How much debt are you actually in?

[Doyoureally?]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

How awful you feel like this. Don’t worry about what other people are doing around you, as others have said keeping up with the jones can have a terrible affect on your finances, also all is not what it seems and you’d probably be surprised about the real position of the people around you. For perspective I did not buy my home until I was 30 and many people don’t buy homes at all. Don’t feel like a failure because of that.

I also work in a finance position. You can’t be a ‘bankrupt’ and be registered with a professional body, but try not to stress about CCJs. Very few companies actually do credit checks on employees even within the financial sectors apart from very specific roles. My advice would be to address any debt that you can when you can that could turn into a CCJ if that is what plays on your mind. Write up and plan so you can see it there in front of you! In a few years time you can completely turn this around. Also a few years goes by in a blink!

Also look at what other posters have suggested i.e. Dave Ramsey as I’m very practical in my approach due to background and this might work for you better.

 

[Bae56]

I’m in my overdraft around 1500 and I have my student loan trying desperately to pay the over draft of but I just seem to stay there at a steady 1500 ish as soon as I nearly do it I get random expenses like vet bills etc xx

Overdrafts are a viscous cycle. I worked part time in a bank whilst studying & it seemed to be the norm for people to live out of their overdraft. You can gradually decrease your overdraft limit monthly, or whenever you can. Although they're a good fall back it is difficult to get out of one because of how they operate.
Reducing the limit to something more manageable is helpful & try to put something into savings, even if it's small in case any surprise expenses pop up. Nothing's too small to save

I had an overdraft years ago & used a lot of it once, found it hard to get out of. I hated that my money basically refilled it leaving me with minimal funds unless I used the overdraft again.

 

[Zenchick101]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

please please look up Dave Ramsey on youtube, his plan, his baby steps are made especially for people in debt who are overwhelmed. it will help

 

[bella578]

On Creditfix for 5 years, less than 4 years to go now and I'll be in the clear. Was 9k in debt, but it's taught me a lesson.

Can I just say Donald Trump was bankrupt 5 times and look where he is now. It doesn't make you a failure.

 

[megsmagoo]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

Please please speak to step change, you won’t get a ccj and typically don’t pay interest while you’re in their care

I can’t tell you the relief I felt when I spoke to them. I was on the verge of suicide because I didn’t speak to anyone about it and couldn’t see an end because of the shame. I said this earlier but they really saved my life

 

[Vidyagaymes]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

Stepchsnge might be a good place to start. Just to have a conversation and find out what your options are.

 

[Wifo1976]

Mortgage and husbands car finance debt currently. I had debt when I was younger and lived at home. Racked up over £1500 on credit and store cards at a time when everyone was out having fun - I stayed in or drove my mates everywhere and cleared it. I have a real spending addiction still and agree Instagram fuels it, but I never go in debt for it. My husband is frugal but we are lucky that he has made some wise choices and we are comfortable. I know we are lucky when I look at some of my friends. We both have good incomes and one son, but every day I do honestly understand that we are very lucky.

 

[JD-Morgan]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

I am in a similar situation as you and I feel exactly the same.

I just wanted to ask if you’d sought any advice on your debt yet? Sorry I tried to PM you but I couldn’t find an option

 

[AlanBanan]

Reading Cheyes97 post genuinely makes me believe even more that schools should have classes on how to manage money and the dangers of payday loans and how credit cards can easily wreck your credit within a few months.

 

[urghmummybloggers]

Are we counting mortgages as debt? I don’t but if so....
I’m 30 and live alone.

Mortgage -107k - LTV around 45%

Car - 9k - interest free finance and paid monthly - not a lease or PCP so will be my asset at least at the end.

Credit Card - £500 on 0% - could clear it off from savings but I just pay £80 a month off DD for now and leave savings with interest. Ad Hoc bigger payments as and when.

Phone Contract - £500 left on device plan 0% interest

COVID has really pushed me to reasses my spending and save like crazy as I was rebuilding savings from having an extensive kitchen renovation I paid cash for last year. I’d ideally like to move toward a lower level of debt incase of redundancy or financial hardship.

 

[Eastonell]

I’m so glad this thread exists, so helpful and really does make you realise how easy it is to fall into debt but hey debt runs the country!

so mine;

Credit Card - Just under £4K,was initially £1.5K that I balance transferred with the intention of paying it all off but then I moved and had to buy furniture very quickly!

Very - £220

PayPal - £130

Distance Learning Course - £2.5K in total have paid off a small chunk as only just started!

I rent so don’t have a mortgage and my car is a company car so I don’t pay that. I do worry about my credit card though, most of my wage goes on bills as I live alone and don’t have anyone to split with!

Gonna have a look at the things you guys have suggested to help me clear it!

