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Mark felt let down by his lenders but through asking for support and getting his business back on track, he’s come a long way

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Mark ran a cleaning business on and off for nearly 18 years, but it was challenging. He faced issues like customers who wouldn’t pay, unpredictable contracts and increasing price of supplies and equipment.  

 “You don’t want to feel that you’re failing, you have the plan, you have the wife and children to support, which is why the pressure was all on me.  

 “Unfortunately, the industry that I’m in, it’s only typically a five-year contract and that’s what we tender. 

 “It seemed like no matter how hard I tried I just couldn’t get ahead. I worked every hour I could.  

 Mark found Way Forward after trying to sort out repayment plans with his creditors. Mark started working with Way Forward Hardship Advocate Paula.   

 “Paula basically did what I’ve been trying to do. It’s amazing how she got in contact with them and she was able freeze the interest, work at a payment plan.  

 “It was such a weight off my shoulders. My mood improved. Before, you were just working to serve a debt. Now, you can look to the future with new hope and optimism.  

 “It was swallowing your pride, admitting, you need help.  But once you overcome that, then you listen to Paula and Co. and she was a great listener. 

 “My whole demeanor has changed. I’m much more optimistic. I’ve secured a full-time job within the company. The money’s coming in a bit better again now and having my outgoings reduced considerably. We can live again.  

 “I can actually take the wife out for a meal now, and the children. So that’s nice. 

 Mark feels like having his debt in a manageable state restored his confidence.  

 “When you haven’t got the confidence, you feel a failure. You don’t want to push yourself to get to do anything. But when you probably get your confidence back, things are dropping into place.  

 “If you need a bit of assistance, it’s out there. Put your pride to one side, get that help because there’s always someone that knows more than what you do.   

 “We put ourselves in that spot by borrowing the money, so you do have to pay it back. It should be a reasonable amount though. 

 “Every time there is a rate cut by the RBA, interest rates should come down and credit card interest rates should come down accordingly.  

 Mark had trouble understanding the terms and conditions, which impacted his experience borrowing money and he saw merit in writing these up in plain language. He refers to a campaign in the UK called The Plain English Campaign, which aimed do achieve just that.  

 “You need to have a lawyer’s degree to understand [the terms and conditions]. That’s what confuses so many people.” 

 Mark is happy with his financial situation but acknowledges the losses along the way that have made it difficult.  

 “I’ve always owned houses. I bought my first house at 21. Now what 58. I’m ok with rentals but I do miss having my own home. My wife encouraged me to sell the house to pay off our debts to reduce the stress on our family, because this has led to me having a breakdown previously. 

 “I thought I had everything planned years ago, that I would be semi–retired by 50, have my own house, and everyone paid off. 

 “At least I look forward to the future. I’ve got a little bit of money behind me now. I’ve got enough to buy things.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

Angeline knew she was in trouble when she couldn’t afford groceries even though she earned a decent wage

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Angeline has a job and earned a good wage, however, she made a few financial mistakes that got her into a level of debt she was unable to pay off.   

“I just got too involved in credit cards. In the end, I had no money. It was the biggest mistake that I ever made. It’s so easy to get them.  

“I got into strife earning frequent flyer points. I had enough to go to LA, when I could have saved for a holiday.  

Realistically, I didn’t have money for it. Looking back, they also had the highest interest rates.”   

She then took out a personal loan to pay for my credit card debt.  

“At some point, I refinanced my home loan to keep my house and cover my debts. Because of that, I lost the home loan equity, which could have been used for better things – like renovations in my home.   

“The scariest thing – you can see your debt going up, but you just can’t stop spending, thinking one day you’ll pay it off. And before you know it, you owe a huge amount of money, and that’s when the real stress kicks in.”  

Angeline contacted Way Forward who were able to help her get on top of the situation. They came up with the repayment plan and negotiated with her creditors. Her regular payments make sure she stays on top.   

