Co Ltd.
Experts in personal debt solutions.
Read customer feedback at: www.thomascharles.com/about_us.asp

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 11:39 am
by aguise
Hi Adrian I was not in arrears just as you when I applied for mine. Give emore details of income and expenditure and others will advise. Make sure you include all living costs, how many creditors etc do not include insecured payments to loans and cards just what you need to live . be careful to include everything like dental prescriptions etc, but not for things like holidays just basic living.

Hope that helps

Ang

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 11:42 am
by MelanieGiles
Hi Adrian

As you are paying minimal contractual payments, then you are not insolvent so an IVA is not possible. Try to go through your household budget to see if any savings can be made to enable you to increase your payments to creditors and thus repay the debts earlier.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 11:52 am
by MelanieGiles
Adrian

You need to sit and work out your financial budget without taking account of debt repayments and then see what is left. You must include a share of the houeshold bills, as your girlfriend cannot be expected to keet you. If the balance is lower than your minimum contractual payments, then you may be insolvent and could look at proposing an IVA.

How much are your debts in total?

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 12:01 pm
by MelanieGiles
Adrian

As I said - you need to work out a household budget without taking account of debt repayments - for me to be able to advise you further. What disposable income will you have left after taking account of all household and personal expenses, including your CSA payment, and how much are you paying to your creditors each month?

Just a point on the CSA payment - how many children are you supporting, as the maximum you are paying should be no more than £325 for 3 children or more.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 12:11 pm
by MelanieGiles
For two children, you should only be paying £260 unless you have arrears to clear.

If you have no disposable income, then clearly neither an IVA or a debt management programme would work for you. Are you sure you have no disposable income, because at the moment you are paying debts? Where is this money coming from, apart from the fact that you are not giving your partner anything towards the rent?

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 12:20 pm
by MelanieGiles
Sorry Adrian, but you are missing the point. You need to work out your household and personal expenditure - ie that what you need to pay, rather than what you are paying now, and then see what is left for debt repayments. You should then compare that to the minimum contractual payments required to see if you are insolvent.

I suggest that you contact a debt management company directly, who will perhaps be able to explain this to you a little better, and take you through the steps required to calculate your disposable income.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Tue Apr 17, 2007 9:17 pm
by jamesfalla
Adrian

Loads of people enter into IVAs where they have not missed monthly payments. The question is how are you maintaining these. If you are robbing Peter to pay Paul each month to ensure that the payments are maintained, then you can be pretty sure that you do not really have anough money to pay your creditors and you can consider an IVA

James Falla

Expert in IVA, Bankruptcy and informal Debt Management solutions for over 10 years.

For more information visit www.jamesfalla.com and visit my blog at: http://jamesfalla.blogs.iva.co.uk

Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2007 8:02 am
by aguise
Hi Adrian
Add up all of your bills for the month council tax elec,gas,food,csa, eveything except the debt repayments, you should add some for rent as well as it is acceptable that you should be paying it. Then take this from your basic monthly wage and what is left is your disposable income,if there is not enough left to pay your debts then you are insolvent. Therefore this is the amount you would have to pay towards an iva.

It can be quite confusing when you dont understand so have another go and post your result.

Ang

Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:25 am
by Adam Davies
Hi
Just to add that I was in the same boat having paid all my debts on time but as James points out I was simply using credit to pay credit.
There are alot of people in this position but at the end of the day you are insolvent and unless you have a windfall or similar in the horizon then you need to address the situation sharpish.
Regards

Andy Davie
IVA.co.uk Spokesperson and site manager
(aka Neverending)

Please check out my blog: http://andydavie.blogs.iva.co.uk

View my profile here:
http://www.iva.co.uk/andy_davie_profile.asp

Posted: Wed Apr 18, 2007 9:57 pm
by Sopty
Hi,
I too was in the same situation, I had not missed a single payment, but I was using one card to pay another, and it could not carry on long term. My salary would not pay the bills and the cards I was using where getting too there limit very quickly. Getting advice early, and looking at my options where the best thing i ever did.


Cheers, Mark.

IVA accepted, so 60 months to go!!

My one bit of advice, if I can do it, so can you!

View my IVA story blog at: http://sopty.blogs.iva.co.uk