Welcome to the forum linb.

How much do you pay into your trust deed each month?

I'm not sure how a Trust Deed would have been possible with the information provided. From the information, the debts would be shown as £10k and the assets £25k plus 36 x the contribution. This would make you very solvent and I can't see how this would not have been picked up by the AIB or creditors.

Mark

Hi

Was the equity situation assessed before you signed the trust deed? As Mark says, a trust deed would seem to be wholly inappropriate in these circumstances.

i pay £97 a month to my trust deed.
The equity was discussed before signing but no official valuation was sought on the property. I gave approx figures for valuation of homes in the area and he took my outstanding mortgage figures. The 'salesman' advised i was borderline for qualifying for a trust deed and since i was already in a debt management plan he would be able to set me up for a trust deed as i would be unable to obtain a remortgage due to being in the plan and that this would be the sole reason for qualifying for the trust deed. He never explained anything about equity, only that due to being in debt management i would be unable to release the equity in my home.
The paper work supplied to myself from the company to sign shows a box for an equity release figure and this is marked with a zero. It simply never occurred to me or was explained to me the implications of equity at the end of the trust deed.
I also made them aware that my mortgage would finish 4 months prior to my trust deed but this did not present a problem.
I am now feeling rather foolish !

Hi linb.

I'm really sorry that you have found yourself in this position.

The comment about qualifying for a trust deed because you're in a debt management plan and cannot remortgage is a total nonsense I'm afraid.

Failing to inform you about how trust deeds work with equity when you are a homeowner is absolutely outrageous.

Can I ask what age you'll be when the trust deed ends?

Also, does the individual "salesman" work for the company that set up your trust deed?

Do you still have that piece of paperwork with the equity amount "zero" written on it?

i will be 51 when the trust deed ends.
i still have the original paperwork with the zero estimated equity release written on it and the checklist showing the paperwork supplied which confirms no valuation submitted for the house.
The salesman was not directly employed by creditfix, his business card gave both his company name and credifix's name.
I cant help but think that i will be in a worse position when the trust deed ends than i was before it started.

Hi linb.

I had wondered whether an equity release mortgage might have been a possibility to deal with the equity, but they become available at 55 years old.

You may wish to consider making a complaint to the firm that provided what appears to be clearly inappropriate advice to you. If you are unhappy with the response, you should be able to contact the Financial Ombudsman to ask them to look at the matter (this applies to the original adviser rather than the firm of insolvency practitioners).

If this individual has advised you to leave a debt management plan because you cannot remortgage, into a debt solution that appears almost certain to require equity release, they have a major case to answer to. The Financial Ombudsman has the power, where justified, to require firms to put the individual concerned back in the position they were before a problem occured. That could be expensive for the firm concerned, but from your point of view might be one way out of this situation.

For any other homeowners reading, trust deeds can be perfectly workable but the equity situation needs to be fully investigated prior to signing the trust deed. Reputable firms, including those represented here by Mark, Kevin, Shona and Chris, will happily:

1 - Do a valuation before you sign so you know where you stand.

2 - Confirm in writing (before you sign) how any equity that does exist will be dealt with so that you can plan accordingly (or choose another option accordingly).

Thank you for the advice, i will start by writing to the salesman's company and take it from there. i'll let you know how i get on, thank you

Hiya linb

I agree with everything that others have said to you.

I'll add my own personal opinion. I think you have been badly, and deliberately, misled.

Can I ask, when you say that you were in a Debt Management Plan, was that a voluntary thing? Or were you in a Debt Arrangement Scheme?

I'm only asking that because I'm trying to see how far the 'misleading' may have gone.

I'd also suggest that you check who is registered as your trustee. You can do that through the Edinburgh Gazette or on the Register of Insolvencies.

The trustee is supposed to have checked the information provided by the 'salesman'. If your trustee didn't do that, and didn't pick up on the obvious things which the experts have pointed out, then maybe you should complain to your trustee. And to whichever organisation monitors your trustee.

Maui linb

Was the company xs remarketing or red to black by any chance?

Mark

it worries me a bit that you knew that it was xs remarketing,they were so very plausible and helpful !!

the debt management plan was a voluntary arrangement that i arranged myself after a redundancy.
i kind of feel thst i have a lot to sort through now.

Hi linb

I had a post, well posts actually entitled 'Possibly the worst advice ever' Same company, same methods, same advice. Normally it starts will a cold call after.

Mark

it started with cold call, a 45 min call and even in that call i was up front about the equity in my home but was given no info in return on what this would involve. Salesman was so positive that debt management was a waste of time and that trust deed was the best way forward, it would protect my home from debtors forcing a sale and i would be debt free in 4 years. nothing at all about equity, just that having to sell my home after paying a mortgage on it for 21 years would be a pity !
this is actually worse than dealing with the debt in the first place.
Have started the letter writing and see where it goes.

Hi linb

Could you send me your email address via the contact Mark form and I can hopefully give you a bit more guidance as i have quite a few experiences with this company.

Mark