0800 043 5133

Maximising income

At Debt Advice we speak to 100's of people every day who are struggling with their finances and debts. Sometimes all you might need is a review of your household income and expenses to see where you can get the most from your income. There are ways to minimse income and lower debts before having to resort to drastic measures or seeking a debt solution.

Get the most from your income

Read some helpful hints and tips below on how to get the most from your income. If you feel that your income is already stretched to it's limit and you are struggling with debt repayments, then please get in touch.

Fill in the form on this page or call freephone 0800 043 5133 for confidential, no obligation advice.

Get debt advice

Cut added expenses

There might be ways to save money towards your income by analysing your outgoings each month. It is worth taking the time out to do a full budget analysis and work out exactly where your money is going. When you write out a budget you might find ways to cut back on simple costs such as cutting back on takeaways and eating out, or restricting that expensive coffee a few times a week. Small cut backs like this could help make a substantial monthly saving when money is tight. Fill in our Debt Calculator to get more of an idea of where your money is going each month. Click here to review your budget.

Part time or Extra Work

Temporary part-time work and extra hours is one way of improving income. (All within reason of course). It isn't uncommon for people nowadays to have some form of second job to give their income a boost. If you are in a job where extra hours are going, you could have a monthly boost to your income by even working as little as a few extra hours each week.

If there are no extra hours available in your work, depending on your contract, you could get a second part-time job. Like extra hours a part time job can bring in some extra cash.

Benefits

Are you getting the right benefits for your living situation? It is always worth reviewing as you may be entitled to benefits that you are not claiming. Many people are unaware of their eligibility or exactly what they are entitled to. There are independent, free and anonymous benefits calculators available, which could help you work out what benefits you are entitled to. Click the links below to acces the calculators.

UK Benefits Calculator

Northern Ireland Benefits Calculator

reducing your debts

Use extra income to pay off debts

By freeing up your income in other areas, i.e. part-time work or selling unwanted goods, you may have more disposable income left over to pay extra towards your contracted debt repayments, getting them cleared sooner. Paying off higher interest debts before lower ones can be advantageous.

Use savings to pay off debts

If you have savings and also have lots of debt, it may be more beneficial to use some of the savings to pay off some/all of the debt, especially if you are paying high interest and charges on the debts. This should help you get the debts paid off quicker. You can then use the left over disposable income to put towards savings when the debts are cleared.

Reducing your Overdraft

An overdraft can be one of those debts that can have you stuck in a cycle of repayments every month. Once you start using an overdraft, you could get into a habit of relying on it every month. A good tip for paying off your overdraft is to lower it little by little each month. You can contact your bank and tell them to lower the overdraft by X amount and not to increase it again without your permission. Depending on the size of the overdraft and the amount you can reduce it by each month, this might be a slow process and requires effort every month with the bank, but slowly weans you off the dependancy of the money.

The above tips might require a lot of effort and determination but the feeling you will get from knowing that you are working your way to becoming debt free will be great. If however, you feel your debts are too unmanageable and the tips above are not helpful, you might need some advice on how you can address teh debts. There are debt solutions available that can help you get out of debt. If your debts are getting out of control and you need some help, contact us at Debt Advice. Give us a call on 0800 043 5133 or fill in the form on this page and one of our debt advisers will get in touch..

Selling Unwanted goods

A great way to earn some extra income is to do a clear out in your home and de-clutter all the things that you haven't used or worn in a while. If you are realistic about your unwanted stuff, you might find that you will have a lot of "money-making" stuff to clear. You can sell almost anything nowadys; books, clothing, furniture, games, toys, collectibles, records and more... And there are many different methods of selling; car boot sales, auctions, online sites suchs as vinted, ebay, amazon, etc...

You could make hundreds, even more, which can go towards paying off your debts. If you are struggling with your debts, or simply want to talk to someone about your options, contact us at Debt Advice. Phone us on 0800 043 5133 or fill in the form on this page.

Need help with your debts?

If you need some help and advice on how to deal with unaffordable debts, click the button below and fill in our contact form. One of our advisors will then contact you to discuss your options.

I need advice