“Now I can see things a lot clearer. I’ve got a budget, and I have a little card that I write all of my expenses on. I absolutely have to follow it, because whatever’s left over is all I have. 

I also make sure I pay all my bills on time every single month. And I don’t get any calls from any of the banks anymore. It’s made a huge difference for my mental health”.   

 On the outside, Angeline says it appeared like she has it all – a well-paid job, a lovely house, a good lifestyle.  

But in reality, she says she is struggling to make ends meet.   

“Don’t feel embarrassed about it. It’s not just you. 

Although it’s a difficult situation, you can get out of it.  

Because I have a nice house and a decent job – people think I can afford it all but I really struggled and made some bad choices. This experience forced me to change and to really look at my financial habits.”   

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

Nicole started getting sick and she fell into debt, but as her financial situation improved, so did her health

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About four years ago, Nicole started getting sick. Her health got progressively worse. Then, she needed to attend a time-consuming number of specialist appointments and pay for medication, which led to her losing the ability to work full time.  

“I had to use up like all of my savings and then I wasn’t getting a full income. I was living in city where it’s a little bit more expensive. Then, I had to put everything on credit, and I just started to drown.  

“I knew I needed help for a long time. But it was just when I became sick and then had to quit my job completely, that was when I knew I was never going to get some in front of this.  

“It wasn’t until BankWest called me and informed me about this service, that I thought there was something out there to help me.  

“I was living week to week, basically, just having enough money to pay my rent and get my medication and just to live day to day, and not be not be able to think of the future.” 

Nicole has been working with Bill from Way Forward.

“He’s just so approachable, lovely and understanding.” 

She says that as her financial situation started to improve, so did her health.  

“Now, I have a plan, and I feel so much better, like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders. My plan is to go on a holiday.”  

“Some of my health issues were then compounded by the stress of it all. I was getting sicker and sicker. But since I started my plan, my health is started to improve.  

 I joined a netball team on the weekend. I haven’t played sport for about four years.  

 “It’s just about living again and not just trying to survive.  

 I didn’t know that I would be eligible for a hardship because I just assumed that I got myself into this situation and because I have been working, I wouldn’t be eligible.”

 Nicole says the best part of dealing with Way Forward is not being judged.  

 “I was so ashamed of and embarrassed of my situation. So just not to be judged was so nice. And the pride gets damaged. 

 “To know that there were services out there, maybe I could have not got into such a bad situation. Because it just kept getting worse and worse.” 

 She says it’s important to ask for help.

“Do something that may feel unusual, not the typical things that someone who’s been working their whole life would do and ask for help.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

delivery van driving along a road

Joe’s business was struggling but the COVD-19 pandemic led to an unexpected turnaround

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The COVID-19 pandemic has been a destructive force across the country and the globe. For many businesses, it has been a difficult and stressful time. However, for some, the nature of their business, whether it be producing hand sanitiser or masks, means that have been able to carve out small to large successes.    

Joe has been running his own business for several years. In 2019 over a six-month period, he started to struggle financially. The business was experiencing a downturn that led to financial hardship.   

“It was a combination of the business downturn and Christmas and then coming back after Christmas and not a lot happening. It’s a domino effect.”   

Joe has been working with Way Forward’s Hardship Advocate, Paula.   

“She just takes care of it.  I just got to ensure that I’ve got money in the account every month and it’s all happens in the background. There’s nothing that needs to be done now. I just make sure that I keep the payments up.”   

For Joe, once the pandemic hit, whether through a changing economy or change in consumer habits, he started to see an increase in demand for the packaging products his company sells. This meant that he had income available again to pay back creditors. However, he still needed to negotiate a payment plan.    

“Way Forward have done a fantastic job but the positivity I’m getting is the turnaround in the business that allows me to have the money every month.”  

“The team there have done a great job in being able to negotiate with all the creditors and allow me to have one payment per month to pay everybody.  