 

[TheWitchIsBack]

This thread has been an eye opener for me. I’m in a terrible situation at the moment, I’m I’m about £8000 of debt at 23 years old. Was very stupid with money when I got my first “proper” job and took out payday loans, credit cards etc. It just spiralled and spiralled and got even worse when I had a bereavement In my family last year. I live in constant fear every single day, to the point where I can never relax because I’m so scared. I’m scared when somebody knocks on the door, when letters come through my door, when the phone rings. And the worst thing about it is in I work in finance and would lose my job if I got a CCJ or anything along those lines. I just don’t know what to do but I know I need to something before it gets a whole lot worse.



i feel like I’ve ruined my life before it’s even begun. my friends around me are buying their first house etc and I don’t feel like I’ll ever have that. It’s soul destroying to say the least

I hate reading that you feel this way, I’ve been there and done that and know how crippling it can feel. I promise you it can get better - you just need to put in some effort and hard work to get through it.

I’d recommend signing up for the MSE credit club. It’s linked to Experian and gives you access to your credit score but also matches you with lenders you’re likely to get credit with so try and look at 0% interest balance transfer cards and get any high interest debts transferred so you’re making a bigger dent in them with your payments.

Work from the highest interest debts to the lowest, and try to set up direct debits to pay a chunk towards each one you have each month - do the minimum payments for all but the highest interest debts and get the highest cleared first then once that’s paid off move onto the next.

I promise you it can and will get better, even if it doesn’t feel like it now.

 

[crankypants]

Hi all - just advice if possible. So I’m 26 and have roughly £28k worth of debt, luckily I am on a good salary so the repayments were never a problem. Got into debt due to a family member taking a loan out in my name when I was 20 and on less than 10k a year, that’s when the vicious cycle happened. For reasons I will not go into, I couldn’t take the family member to court.
As my interest rates were so high I’ve recently entered into a DMP, now me and my other half are looking to buy a house: he has no history of debt and we have a deposit of £35k on a house value of bran £175-190k.Has anyone had experience with obtaining a mortgage witha DMP, currently I’m able to save £750 a month after paying my monthly DMP payments. Would my other half credit history balance mine out or would lenders see me as untouchable.
I will add that I’ve never missed a payment or defaulted

 

[TheWitchIsBack]

Hi all - just advice if possible. So I’m 26 and have roughly £28k worth of debt, luckily I am on a good salary so the repayments were never a problem. Got into debt due to a family member taking a loan out in my name when I was 20 and on less than 10k a year, that’s when the vicious cycle happened. For reasons I will not go into, I couldn’t take the family member to court.
As my interest rates were so high I’ve recently entered into a DMP, now me and my other half are looking to buy a house: he has no history of debt and we have a deposit of £35k on a house value of bran £175-190k.Has anyone had experience with obtaining a mortgage witha DMP, currently I’m able to save £750 a month after paying my monthly DMP payments. Would my other half credit history balance mine out or would lenders see me as untouchable.
I will add that I’ve never missed a payment or defaulted

Get independent mortgage advice - you can definitely get a mortgage once a DMP has been appropriately managed for 12 months providing there’s no other adverse credit.

 

[flamingo29]

I’ve just spent the last 2 years paying off £10k of credit card/next debt and it has been a long and tough road, the relief now to finally be free of it has been worth it all. I have nothing to show for any of that debt, just stupid spending when I was younger, always ending each month with just pennies in my account etc

The only advice I have is that I tracked every penny on spreadsheets each month and gave myself budgets for everything, it almost became a game against myself to try and keep my bank balance over a certain value by the end of each month and i’d be gutted if it went under the value

 

[crankypants]

Thank you, I will do that within the next month or so. I’ve only been in the DMP for three months so I would like to know where I stand. I’m now regretting getting the DMP before a mortgage!

 

[Casperron]

Me and my child wouldn’t have survived if I didn’t get into debt

 

[AE110]

We paid our mortgage off in June and the feeling was fab. Not bragging because we worked hard to do it jointly, but I have been in debt numerous times and when I was younger I was terrible with money and owed bits here there and everywhere. I was given some money in my late 30's and wasted it and I am ashamed of that to this day as it could and should have been put to good use but it wasn't. I am now very careful with money and panic over it at times because I never want the 2am dread ever again..

 

[crankypants]

On the back of this, can anyone recommend mortgage advisors that specialise in adverse credit / DMP? My other half has no debt and clean credit history however on paper I’m that higher earner!

 

[TheWitchIsBack]

On the back of this, can anyone recommend mortgage advisors that specialise in adverse credit / DMP? My other half has no debt and clean credit history however on paper I’m that higher earner!

Try and use one local to you that knows the local area as they’ll understand the property market there better. Google search “whole of market mortgage brokers near me” and make sure they are whole of market as you don’t want anyone tied to places like St James’s Place etc as they’ll be restricted in the lenders they can approach... you want choice from across the board rather than a selected panel. All brokers should be adept at dealing with adverse credit.

Phone about a few and have a chat... see who you get a good vibe with and who listens to you. The initial phone call will tell you about the type of person you’re dealing with - you want someone who listens to you and takes a genuine interest in you and your situation, as opposed to someone who just sees a fee coming in when you sign up.