I am 21 and in £18,000 worth of dept can any one suggest how i could pay it off faster?

Question

I am 21, when i turned 18, i had the time of my life for about 12 months just spending money on things i wanted to do and i racked up £18.000 worth of dept on visa's, loans and getting things on finance but now my life is ruined, since i was 19 ive been paying out about £700 a month and thats the minimum payments for everything and i only earn very little over that!!! can anyone suggest what i should do????

Answer 1

wow dude, that's massive. anyway,im trying out this online business and it might help. check out this link and sign up and give it a go. at least give it a try for 7 days. http://www.freedom.ws/roycalvin/index.dhtml

Answer 2

You need help. The best help is out there in the form of a company called PayPlan. They are totally free and the all the banks, credit card companies actually pay them to help their customers get on the straight and narrow again with their finances.

They will do a complete breakdown of all your creditors, contact them for you and set up a repayment plan which you can afford. They get all of your creditors to freeze all interest on what you owe. You will not have to anywhere near the £700 per month you are currently paying. One thing though when you start a debt managment programme like this you cannot under any circumstances apply for more credit ( not that you want any more ) if you do it can be classed as fraud.

Do not consolidate your credit into another loan, you are asking for trouble, contatc payplan and do it sensibly with them. They are there to help you and their services are totally free unlike the companies that advertise on the tv.

They will take your income, then take out all your living costs and what is left they distribute to your creditors. you must keep up with the payments and do as PayPlan tell you. You pay payplan by standing order and then they send it to your creditors, and while you keep paying no charges or interest will be added to your accounts

Go for it, and get debt free and be happy... Good Luck

Answer 3

Youve got a couple of choices. Either try to consolidate all of your debts into one loan with a lower apr so that you will definately be debt free in a few years. If you decide to do this and you are not a homeowner you will have to shop around a lot to get a decent rate and find somebody who could lend you that much. A company like Tenant Loans will do the shopping around for you and can guarantee to find the best rate avaliable for you.

http://www.tenantloansonline.com

Alternatively look at debt management or even an IVA. It will affect your credit rating and mean that you can't get any more credit but you will be paying only what you can afford.

For a free chat with a debt advisor try Debt Line at

http://www.debt-line.org.uk

Answer 4

First and foremost, contact all your debtors. Let them know of your situation. Tell them the truth.
Request for your accounts to be stopped/suspended. This way, you are not piling on interest, you are not able to pay. It will also mean, you cannot use your cards no more. The best way.
Offer them an amount you can afford to pay comfortably.
But there are alternatives, if you feel you are not able to do this on your own.
Engage the services of a debt management person. Your bank maybe the best place to approach.
If they have given you the loan, talk to them....they will have the answer.
You can always switch lender later on once it's set up to get a better interest rate.
Go on. Don't delay. Don't ignore either....you'll be burried b4 you live.

Answer 5

if you do consolidate your debt, i.e put all your balances of cards etc into one loan. Then make sure you cut up all the credit cards and store cards and set yourself a budget. I personally wouldn't go to any debit management firms as in the end of the day they cost more money, try contacting the CAB (Citizens Advice Bureau) for some free advice.

Also sell some stuff and cut down on those luxuries, do you really need a mobile phone, car, a computer!, etc. it will be really hard, but you need to be tough with yourself. trust me I've been there as well! but in 2 or 3 years time it will be worth it!

Answer 6

Do not consolidate your debt into a larger loan. Speak to an organisation called Credit Action. I have copied a link to their web site below.

I have been in debt, more than I could afford, too. It takes a lot of pain and commitment to get out of it, but if you can do it your life will be totally your own again. It really is worth it. I wish you the very best of success.

Answer 7

I would seriously consider speaking to your bank to borrow money to settle all your debts in one hit (if it's at all possible to pay of your finance, credits etc early - sometimes there is a penalty). And then agree a sensible repayment scheme with your bank. Don't be afraid to shop around - but only reputable banks. Do not borrow money from private individuals, friends, loan sharks etc. Banks respect honestly, and if you haven't defaulted on a payment up till now your credit is good.

