Hi, my husband and I were advised by step change today to enter into an iva. We jointly currently owe 45000 unsecured debt and have 15 creditors. I make 1300 a month, him 1400. We have 2 kids. Rent privately so our only asset is our car which we pay 154 a month, but they seem to think that will be safe. All in all we pay approx 1500 a month in debt, 725 rent, 480 childcare, 360 food shop. Nothing left for car insurance etc. We havent bought clothes etc for ourselves in ages, just the kids, no hair appts etc and no luxurys. We have been advised our payments for an iva would be approx 421 a month. Does that sound right and does that seem like it would be agreeable to our creditors? I have opened us a basic bank account as our bank is also a creditor
My (ex) wife and I owed around £65k over a dozen creditors and started paying £416 per month, which was accepted by my mix of creditors. Our salaries were broadly similar to yours, but we only had the one child. So, on the face of it, your figures look OK. But, of course, whether the IVA is right for you depends on many things to which we are not privvy. Stepchange will know whether a proposal is worth presenting and would not proceed otherwise.
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
Thats very reassuring. It would honestly change our lives. We already feel a bit giddy with relief that there is light at the end of the tunnel! We ate speaking with an IP in 48 working hours about getting it agreed. Our creditors are:
Barclays
Sainsburies
Tesco
MBNA
AA loans
Santander
Halifax
Ratesetter
Creation Finance
Cant remember who the car is with or the others. Hoping they agree
Was a bit of a shock seeing it all in black and white.
Seems to me that you have t have car insurance and something left for the unexpected. Therefore in my opinion the suggested payment level is too high. It would make good sense to get at least a second opinion.
I agree with Keith -- always a good idea to get other advice -- see who you feel more at ease with.
I found the process easy enought once I had got to grips with the ins and outs and unsertood exactly what I was signing up for -- the supervisor is a referee of sorts ... YOU have to run the IVA to keep things on track. That said, some IP's are better than others at keeping pace.
My opinions are merely that .. opinions based on experience. Always seek professional advice.
IVA Completed 23rd July 2013 .... C.C. 10th January 2014
Have they added in sufficient for all allowable expenditure such as haircuts, dentist, opticians, pharmacy/medications, meals at worketc.
We got a figure from a company for nearly £800 a month.
Went to someone else and ended up paying £265.
Joint income £3000 a month. Debt £48k 3 kids.
First company hadnt told us there were allowances for things i had never had before as couldnt afford hairdresser. Theyd only totted up our bills and direct debits to come up eith figure. If we had gone with them we would have failed.
Get some other figures before committing. Budget has to right from the start to help long term.
I cant afford a hairdresser either. We did a budget thing with step xhange and added all that in but i was scared of putting too much in case it was viewed as a luxury. They are referring us to someone - we in Northern Ireland so duno if its slightly different here. I thought 421 was ok because its so much less but i guess it has to be right.
Realised this morning we didnt put in creation finance or currys your plan so that should hopefully bring it down a bit. We will be having an in depth discussion with the IP via phone in a few days so il mention that. My oldest is about to start p1 so i need to factor in school stuff and my youngest who is currently 1 will start school when we in the iva as well.
Thanks so much i was thinking of the present and not really the future expenses
We had allowances for school
meals, Uniform, Car parking, pets, Clothing.
I hadnt considered all these things. Remember crying when IP asked me about things like having my hair done. It just didnt happen. We paid £1500 a month on credit repayments.
The IVA is whats left over from your income (disposable). Make sure you have considered everything. You are allowed to put unused allowances in a savings account and this is recommended by many IPs and will help towards unexpected outgoings or birthdays/christmas.
You cant have an allowance for xmas but you might have £600 for shopping and only spend £550 one month.
Be sure things like shopping and petrol are true. Its surprising how much food/groceries/sanitary products etc cost!!
We would have failed had we gone with first company we spoke to....our revised budget was generous but within allowed boundaries. It was still a struggle at times (aug and kitting out 3 with uniform ans shoes for example) but you learn to budget, save, say No, look for bargins and plan for furure expenses.
You may find you need to eat Aldi or Lidl or basicis from supermarkets also check out the reduced aisles.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
Definitely speak to a few , I was quoted three possible payments, the lowest being 166 the highest being 375 . It was just me and three children and a helpline said what they'd put forward as expenses was way higher than I was spending but I was cutting back ridiculously on heating , food , clothing . I went with creditfix and I know they have a reputation for being awkward with communication but for me I had no problems, like you I rent, wages stayed the same so no major issues ever arose . Good luck
Personally I think the shopping wuite is low for a couple with 2 small children.
Go through your statements and add up how much you actually spend on shopping bearing in mind things like nappies, wipes etc.
Last figures id seen was £350 for a couple plus £80 for each dependent child as a ballpark figure for shopping.
Clothing £50 a couple plus £18-£20 per child.
You will dind it very difficult to raise budget in future so get those figures right now.
Those little people get bigger over 5 years and might not eat you out of house and home now but they will!
Especially once at school and need uniform, packed lunches etc.
Ive asked to speak to Keith from here, my husand will too. We want to make sure we are doi g the best for us. Im.not so much interested in paying the creditors as little as possible, its getting a viable sustainable iva that wont fail and most importantly has a good chance of being accepted. We have lived beyond our means - hence why we in this mess - but we need out of it now while the boys have no idea. Also it would be nice to think that one day we could be home owners
Absolutely totally agree but the IVA has to be realistic and liveable for 5-6 years.
There are certain levels of allowances depending on size of your family which not all IPs inform you of.
We would have failed within first few months if wed gone with the first company as wanted over £800 a month! We actually only paid £265. And even then it was tight some months.
Hope you get on well chatting to Keith. Once in the IVA it is a huge weight off your shoulders. best thing we did.
Put down everything you spend - your IP will tweak it if necessary.
Sharing from experiences of dealing with debt
The greatness of a man is not in how much wealth he acquires, but in his integrity and his ability to affect those around him positively.
Bob Marley. http://kallis3.blogs.iva.co.uk
