What ‘debt advice’ could a debt adviser offer?

28 November 2008

Lots of organisations offer debt advice, but what form could that ‘debt advice’ actually take – and would it really help someone in debt? Let’s look at just two of the many areas where a debt adviser could help you manage your debts more effectively.

Debt advice – on keeping a budget

In general, calculating your monthly income is easy – you just add up whatever salary and benefits you receive in a month.

When it comes to spending, however, it’s nowhere near as straightforward. Some things (like rent / mortgage, gas, electricity & council tax) may be easy to calculate, but what about petrol, clothes, food, phone bills? And what about the ‘mystery spending’ – the bits of money that just seem to disappear throughout the month?

The right debt advice can help you learn to track your spending and account for every penny. Once you know where the money’s going, it’ll be far easier to plan ahead – and identify where you’re wasting money that could go towards paying off your debts faster!

Debt advice – on negotiating

Lenders do know that people’s circumstances can change. If you’re no longer able to keep up with your debt repayments, you can get in touch, explain, and ask them (for example) to consider accepting smaller payments for a while.

Before you do, though, it’s worth getting some debt advice. The right debt advice could help you state your case the right way, so your lenders understand ‘where you’re coming from’ and can see that what you’re suggesting really is the most realistic way of repaying what you owe.

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