How did you get into debt

postingalwaysposting

To be honest i dont know why i stay on the debt free wannabe board because i have no debts (but its a great board), i have been brought i that if i havent got the money or its not in my budget then it stays in the shop.

I do have a credit card but it is payed in full at the end of each month . I have a buget of £3 per week and thats it :rolleyes: , if i want anything that is over that amount then i take so long to decide if to buy it or not it puts me off the item . The one thing i do have is savings accounts, these are all for different things ie driving lessons, future investments like a house etc and a xmas and birthday fund.

I have all nice stuff though, ie computer, tv, internet etc but it is all bugeted and saved for and then search for the cheapest price. People say i am tight etc etc, one of the main people being my brother who is paid on a friday and its gone by the saturday, but its the way i am

I must say though that all of you are here who are knocking all your debts down and becoming debt free are all great and you should all feel very proud of yourselfs :T

cresswell80

my story's ironic in that, my debt amounted when i was at uni and when i first graduated, therefore not having a high enough income to fund my lavish lifestyle (i lived way beyond my means..), yet 2 years later, when i have a salary of £30k+ and should therefore be able to have a fairly lavish lifestyle, i can't because i'm paying my debt off! still only 6 or 7 months to go and then hopefully i'll be debt free (lightbulb March 2005 @ £14k)

paul10mm

simple awnser never took enough care with money if i got short some one always offered me more credit even now £100,000.00 in debt i still had credit cards i could have had another £25k from just utter madness! childcare at £200 a week my wages going up only 3k in 20 years just trying to live Worst part of all i have nothing to show for it just finished my petion on line for my bankruptcy on monday, Hard to belive but last year alone we took home £28,056.00 after tax and from are savings we had i paid over another £24,000 out
i have now run out of money (my own) and refuse to go round in the hamster wheel of life anymore Worst part of all is i could get more credit on cards than i could a mortgage for How crazy is that???
Stop the world i want to get off!!!!

Simonkey_2

I am over £17 000 in debt - all of which is from uni. My Dad went self employed so I was offered more money from the loans people (as is means tested on parents income) so I took it and thought nothing of it at the time. I have since only been working for 18 months and really feeling the pinch now as trying v hard to pay that off debt and save for a deposit on a flat (one day).

Although I did have a fantastic time and managed to get a good job, I do have days when I wonder whether it was all worth it. I don't mean this to sound nasty but I almost resent clued up kids that now choose not to go and don't get saddled with the debt. On the plus side, I really do appreciate things more now than ever, having saved up and budgeted for them (not just saying that, saving is addictive!). I used to think nothing of going out for the day having lunch, shopping for new outfits and then going out in the evening for drinks and onto clubs etc. These days I am more than happy with my packed lunch and a bargain in the charity shop!

I know it is hard but the most important thing is making that first step and we have all taken the plunge and are making efforts to pay our debts back - cos you can guarantee there are as many people who don't want to face it.

Haushinka

My debt started when i got asked to go to kenya by my boyfriend. We where going with his parents. I know i could never do this because my mum had a knee replacement so she could barely walk anyway.

Anyway, I got my first credit card. Capital one, £500 limit. I used most of that.

Then i decided to get a virgin credit card because it had 0% interest for the first 9 months. I thought if i transfered it over i could pay it off quicker because there was no interest.

Anyway, thats when the good times started. I starting going to gigs and paying for nights out and had a serious drug problem after a while. Which I've now got clean from thank god.

But even so, I recently transfered all my debt from my virgin to an american express card.

Then i got a call from virgin after i cleared there card that i could get a balance transfer for 6 months interest free. So i cleared my capital one, which is now clear bar £12 i think.

Anyway, christmas came around and i spent probably another £200 on my virgin card. Then another £200 on gig tickets.

So now, I'm in around 3k debt, thats including my overdraft which i always seem to be in.

But I've decided this month that I'm going to pay off £200 a month off the credit cards and just pretend the overdraft doesn't exist because thats what i survive off every month.

So I've worked out i can clear my debt in around 15 months, and less time if work plan to give me a nice bonus. And when i say nice, it wouldn't be that big, £750 or £1000, but thats enough to clear a nice chunk of the debt.

So...there ya go.

I've brought alan carrs easy way to stop smoking book in the hope i can quit. That will save me a lot of money.

egg345

had cancer, 2 sisters died, thought life is for living.
asked for cc's , got cc's, never been refused one.
spent without thinking.
34k in debt now. selling house to pay off debt, downsizing, starting again. married 4 kids and a new life ahead without a debt.
can't wait.....just got to sell house!!

THE_LONE_RANGER_4

Well Being Totally Stupid Thats It ...18.000pounds Later Thats It No More I Was Happy When I Took Care Of Money No Credit Cards No More Loans Only Those Loans Of Credit Unions Interest Me ,credit Card Companys Offered Me Cards From Capital One 750 To Monument 5000pounds, Two Cards From The Same Companies They No What There Doing They Just Suk You In Not Any More They Get What I Can Afford To Pay Them Now Cut Up All Cards There Not Happy.... I Am Like Pigs In Poo Happy Happy Dont Let Debt Companies Cause Me Grief One Offer Only Is What They Get If They Dont Like It Of To Court We Go Same Offer Given Im In Controll Now Not Them I Have My Treats I Save I Pay My Essential Bills On Time ,debts Get Whats Left Will Pay Of Eventually ...thats It 60per Cent My Fault 40percent There Fault And They No It So Dont Worry Be Happy I Am I Can Assuer You Heres To Being Debt Free One Day Bye

jobbingmusician

Having work done on house, which I had budgeted for and could afford - just.

Then finding that builder had not followed specification and contract manager had not realised. Council would not issue completion certificate.

Then spending over £5k on investigations and expert witnesses to find I could not sue either of them (building firm had closed and it would cost more to sue contract manager than I would recover) and repairs would cost over £50k.

Latest chapter - finding unsafe chimney - another £10k to have that repaired.

heppy23

Basically from living beyond me means and abusing credit.

It all started when I was doing work where I was treated as self employed so had to look after my own NI and PAYE. I got hit with a tax bill twice what I was expecting so I got a loan to pay it. I then got another loan to pay loan one off and borrowed more to buy a computer I never bought.

Things got worse when I moved up to Yorkshire and then when back to work in London for a year. I was basically running two households on one income and that is when I started defaulting on things. That is when my credit file got marked. Most of it comes off this summer (6 years on).
I am not going to mad if my credit rating improves. I would love a 0% card to do a bit stoozing but I am enjoying being nearly debt free now (Although my weekly income has dropped because I have gone part time to look after my son one day a week).

france100

Living beyond our means and not watching what we spend - ever!! We have never set a budget and never checked the price of anything. We ate out regularly, had lots of takeaways and bought lavishly for the house. Now left with a beautiful house but lots of debts!!!

This site has been invaluable and a real wake up call. We've set a budget and are sticking to it and we are working hard to pay off our debts. We have learnt our lesson the hard way and not have to grow up and be much more sensible.

We just feel lucky that we have managed to wake up before it is too late.

Good luck to all!!!