“If the business wasn’t doing well, I’d be stressing about it every month, where I’m going to find the money that I’ve got to pay to pay everybody back? The way it was set up with Way Forward, was great.”  

Although rewarding in many ways, Joe explains the challenges and stresses of running his own business.   

“You think about your business all the time, you think about cash flow, where your next projects coming from. It’s 24/7.  

“I did have savings and the savings just went and then you have school fees and things like that. So, it all just adds up.  

Joe also describes how time consuming the calls from creditors became.    

“When I look back at it, it was really time consuming. And when you’re running a business, and they’re trying to sort this out, it was it just eats up a lot of time. “   

“Every time the bank would call, it’s an hour trying to sort it out. You just end up avoiding calls.”   

Joe had contracted a company to sort out his debts. Without informing him, they decided to not work with him anymore, which left his creditors in the dark. This means by the time he had come to Way Forward, he had to go through the process for a second time.   

“They didn’t tell me this, but they decided that they couldn’t make any money out of it, so they dropped me. And that left all the creditors wondering what’s going on, because I hadn’t been paid.”   

After Joe was referred to Way Forward by BankWest, he went through the process of trying to work out a repayment plan.    

“It was all very sort of transparent and relatively easy, but still took time.”  

Joe advises that for people experiencing financial difficulty, it’s important to talk about it.   

“Maybe it’s a male thing but sometimes we tend to bury our heads in the sand a little bit.    

“If you can confront head on you will get to a resolution and you can move forward. I would just suggest tackling it head on. There might be a little bit of pain in the short term, but long term, there’s some definite gain.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

The repayment plan Liz has from Way Forward has given her the space to ‘do life’ again

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Liz ended up in financial hardship when she lost her job. Luckily, she found work again but this time but her new role paid much less. This severely impacted her ability to meet her loan repayments.  

She hopes to one day find work that pays a higher wage but, in the meantime, Way Forward has put together a plan, which is helping to repay her loans. She is clear on her priorities and the benefits of having a budget and spending with purpose.  

Fundamentally, she credits taking professional financial guidance as giving her the confidence to improve her situation, and recommends people who have experiencing that same, should reach out for assistance.  

“People think it is health and other things, but financial professional help is real. It’s the first one people should go for it to resolve the other problems. 

“Being willing to want to change your financial situation to live the life you want, rather than dealing with the stress of it all and leading into health or mental complications and unhappiness.  

“If we didn’t have the financial challenges, and had extra money saved, this pandemic wouldn’t have been about finances at all would have been about how am I going to be mentally, dealing with not meeting people or doing things as normal?  

Liz initially reach out to her bank for hardship support. They were able to quickly provide options for smaller regular repayment amounts. However, she was unable to meet those smaller repayments and needed further assistance.   

“Left, right and centre, everybody is looking for financial hardship during COVID. You feel like the banks have refined and improved their processes to try and help people better. 

Liz was referred to Way Forward by CommBank. Way Forward negotiated a payment plan where interest was reduced, repayment time frames extended, and no exit fees.  

Liz has been working with Way Forward Hardship Advocate Matthew, who helped her with her budget.   

“It was so simple. Like we had just two conversations, to just look at my budget, to send back a completed spreadsheet. And we had one more call just to finalise the entire thing. 

“After speaking to Matthew and really looking at it he clarified that has nothing to do with insolvency or bankruptcy it’s just a matter of getting on track with paying off the bills. 

“Knowing when I’m exactly going to make payments, it gave me clarity that, I’m not going to overspend because I can save money even if I’m not earning a lot.

“And any questions I had, I would speak with Matthew and he would immediately provide me the answers.  

“This just gave me hope to save and continue on with life, rather than stressing out. 

“And I get to do things that I normally do and not have to cut out the simple things in life. 

 Liz now has plans for the future.  

 I wanted to always buy a family home and I think it looks hopeful for me right now. 

