Hi everyone
Great news. My IVA proposal has been accepted! I cannot tell you how happy I am about this. I feel so relieved. I know I was advised not worry about it not being accepted too much but I couldn’t help it.
I did not have any creditors who refused my proposal. The really funny thing was that all of the payday loan companies agreed with my proposal. I cannot really understand this as they have been so threatening and difficult to deal with but there you go. My first payment will be taken from my new Co-op account on the 5th October (after I get paid at the end of this month) and I should have no more phone calls or threatening letters from my creditors.
So now I have to just stick to my living expenses budget and make sure I pay my IVA on time. I have been a bit worried about this as I did run into trouble while I was on my DMP (I ended up taking PayDay loans if you remember) but things should be easier now I only have to pay £180 a month. I am sure I can cover all of my bills and I actually I feel that I will be more comfortable than before. Only time will tell of course but I am determined. Once the IVA payment has been taken from my account what is left is for me to decide how to spend it. There is no restriction to how I distribute my budget as long as I am meeting the IVA payments.
I did ask Sarah at the Insolvency Practitioner’s office about the potential of getting a promotion with a pay rise (I can dream….). She said that if this happens then not all of the extra money I earn will be taken by my creditors. I think that the first 10% of any increase I can keep and then the rest is split 50/50 but I will need to double check this again. The idea is that this acts as an incentive to earn more therefore, benefiting my creditors as well as myself. If there is any increase in my living expenses due to the new job this could be offset against the pay rise although I doubt there would be with this promotion. That’s if I get it!
I will also have legal protection from my creditors now so they cannot issue any more default notices or apply for CCj’s against me which means that my house will be protected from a charging order which i am very happy about as this has been worrying me. Ultimately the one thing I cannot afford to lose is the roof over our heads.
I had not told anyone about my debts but I was so excited about the approval of my IVA I had to tell my closest friend Sharon. She said that I was silly not to tell her about this before as she realises I must have been under a lot of stress for a while now.
I am unable to borrow any more money while in my IVA which frankly is fine by me right now. I could potentially borrow up to £500 with my IP’s approval but this would be under special circumstances and I would be unable to borrow from any high street lender anyway due to my poor credit rating now.
So now I will wait for the 5th October and start to plan my new budget. And one more thing f you are struggling at the moment and are considering an IVA, talk to James at Beat my debt, he will help you decide if it is right for you or not. I cannot thank him enough right now.
I will post again in a few weeks and let you know how things are going.
Sandyx
