Possibly not what you want to hear, but my best advice would be to tell your parents. I went into my Trust Deed with similar fears, but found it was a relief to get it off my chest and my parents were really supportive. I would imagine it would have been a lot more stressful trying to cover things up for four years!

The rest of your family don't need to know. Again I was really worried about someone seeing me on the register, but now look back and realise it would be extremely unlikely anyone would ever come across it unless they were specifically looking for it.

Your dream of owning a house obviously goes on the back burner for now. It's not really anyone else's business why though. Getting a mortgage isn't always easy even for people with good credit, so just tell people you are waiting until you are really ready and in a position to get the house you really want- that isn't all that far from the truth anyway.

Hope that helps, and good luck.

Welcome to the forum Tinkerbellxx.

I hope that sharing the way that you're feeling as helped to take a little weight off your shoulders. Many people who have posted here in the forum over a long period of time have expressed very similar thoughts, guilt and embarrassment are two themes that come up frequently for very understandable reasons.

From a cold (debt advisory) perspective it looks like you're doing exactly the right thing according to what you have written. Continuing as you are will only take you further away from your personal goals and the expectations of your family. Acting to deal with the debts will begin to open up the possibilities you're aiming for at a future point.

Regarding the Register, as TheShadow has written it's incredibly unlikely that anyone is going to stumble into your entry there. You'd have to know that the Register exists, why it exists, and then consciously go looking for a person's details on it. Most people won't even know that it exists.

Hi Tinkerbellxx,

Well done reaching out for help and advice to deal with your debts. This is often the hardest step to take and I think you’re making a brave decision to deal with your debts head on rather than continue struggling for years and years.

People don’t realise how common having debt is as it’s still a very private and personal subject and people don’t tend to talk about finances. You’d be surprised how many people enter into Trust Deeds, Sequestration or a Debt Arrangement Scheme and the others that we don’t know about who take out consolidation loans or re-mortgage their house to clear debts. Payplan and Stepchange two big organisations have reported a significant increase in the number of enquires they receive for debt advice and it’s set to continue so I think It’s the way of the world now. Try not to beat yourself up too much.

If you have £18,000 of debts and after making the repayments you are left with very little to survive on then you need to do something and a Trust Deed can be a very effective way to deal with unmanageable debts as it’s only 4 years.

Everyone always starts off with a consolidation loan thought but as you have seen the cost of the interest can be huge and you are taking £18,000 and turning this into £30,000. I think you have made the right choice not proceeding down this route.

Buying a house and becoming a homeowner is still possible and if you are focused enough then it will happen but it will just take a couple of extra years. You are doing the right thing taking 1 step backwards to enable you to move forward as you could struggle on for the next 5-10 years trying to pay the debts, balance transferring and not being able to save a deposit. TheShadow makes some good points about reasons why you are waiting etc. You can tell people you are saving a bigger deposit for the house that you want. A bigger deposit normally means a better interest rate and smaller mortgage payment so makes sense.

The hardest thing will be opening up to your parents and it’s only a decision you can make. I’ve often read on the forum from people in a similar situation to yours who have kept everything private from friends or family but once they have opened up the support they have received has been excellent. As a parent myself all I can think about is supporting my children as much as I can and you may be surprised at your parents reaction and support.

It’s extremely unlikely that someone will see your details on the register of insolvencies. It’s only people who work in this field or people who have been through a similar process and know about the register. A google search will not bring up details of your Trust Deed either so don’t worry about that.

When you say you are a couple of days away from receiving papers have you actually met with anyone face to face? I think it’s always a good idea to meet the advisor and firm that will handle everything for you for the next 4 years. You also want to ensure that you receive everything in writing regarding your payments, the timescale and also how long after you make your final payment for you to receive your discharge. From following the forum some firms will do this quickly within weeks and others can take months. You want to receive your discharge as quickly as possible when you complete all of your payments.

I do believe you are doing the right thing and after a couple of months being in a Trust Deed I’m positive you will start to feel the benefit and financially a little better.

I hope this helps to give you some reassurance.

Hi Tinkerbellxx

It sounds like you just need a bit of reassurance that you are doing the right thing. It certainly sounds like you are from what you have told us, though it is obviously hard to say without knowing your situation in more detail. Any of he experts on the site would be happy to take the time to look at things more closely for you if you so wish.

If it is of any comfort to you, from my many years of dealing with people in a similar situation I would say that where you currently are is the hardest part - ie not yet in a solution and fearful about how things may unfold. You should feel the weight lift off your shoulders once you get your chosen solution up and running and realise that you can live comfortably enough and get clear of your debts within a reasonable period of time.

You'll be surprised how quickly you get to the other end and can really start saving quickly to buy that dream house!

Hi Tinkerbell,

You are doing the right thing. As you say the option to turn 18k debt into 30k is the wrong thing to do. I'm 3 years 6 months into my Trust deed, It's went quickly, I'm now dreaming of freedom and having my own house further down the line. The big benefit is no more phone calls and letters from creditors, You then sleep better at night, Your whole life just gets better. When you start it's like day 1 of a new life, No more lies just slowly building for a better future, You can email me on rickyshepherd@hotmail.co.uk if you want to discuss further. All the best. Its the right thing to do

A nice encouraging post np785641d and thanks for sharing your story to reassure Tinkerbellxx.

Do you have 4 months / payments to go in your own Trust Deed? Remember to chase up that Form 5 Certificate of Discharge once you complete your payments.

i make my last payment 22nd March, It's amazing how nervous you get as the end gets nearer.