Surplus Monthly Income

[patrick.j]

Does anyone know how much of the Surplus Monthly Income would go towards an IVA?

Thank you.

[MelanieGiles]

Hi Patrick - that is an easy one to answer - all of it! But you do need to make sure that you have made sufficient allowance for all known and contingent expenditure. Don't forget car and house maintenance, miscellaneous expenditure and medical provisions.

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[iva_squirrel]

Good morning Patrick,

Melanie is right, you have to pay all of your disposable income which is left after all your expenses. Could you tell us how much your debt is and what the disposable income is?


Kind regards,

Julia Simavi

Shortlisted with special commendation for Debt Counsellor of the Year by Credit Today Awards 2007

View my profile:
http://www.supersonicsquirrel.net/julia ... rofile.asp

Visit my website:
http://www.supersonicsquirrel.net

Credit Today Awards 2007 http://www.credittoday.co.uk/awards/winners.htm

[patrick.j]

Hello Melanie & Julia,

Thanks for your feedback.

Melanie, you mention contingent and miscellaneous expenditure. I'm afraid I'm a bit naive about all of this - there isn't any heading for either of these allowances on the expenditure form; have you any guidance on this please?

Julia, my wife and I have joint unsecured debts of approx. £96,000 and our disposable income stands at £1250, although I think we could claim other allowances (although I'm not sure what), especially as my wife has Parkinson's and other health issues and receives maximum Disability Allowance.

My income also includes overtime and car mileage, although there are some months when I'll get neither. My last three payslips, which my IP has asked for, show total OT for the three months of £757 and car mileage of £300; however, I know that for the next two months I won't get either. I cannot really predict when OT will be available. On this basis, should I tell my IP that OT isn't regular, even though she has put it down as regular?

Just a bit of extra info: I am 63 in November and my wife is 63 and retired. I have spoken to my emplyer and expect to carry on working beyond 65.

I would just like to say that I find this forum very enlightening and everyone is so helpful - I wish I'd found it sooner!

I appreciate your support.

Best wishes,

Patrick

[MelanieGiles]

Hi Patrick

I always include £50 for miscellanous expenditure, and you will need to consider what you should allow for general household and appliance maintenance and repair, medical expenses - dental work, sight tests and prescriptions, car maintenance and any other expenditure which is not paid regularly but nevertheless is paid at some point during the year. What guidance has your IP given in this regard?

Do you have a property or any other assets which might be at risk under bankruptcy proceedings? If not, are you sure than bankruptcy is not a better option for you given your ages and limited working life remaining? What effect will retirement have on your earnings?

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[patrick.j]

Hello Melanie,

Thanks for your reply, which is really appreciated - my word you work late!

My IP works for Grant Thornton and so far I have spoken to her for about 40mins during one phone call. From what I understood, my IP said that there were standard amounts for the allowances that you mention (apart from miscellaneous expenses, which weren't mentioned), and she filled these in on the expenditure form that she emailed to me; this is the extent of the guidance I have had so far -do you think I should question these?

I have always viewed banckruptcy with trepidation; I will need to talk to my employer to see if it would affect my employment, as I work in the public sector.

Thank you for your support.

Best wishes,

Patrick.

Hi Patrick

I always include £50 for miscellanous expenditure, and you will need to consider what you should allow for general household and appliance maintenance and repair, medical expenses - dental work, sight tests and prescriptions, car maintenance and any other expenditure which is not paid regularly but nevertheless is paid at some point during the year. What guidance has your IP given in this regard?

Do you have a property or any other assets which might be at risk under bankruptcy proceedings? If not, are you sure than bankruptcy is not a better option for you given your ages and limited working life remaining? What effect will retirement have on your earnings?

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[MelanieGiles]

Hi Patrick

I am not a big fan of standard allowances - I believe that you should disclose what you actually spend in an IVA proposal, in which case it will probably run its course. My own statistics demonstrate this to be so - we return a higher than average return to creditors generally, and over 95% of our IVAs run their course to the end. There is a lesson in there I feel.

Too many IVAs are failing at the moment because of unrealistic expenditure limits set by creditors, and hence IP firms following on this methodology. I would put down what you actually spend - and if the creditors don't like it they will say so!

Regards, Melanie Giles, Insolvency Practitioner for over 20 years.

For further details contact me at http://www.melaniegiles.com and view my IVA blog at: http://melaniegiles.blogs.iva.co.uk

[Adam Davies]

Hi Patrick
I must agree with Melanie.
You need to be sure that your expenditure is totally realistic because once your IVA is agreed it is extremely difficult to get the payments reduced in the early years and there are no end of posts on this forum from people who are a few months into their IVA and finding it hard.
Be careful in putting overtime down if it is not guaranteed and regular.You would be best to just quote your basic figure and pay 50% of overtime over to your IP as and when you earn it.Also your mileage payments would be cancelled out by the expense that you have incurred for them so I would not put that down as income.Just put your normal mileage that you can,t claim down on your expenditure.
Regards


Andy Davie
IVA.co.uk Spokesperson

About me:
http://www.iva.co.uk/andy_davie_profile.asp

IVA Helpline: 0800 197 4838
http://www.iva.co.uk/iva_helpline.asp

[aguise]

Hi Patrick I agree with Andy
Your income should be based on your basic incomes any overtime etc should be paid at the usual 50%, so dont include the overtime in your disposable, it may not be there for ever.

Ang


Please visit my blog at http://aguise.blogs.iva.co.uk/

[patrick.j]

Thank you one and all for your advice, which I have found extremely useful and better than I was receiving from my IP.

On the strength of this I have visited Melanies site for representation and guidance, and have got a telephone interview tomorrow evening.

Best Regards,
Patrick

[james.c]

i agree with melaine, the point of an iva is to pay back as much money as to creditors as possible, and therefore the expenditure should be true to your circumsances and not be a standard format, but i belive like it as already been said there should be some money just ib case something happens, number 1 chances are something will go wrong in 5 years and number 2 if it goes wrong and theirs no money to one side, the iva could fail, but just for the record i do understand 70% of iva's do succed

no matter how bad money gets, theirs stll alot more important things in life

[lily]

Hi Patrick

I just wanted to say, how can income and expenditure be standard, you will need contingency fund, and you should make sure everything is covered. IVA should be individual and I always struggle to understand the 'fornat' when working these things out. Its obvious that you are going to have totally different needs than someone in thier 20's and with your wife's problems its just got to be individual.

Its sounds like youre at the very beggining of the process. If this is so, why not ring a couple more companies just to compare and contrast.

Good luck, we will always be here for you.

lily

[james.c]

i agree thats why it is indvidiual

no matter how bad money gets, theirs stll alot more important things in life