 I’m really committed to is that I pay this off as quickly as possible. But at the same time, I know that I will have the chance to budget better and it’s given me a lot more confidence that I’ve got the support I need right now.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

Way Forward negotiated affordable repayments with Nira’s creditors and now she’s paying off her debts

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Following a long-term relationship break down, Nira was saddled with debts that were part of the relationship but was then stuck with paying those back by herself.     

“It was really overwhelming to have to pay the debts. I was in repayment every fortnight and it was two different banks.   

I had to overwork myself. I was so stressed.”  

She was referred to Way Forward who could negotiate with those two creditors on Nira’s behalf.   

It was the first time she had heard of Way Forward.  

“When I started talking with Way Forward, it was Matthew who was corresponding with me. He did a terrific job.  

“What he did was, because the debts belong to two different banks, he wrote to them and then got them to agree to matching proposals based on my income and level of debt with each bank.  

“I was so happy for the terrific job that Matthew has done for me.”  

“I didn’t know that such services stayed until recently, I would be more than happy to refer to people. 

“The best part was, when I tried to negotiate personally, it wasn’t making any headway but having Matthew to do it for me, he got the approval.  

“I then went about my personal business, and he did everything for me.  

“Now I have a plan. I know how much I’m going to be repeating every fortnight so it’s predictable.  

“I’m looking at life with so much hope as what so much is spent expectancy and positivity. Thinking I have most of the things under control.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

After attempts to negotiate with creditors, Jeff found Way Forward who could negotiate on his behalf

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“I had so many sleepless nights and it was really stressing me out. I was really down. Now, I know exactly where my money is going. It’s manageable for me and it just makes me feel happy and relieved. I feel like I’m in a much better position and enjoying life again. It’s a big relief.”

 

Jeff’s debts slowly added up on him. He first took out a personal loan, and then borrowed more money on top of that in order to pay the bills. Then, his wife lost her job. They were down to a single income.

“The bills just added up and kind of crept up on me. Before you know it, I’m struggling.” 

“It was only in the last six months that I realised that I’m in a bit of trouble.  

“I couldn’t see a way out and I ended up just asking for help, which is the last thing I wanted to do.” 

Before asking for assistance from Way Forward, Jeff was going through a lot of sleepless nights. 

“I was feeling quite down. It was hard battling on my own.  

“You’ve just got to swallow your pride. There are people out there to help you and it can make your life easier.  

Once you realise that you got a problem or you’re struggling, then you need to you need to ask for help. And the sooner the better.”

Jeff says since he has been working with Way Forward, he now has a better hold on his finances.  

“I had so many sleepless nights and it was really stressing me out. I was really down. Now I know exactly where my money is going. It’s manageable and it makes me feel relieved.

“I just feel like I’m in a much better position and enjoying life again. It’s a big relief.”  

Jeff said that he found it difficult dealing with banks and finance companies.  

“I was getting passed around. You have to meet a certain criteria sometimes and you just fall through the cracks. 

“I found it difficult to deal with them. I just I really struggled.  

“And there was like a few loans I had, and it just was hard to put together because when you get onto one of the lenders, they’re only looking at their situation and not another loan you may have. I found that hard. 

“I couldn’t seem to manage to get myself out of it on my own. 

“I just found it really difficult to come to an agreement with the lenders.”  

That changed when Jeff contacted Way Forward and started working with Paula, Financial Hardship Advocate. 

“Paula was very understanding and very, very helpful anytime anything’s popped up.” 

“I haven’t been I haven’t had to run a rat race of put onto this person and then on to of each person, it’s been dealt with very efficiently.”

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

Hani wanted to pay back creditors but needed help

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“We want to pay back our debts but we want to make it affordable…Way Forward put together a plan. I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.” 

Hani and her husband were so excited to have bought their first family home.

They had chosen house and land package that was perfect. Once they had finished building the house, they thought they were putting on the finishing touches that would complete their home: a driveway, some curtains and furniture.

Soon, those small expense became big and they could not keep up with repayments.

“We bought a house and land package. It was the first house we owned so we didn’t know the things that can add up so quickly.

