Being in debt is hard enough, but when you have a family to look after things can be much worse. Children are expensive, even if you're living on a budget. Just running a household with children in it is more expensive than living by yourself or even as part of a couple, but take into consideration birthdays, Christmas, school trips, uniforms and out-of-school activities and it soon mounts up. Buying for your children could contribute to your debts, but they will also suffer if you have to declare yourself bankrupt, or your home is repossessed.

How to protect your family

If you can, avoid losing your home. A repossession order will obviously mean that your home will be taken away from you, and if you are declared bankrupt, it is likely that your home will be sold in order to raise enough money to clear your debts. Either way, you are disrupting your family, and studies have shown that repossession can have a long-term negative effect on those who go through it. Instead, look for a solution that allows you to keep your home and keep control over your finances. An Individual Voluntary Arrangement is an alternative to bankruptcy that could work for you and your family.

An Individual Voluntary Arrangement for your family

An IVA allows you to strike a deal with your creditors. If they agree, you can pay them a monthly amount, interest-free, for a period of five years. At the end of this period, your debts will be considered as cleared. If you can, look at your income and your spending so that you can pay this monthly amount without having to sell your house. This will allow you and your family to avoid disruption and lets you concentrate on clearing your debts a bit at a time. You know exactly how much you have to pay each month, so you can budget accordingly, whilst making sure that you don't repeat your debt problems once the Individual Voluntary Arrangement term has finished. If your family is your primary concern, speak to an IVA specialist today about whether this solution can work for you all.

Varden Nuttall has been established for over 15 years and is dedicated to helping people in financial difficulty find an insolvency solution through an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA). Employing 90 people, including trained and skilled IVA administrators, we are one of the largest IVA companies in the UK and handle over 3% of all IVA applications. To find out more about the company, or to make an appointment to talk about putting an IVA in place, call us today on 0800 031 9802 or fill in our online enquiry form.