Answer 8

Go to your Local council and ask for appointment with there Debt councillor. They will prepare an income and expenditure form and sent it to all companies you are due money to. Your priority debts are rent, council tax, gas, elec, TV, These are your debts which you can be jailed for. Don't worry about paying credit cards etc off. Please don't use a private debt councillor, am in Scotland so law might be slightly different. Never agree to there offer of £1.00 a month, your admitting liability of being able to pay

Answer 9

silly boy, just seen all that credit huh and just thought you go mad silly boy, it will haunt you for a while now, i bet you cant get credit now shame, my solution do sum time in the nick 6 months should cover it, and remember dont pick the soap up when you drop it in the shower room, na honest just pay what you can £700 a month only means you have a relaxed life for a couple of years, i cant see any bank giving you the money to pay that off you would need a big income for a loan that size from the bank, myby phone sum of that comapnys you see on T.V they take on the debt and your monlthy payment will be less, just means it will take longer to pay off, and learn from this when you do pay it off dont go mad again, but for now those letter's just keep coming though the door lol

Answer 10

check through all debt counselling agencies before going any further, there are ones who take a big fee and others who genuinely help. I have a friend who initially paid £42 per week for the first twelve weeks now her payment is down to £11 per week. yes it takes time to clear it but they have been really good and because she had been a student were very sympathetic. good luck

Answer 11

1) Look at your loan terms, in what ways can you pay less interest on the loans?
-Find credit cards that do balance transfers at 0%for x many months and transfer existing debt to these cards(closing old credit cards).
-Look on the net/newspapers for loans that have a lower interest rate than your current ones and use these to pay off current loans. Then you'll be paying less interest on your debt.
2)Sell your assets that aren't absolutly necessary to live on ebay/car boot sales etc. Put this money into a savings account with the best interest rate you can get. Use this money to make repayments monthly if you are able to get a 0% interest deal(or an interest rate that is lower that you savings account interest rate). If you can't get a 0% deal then don't bother with a savings account you need to pay back money on the high interest loans fast!
3) Speak to the companies/banks that have given you the loans and explain your situation, they may offer you a longer term/less to to pay the loan off each month than you previously agreed.
4) Prioritise you debt. Pay off the loans that have the high interest quicker than those with low interest rates. Pay the minimum amount on 0% credit cards until the 0% term ends and focus on loans that have medium-high interest rates in the meantime.
5) Can you ask family to help, it may be better for you to get a loan from parents and pay them back than have to pay high interest rates on you own loans you took out?
6) Is there anyone in your family that can help you go over your finances and advice you?
7)Set yourself a monthly budget so you know exactly how much you need to spend on paying back loans each month and make sure you have that amount. The last thing you need is to accrue more debt in charges from your bank because you have gone overdrawn(unauthorised).
8)Accept that your lifestyle will have to be minimal for a few years until you are in a position of "managable debt". Consider moving back home where rent should be cheaper and don't spend money that isn't necessary, your food budget for one person should be £15 per week, shop as ASDA and buy smart price stuff like cheese, beans, potatoes. Buy things that can be used to make a few meals like a whole chicken and frozen cod. Consider selling you car and doing a lift share to work with a work mate(you can advertise for this, people like doing this as it saves them petrol money).
9) See if you can earn more money by getting extra hours at work or getting a second job in the evenings, like bar work a couple of evenings a week.


Take all the advice you can, speak free to Citizens Adice Bureau and some financial advisors offer free advice clinics once a month. Look up help, but beware of companies that offer to consolidate your debt but have high interest rates.

Ask yourself why you go into debt in the first place, self-esteem issues?, unhappy childhood, overprotective parents? It sounds silly, but there is a pyschological reason why you have allowed yourself to get into so much debt and if you can address this you wont find yourself in this situation again.

Also your bank may suggest you consider declaring yourself bankrupt, though this may seem like an easy way out of your debt it will have ramifications for your future, like credit ratings and getting a mortgage later in life. So this is really a last ditch attempt.

And dont be too down about this, worst things happen and its really good that you know what you are in and you're getting yourself out of it by asking for help. Loads of us get into debt and its just another lesson from the university of life. You'll be over this completly in a few years time if you put your mind to it, its one to tell the grandkids!

I'll be thinking of you, best of luck

Rach