“We started to use a credit card to pay for the driveway and all the other things like curtain rods and window coverings and landscaping and buying furniture. That was the starting point.

“At the same time, my husband was made redundant twice. He was working in the IT industry. He didn’t have a job for about 2 months at a time, both times. We were using credit cards to pay off bills.

“It was hard to keep up with the monthly minimum repayments. It felt like we were playing a catch-up game. We tried switching from one credit card to another, but the same thing happened again.”

They realised that they were getting nowhere. They wanted to pay the money back to the banks because Hani and her husband felt responsible for borrowing the money. In a way, they wanted to learn a lesson from the experience.

“Sometimes you need to learn a lesson the hard way. I said to my husband that we should try to make it work out.”

She tried to speak to the banks they had borrowed from in order to ask for a long-term plan.

“I asked them to cancel my card, and make a payment plan over 5 years, something that I can afford to pay it back. They declined. We asked to extend our home loan, which they refused and said that we would need to pay lenders mortgage insurance.”

“One of the ladies from NAB suggested that I should talk to a financial counsellor who I spoke to, and she suggested Way Forward.

Hani and her husband also tried a consolidation company.

“We could not afford their fees – which was 3-4 grand. I was already struggling. I called Way Forward and that was when we put together a budget.”

The ongoing financial stress took its toll.

“I was so stressed, and so negative. Knowing that we would need to make a repayment the next day but not knowing where we were going to get the money from. The whole environment was depressive and sad.

Hani and her husband have been married for nearly 20 years and their relationship felt the strain.

“We started arguing. I was not able to sleep properly, same with my husband. When you are under a lot of stress, you do not feel comfortable.

“We were receiving all these calls from the bank. We were just so scared. I didn’t feel like picking up the phone.

“There was a lot of stress in our relationship and it was impacting our kids, who were asking me why I was grumpy all the time. Because in the back of my mind, how do I solve this situation. It was tough.

“I was so happy with my response from Way Forward and my budget. I spoke to Keziah, she was so wonderful. She went through the whole budget.

“I said to her that we want to pay it back but we want to make it affordable. After we went through the budget she said she would come back to me with a plan. It was a relief when she said that we can afford it. I could see the light at the end of the tunnel.”

My outlook at changed. Whenever we spend now, it’s more like, do we need it? And the stress on our heads from the calls telling us that we are behind, we know how much we earn and how much we need to spend. We have the whole picture and we know what our limits are and it is really helpful.

Hani wanted to share advice with people wanting to borrow money.

“Even if it’s a $4000 credit card, be careful with how you are using that money. It piles us quickly. Thinking that you will buy now and pay later – don’t get into those traps. Probably save in advance and have your budget. Just work out how much you can afford. Don’t go over the top.

“If any of the people are struggling and in a similar situation to us, I suggest they get to Way Forward. I think you are doing a wonderful job in saving lives because it can lead to depression. You never know when you can lose you head and what can happen.

If anyone is going through hard times, I suggest they come and talk to Way Forward. Your organisation is not for money, it is for people and caring for them.

“We are really happy we are getting back on track. I’m not saying we haven’t made mistakes, we did make mistakes.

Having the support from Way Forward to know that if you are going through a bad patch, there are possibilities to sort it out and get back on track and learn from those experiences.”

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

 

In sickness and in health – Lee’s story

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I still deal with that bank today simply for the fact that they looked after me. If they hadn’t done that I would have said: yup, I’m out and just walked away and gone somewhere else to go bank.

 When Lee became sick with cancer, it strained not only on his personal life but also the company he was running.   

“We had a new young child, I had cancer, I had blood clot disorders, a whole range of medical issues, I was still in and out of hospital. 

“Unfortunately, after I had been running my business for 5 years and we were finally starting to get somewhere, this hit me. 

“Not only was my physical ability being lost but my income, my business, my focus was also being lost. My financial independence was being destroyed at the same time.” 

