Top 6 Benefits Of IVAs

An Individual Voluntary Agreement (IVA) is a great alternative to filing for bankruptcy. This is a binding agreement made between you and your creditors that they’ll freeze your debt, as long as you pay back some of the sum owed through monthly premiums. After five years, your outstanding debt will be written off, and you’ll only be asked to pay back what you can afford. You’ll need to be indebted by over £10,000 to be eligible for an IVA, and you must have more than two creditors.

Predetermined Period

Don’t you just love the satisfaction of marking down an important day on your calendar? Within five years, you could be debt-free. The best thing is that you know exactly when to look forward to your last payment. Take this time to start cutting up your credit cards or swatting up on spend-thrifty techniques.

Peace Of Mind

Debt is a leading cause of depression. With creditors banging down your door, life becomes stressful. You may be feeling overwhelmed and desperate. An IVA freezes all interest and charges, as well as gets your creditors off your back, leaving you to deal with your debt problems calmly. Your house shouldn’t be threatened either and all court charges should be stopped.

Looking forward to being debt-free also gives you a goal to work towards! That light at the end of the tunnel is a great way to motivate yourself to meet your repayments.

Paying Back

The amount of money you pay back through IVA is agreed with you and is based purely on what you can afford. This means you’ll be able to live reasonably comfortably whilst slowly paying off your debt. This sum won’t increase unless, at your annual review, it’s deemed that you have a higher salary which merits a larger premium. It’s in everyone’s best interests to ask for a sum that you can afford.

Professional Ramifications

When you apply for an IVA, this is a personal issue that won’t go beyond yourself and your creditors. Your professional position will not be affected in the same way that a bankruptcy would damage your career prospects. Nobody needs to know and the IVA will drop off your credit history completely, in six years’ time. For more information on how an IVA will affect you, visit this website for advice.

Paying Less

It’s likely that you won’t be able to pay off the entire debt before your five year contract runs out. This means that you end up paying less to your creditors than you already owe. Before you start feeling too sorry for your creditors (ahem), consider the amount of money they’ve made off your debt already.

Legally Binding

With the law behind you, you have the security you’ve been longing for. As long as you meet your IVA payments, you’re completely protected. Make sure that you talk at length with the financial advisors at your IVA company about the legal requirements of your agreement, so you’re 100% protected.