How did you get into this debt?
Justindebt
Posts: 88 Forumite
OK....I was wondering how we all came to be in this position.
I have never spent more than £200 on an item and charged it to a credit card.
Never even paid for a holiday on one.
Plane fares or hotels I have charged up.....restaurants and the odd suit.
The vast.....no, overwhelming..... majority of my damage is due to gambling.
I was wondering how the rest of you were dragged into the debt trap.
I have never spent more than £200 on an item and charged it to a credit card.
Never even paid for a holiday on one.
Plane fares or hotels I have charged up.....restaurants and the odd suit.
The vast.....no, overwhelming..... majority of my damage is due to gambling.
I was wondering how the rest of you were dragged into the debt trap.
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Comments
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interesting question.
mine started with a loan to florida for a holiday in 1999(was cheap deal so wanted to do rather than save-big mistake) of course needed new clothes,used whilst on hols.
never paid it off when back as planned.....carried on using for bits and bobs......then met my hubby who was equally bad and we consolidated all debts into one loan......never quite paid everything off though :mad: then had a baby so no expense spared.......and so on.....just living beyond our means really......i think its too easy to get credit and get into debt.0 -
Although Im back to zero debt a trip to florida hit us hard too.
Its down to discipline (sp?) really.0 -
A while back I started to work less hours to do a college course, the drop in wage didn't mean that I spent less. Then overdraft got big, so I got a loan to pay it off and increased my hours again which helped.
Then was made redundant, didn't use the money for any decent purpose, just bought stuff with it. New job meant I earnt less, but still my spending didn't reflect this. I can't think of a single thing that cost a great deal, just no discipline. I love shopping and had no control - if I wanted it I bought it.
Several loan extensions, a brief credit card moment (thankfully I had the sense to cut it up and pay it off) and yet more overdraft (now paid off) and here I am.
Quite sad when I think about it!Quit smoking 18/08/070 -
just was a bit reckless as a student. going out every night. im not even a big drinker, it was spending money on taxis home really that made me skint!
also, sounds a bit dim but i didnt fully understand how credit card debt works. thought "grace period" applied to new purchases even when carrying a balnace. didnt realise that if i didnt clear baalnce and i buy something it starts accrugin interest straightaway.
kinda convinced myself that because of grace period my debt wasnt getting any bigger. it was.
rearrange ...... head, sand, buried, in
after then when i finished uni i moved out of mum and dads even though i couldnt really afford it.
took out a loan to repay cc debt accumulated during uni and promptly ran the debt up again because was convinced i had it under control.
wasnt on electoral roll at time so got a shocking interest rate.
few years ago realised things have to change or i would still be renting (or worse, back at m+d's) when i was 30. now i have a clear savings plan to provide for myself for my future ... all thanks to MSE :T
mortgage is on its way in the next year or two once have a wee deposit built up (dont agree with 100% mortgages) and then i can really set about making things happen for me.
DC0 -
My undergraduate degree resulted in my debts - my loan didnt even cover my rent, let alone my fees - which i payed myself. I worked stupid hours on top of my degree programme just to keep my head above water - makes me angry when people generalise about all students being lay-a-bouts - grrrrr...I've made my debts bite-size too depressing to look at all at once so am handling them one at a time - first up Graduate Loan £1720 paid off! only £280 to go!!!
Money to raise for tuition fees: £3000
When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang on!!0 -
i was a single parent on benifit too scared to have debt then i met my husband,who came with a car loan and 3 cards.we had a drop in income when we moved into together sold car to pay of debts then he gave up his job and had to wait months for dole we only had child benifit left to live on and a 3 month old and 4 year old no tax credits then.so we used credit cards to live on,then he got a job low pay and i had to go to work cleaning so we got a consolidation loan but ran up the cards again cos we couldnt live after paying loan then another c loan run up again classic story ran up debts again then crunch time got halifax and hsbc c loan then car went bang so had to get a car loan the he said soa it may as well get a computer as well.then one day it all come crashing down as it does when you cant borrow any more went to cab and started a dmp.but scrapped that in january through you guys advice and have now paid 5 creditors over got 5 more to go which should be gone in feb,car finishes in june,computer in october,but halifax loan in 2007.never again i have well and truly learnt my lesson i am spending £1000 a month in debt repayment just think what i could do with it.0
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i basically ended up in my situation due to the fact i had a car loan with an end payment on it which was £3500, at the end of the loan i put that on my credit card, and then continued spending and going out pubbing/clubbing way beyond my means sheance now why i have a over £12,000 pound :eek: outstanding on a loan. Ive no one else to blame except my self :mad:Savings Total so far for 2023: £8,062.580
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I got into about £5,00 in debt over many years, mainly because I had trouble at work and got into the spending habit of buying pc bits and pieces, surprising how much you can accrue in a short spell of time.
I lost my job through ill health because of work related problems. Got some money from work as retirement and paid most of the credit card off.
I still kept adding more to card as a short sighted way of getting me off depression. That didn't work and was only a short sighted release from the termoils of illness.
I got half of my debt paid off the last year, due to me managing to get it on 0% interest for 9 months, now got 12 months 0% free and hope to get most paid off once the 0% rate has finished if not I get another o% interest free if I can. I managed to control most of my spending habits, although I do get treats but pay this off by debit card which is like cash.
Only thing people must do is set up a direct debit for paying off your cards so you don't get penalised for missed payments.
No longer a user, goodbye folks. PLEASE delete my account. Thank you0 -
I haven't posted before but I've been reading the boards for a long time and the help and support you all give each other is brilliant.
My debts are mainly due to a 15 year struggle with various eating disorders. The amount of money I must have spent on food, etc is quite scary and awful to think about. I have good phases and during these times I manage to reduce my debts but when I'm going through a bad phase they increase again as I can't stop myself, it's an addiction.
I'm getting help but it's very hard and I often think I'm never going to be debt free although I try hard to stay positive.
Good luck to everyone struggling with debts.0 -
Welcome to the board! You're so brave to admit debt and an eating disorder in one post, I hope things are getting better for you. There are loads of cool people on here who know so much and will really help you, keep posting xxQuit smoking 18/08/070
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