Know where you stand

Joe and Lesley are a middle-aged home-owning couple from Brecon with four children. Between them, they earn just over £2,000 a month.

Joe and Lesley have always been fairly blasé about money, generally spending what and when they want. They have never done a proper budget in the past, and not having a handle on their finances has largely caused their current situation. They have mortgage arrears of over £3,000, and arrears on a loan secured against their house of approaching £1,000. As a result, they are running significant risk of repossession.

When John and Lesley contacted CCCS, the charity drew up a budget for them and advised them to make payment offers of £100 per month over 28 months towards their mortgage and £50 over 12 months towards their secured loan. Both lenders they were indebted to agreed, enabling the couple to embark on a Debt Management Plan. Once their secured loan and mortgage arrears have been cleared, the flexibility of their DMP then means they will be able to increase their DMP payments to tackle outstanding credit card debts, and be debt free within a reasonable timeframe.