He had to close his business to take up another job to pay the bills.  

“I was still struggling every week to make certain payments that were required.” 

“The three creditors [banks] that you guys looked after for me, all were easy to deal with on their own, but I find it easy to deal with creditors if you are upfront with them initially. Don’t make stories up and just say: this is all I’ve got; this is all I can do. And the creditors are more likely to help you.  

“One of them did and put a lifeline out to me and told me about Way Forward. 

They said I would sign a couple of bits of paper, and then ‘you won’t hear from us anymore’ and that was pretty much my experience.” 

“I never had anyone treat me any differently or make me feel like a problem or an issue to them, I found most of the credit teams from these creditors to be very understanding of my situation. 

 “Way Forward totally got it. And there was no pressure from any of them to do anything. The process was easy and slimline. I had no issues.  

“The process was calming, and the panic and stress from talking to the creditors was taken off my shoulders. from having to deal with the creditors every couple of weeks basically to let them know where I’m at what I’m doing how I’m trying to fix it. 

Lee and his family are still customers of the same bank, today.  

“I still deal with that bank today simply for the fact that they looked after me. If they hadn’t done that I would have said: yup, I’m out and just walked away and gone somewhere else to go bank.” 

Once Lee was able to access Way Forward’s service, it also took a little stress off his parents and family.  

“I had been riding that roller coaster for about two nearly three years before I found out I had cancer. It had taken a big toll on me emotionally mentally and physically. It was very hard.  

“We are very fortunate because my parents, and my partner’s parents, have helped me a lot in different ways. If it hadn’t been for that supportive family support, it certainly would be a lot harder.  

“My parents were starting to retire, so the last thing I want to do is break into their nest egg and the same as my partner’s parents. They were getting ready to retire, too, so the last thing I want to be doing was getting into their finances for our situation. 

Lee credits a supportive partner and her understanding to managing through the situation. 

“It comes down to having an open conversation with my partner and saying, Hey, this is my debt, and I don’t know where I’m going with this, I’m in trouble or I don’t know what to do.”  

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

 

Trying to hold everything together in tough times – Naomi’s story

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“When your soul mate is falling apart and you’re the backbone trying to hold everything together with two children struggling with epilepsy, your mind finds it very hard to think straight without this tremendous weight on your shoulders, wondering if you’ve done enough to pay the mortgage whilst keeping food on the table and being able to afford the kids medication.”

As a result of losing work and health issues, Naomi’s life was falling apart. She was unable to negotiate with creditors to develop a repayment plan. 

“I was repeating myself repeatedly to debtors hoping they understand.” 

Naomi is now working with Way Forward to manage debts that were growing every day. Their situation is improving gradually. 

“I’m not going to work in tears, I’m not scared to answer my phone, I’m watching our mortgage dwindle away back to where it should be.   My partner was able to find work and we’ve been able to start rebuilding a safety net. 

“We see ourselves swimming back up to the surface now, we don’t feel like we are weighed down unable to catch a breath. 

“We’ve also promised ourselves to save our money for things we’d like and stay away from the quick easy loan shark way of life.” 

Naomi had reached out to another paid service to assist with their finances, which she felt did not assist their situation. 

“It blew our confidence right out.” 

“Way Forward has provided us peace of mind and if anyone was to talk to me about their financial issues, I’d be handing over Way Forward’s number. 

“Overall, we are just so relieved we got the help.  It’s almost like someone was watching over us.” 

If you’d like to know more about how Way Forward can help you:

Enquire here or call us on 1300 451 343

Use our free budget planner or repayment calculator.

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

Amir went from falling behind to getting ahead

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It started with being a bit excessive. The debt and the excessive spending and then the interest rate, I couldn’t catch up. It was so difficult to keep up with the monthly repayments, and then I had the interest rate hitting me from the other side.

Amir was ahead. He had saved a decent deposit for a property and was working in a job that paid well. Until the day he was approached by a family member to contribute money for a joint property. He knew he was unable to refuse.  

