I met with a husband and wife a few weeks ago in Chatham. They told me they were interested in filing a consumer proposal. We reviewed their debts in detail so I could look at the historic voting pattern of their creditors in order to formulate a payment plan.
My next step was to review their budget. When I asked if they had written out their budget I was met with blank stares. That’s ok, I said, we can write it out together. The questions I asked them were the same questions I ask everyone such as rent, food, gasoline, utilities. When we added up all of the expenses, not surprisingly, they were $200 overbudget. I explained to them that meant they were spending $200 each month than they brought home. They then realized that each month they were taking cash advances from their line of credit or credit cards in order to pay for their living expenses. They were then using one form of credit to make the minimum payment on the other credit.
My first assignment to them was to go home and review their budget in detail to get it balanced (the expenses total the income). The next step then is to cut the budget even further to make sure they could afford a consumer proposal.
They came back to see me yesterday with a new and improved budget and showed me how much they could afford to pay each month towards a consumer proposal. They are scheduled to sign the documents to file the consumer proposal next week.
If you find you are having difficulties paying your bills call me at 519-351-2323 and we can review your situation in detail.