This property became financially burdensome very quickly. He was asked by the same family member to borrow more money to contribute again to the cost of the home. This pushed Amir to the edge. He was taken out loans that he could not afford. He felt pressure to continue to contribute financially.

Amir felt controlled and unfairly treated in these family relationships. He was paying the bills on the property. 

He eventually moved out of the home he was sharing with family members. He continued to pay the mortgage, but now, was also paying rent on his own place. He was forced to sell. The money he retrieved from the sale was a small portion of what he contributed to the initial deposit, additional lump sum payments and mortgage repayments.  

He was also in debt from balancing these expenses that he could not afford.  

“I was exhausted. I had support of friends but not of family, it was terrible. 

“It started with being a bit excessive. The debt and the excessive spending and then the interest rate, I couldn’t catch up. It was so difficult to keep up with the monthly repayments, and then I had the interest rate hitting me from the other side. 

“It has changed, I don’t buy anything that I don’t need not because I can’t afford it but because I have changed.”   

The hardest thing for Amir was managing the interest rate and the multiple credit cards.   

“It was my fault, I did take out the loan, and I wanted to deal with the issues.”  

“I called Way Forward, and spoke to Paula, the angel. It wasn’t just how she helped me, it was how she spoke to me.  

“She gave me the assurance that there is light at the end of the tunnel. And we can do something, and she was absolutely amazing. To hear her voice, and the comfort it gave me, I started to sleep again at night. 

“I used to feel like there’s nothing left for me in this life. It was really tough.  

“Way Forward has changed my life in a really positive way. I enjoy my work. I got promoted, I am doing so well in my work because my focus is on my work and not on anything else. I’ve been paying off the money each fortnight and I’m even saving some money now.”  

His message?

“Don’t lose hope.

“Yes, it’s going to take me three years, but it’s already been 6 months, these three years is going to be nothing. No matter how big the debt, just approach the right people.”

If you’d like to know more about how Way Forward can help you: 

Enquire here or call us on 1300 451 343

Use our free budget planner or repayment calculator.

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

 

Dave – finding hope again

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“There is still a fair way to go. I am not jumping over fences with enthusiasm or anything like that, but my optimism is certainly rising”

Dave dreamed of creating the idyllic family home for his wife and two children. He borrowed more money than he could pay off, in order to make sure that the house was complete.  

However, Dave says that the debt he accrued ended his marriage.   

“It eroded her trust in me, and it all became too much. The hardest thing was the realisation that I was in financial trouble and secondly, as a result of that, it cost me my marriage. 

“Going from living in a house with two daughters, two dogs and a big house, to spending a considerable amount of time by yourself, that was horrible. 

“I spoke with a couple of the financial institutions and they said they could help me for a certain amount of time.  

One of the customer service representatives from one of the banks that Dave had borrowed money from and was struggling to pay back, referred him to Way Forward, where he spoke to Way Forward’s Client Service Manager, Paula. 

“You are absolutely drowning in emotion.   

“The very minute I hung up the phone from Paula, it was like half a foot had come off my head.  

“You can’t function at work, you can’t function as a father, you can’t be expected to bounce out of bed in the morning and do a run or a bike ride. You are crippled.” 

“When I was in the mental predicament that I was, it was almost too late.   

“Had the person at Bank West not referred me to Way Forward, I hate to say it, but you and I wouldn’t be probably having this conversation.  

“Debt has a direct correlation to mental health. You’ve got the talk about it.  

There is still a fair way to go. I am not jumping over fences with enthusiasm or anything like that, but my optimism is certainly rising.” 

Dave believes that financial institutions should be encouraged to use or promote hardship services more.  

“When the red flags go up on the system where you’re probably carrying too much of a mortgage, you’ve got too many debts, that is a red flag.  

“They talk about responsible lending, but it is not responsible lending. That’s the big difference between responsible lending and this, there must be proactivity.” 

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.

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