Please give me one piece of advice that you wish you knew when you were 20!

ms_london

I was already in debt at the age of 20, it all started with catalogues, then went onto credit cards, store cards, overdraft, loan etc etc. I ended up running up a debt of £19,000 on 'stuff' - I had nothing whatsoever to show for it, it all went on going out, clothes, hair, make up, holidays and to bump up my poor wage - all materialistic rubbish which took years to pay back!! However, paying it back taught me what is truly important, and now when I feel myself 'slip' I come on here and it reminds me what IS important in life.

I feel grateful to have learnt my lesson early on, and although I am 30 now, I have the rest of my life knowing the importance of money - but obviously I wish I had learnt this 10 years ago, but I can't go back and change time.

After paying off my debt I saved £10,000 to go travelling with, was away for 2 years and had an amazing time, but unfortunately run up a bit of debt since getting back as a result of the recession and not having work, but that taught me another lesson of not being able to control everything and also the importance of having a rainy day fund (I like the idea of having a 'F*** you' fund, at first I thought it was a fund talking about your other half, not your boss!). So 2011 is about saving as much as I can!

I think this thread deserves to be post of the week as it has already motivated a couple of posters, and really is a useful insight!

You do need a balance and don't want to be too strict with yourself money wise though as there is plenty of time for that, just everything in moderation. Work out what is important and work towards it!

Stick on MSE too, love this site xx

System

if you meet someone and they are 14 years older than you with 2 kids they don't see (and don't fight to see) and in a rented flat and in debt despite earning £15k a year more than you DON'T IGNORE THE ALARM BELLS and get sucked into a relationship with them. There's a reason why they're in that situation even though they may give you a sob story about being left in the lurch by exes. Don't lend them your £5k savings to pay off their council tax and rent arrears and then feel sorry for them each month and say it's OK don't pay me back this month. Don't move in with them because you will end up miserable and you'll never see your money again and you'll start to see through their sob stories and realise it's because they got where they are because they were a useless lowlife. If you have doubts about someone don't get together with them, certainly don't move in together and NEVER lend them money. Wait until you meet a nice man who has the means to support themselves and live together as equals.

Dellers

cashbackqueen wrote: »

if you meet someone and they are 14 years older than you with 2 kids they don't see (and don't fight to see) and in a rented flat and in debt despite earning £15k a year more than you DON'T IGNORE THE ALARM BELLS and get sucked into a relationship with them. There's a reason why they're in that situation even though they may give you a sob story about being left in the lurch by exes. Don't lend them your £5k savings to pay off their council tax and rent arrears and then feel sorry for them each month and say it's OK don't pay me back this month. Don't move in with them because you will end up miserable and you'll never see your money again and you'll start to see through their sob stories and realise it's because they got where they are because they were a useless lowlife. If you have doubts about someone don't get together with them, certainly don't move in together and NEVER lend them money. Wait until you meet a nice man who has the means to support themselves and live together as equals.

Aymen to that :T

pupsicola

If you get into a relationship with someone always have seperate bank accounts. That way you are both responsible for yourselves and cant get the other into ridiculous debt. It also means that no-one else can try to control you and what you can spend. No prizes for realising I was with a monstrous control freak for a while.

OMAR

I think things happen for a reason.....I was 20 and in debt, now at 26 and debt free.....I love it....but have learned the hard way. My advice is one account for spending, one account for bills and one credit card for emergencies. End Off lol

caroline1973lefty

not one but 3 linked suggestions for things i really wish i'd known at 20 -

1. buy (or ask for presents of) stuff that will last rather than stuff that seems cheap - especially shoes, socks, saucepans and kitchen appliances!

2. things made from natural materials (wool, wood, leather, silk) tend to improve with age whereas things made from artificial materials (plastic, acrylic, polyester) tend to wear badly and be hard to mend.

3. 'beauty products' and 'fashion' don't do much for your appearance - avoid advertising and magazines as they just push these. For a healthy glow, sparkling eyes and a good figure, its far more important get enough sleep, exercise, fresh air, good food, water, relaxation and loving company, and to wear things that are comfortable and make you feel good.

msgnomey

Simple . Spend less than you earn.

Oh and read a book called the money secret

Hime

It is hard not to be blinded by love! But even in the rosy glow, there are sometimes indications that a loved one is a bit carefree with one's own dosh. It is very hard to say that you want to agree on financial boundaries when everything else is so good, (was for me) but it is worth it. It is part of being honest and clear and that way the chance of hurt and disappointment are at least reduced. And the relationship is one built on openess.....
Joint accounts - I did this and it was a disaster. I would save into one like mad (to buy a home) and then discover it cleared out for some 'need'. A holiday away, again I had a sum for it and was told that as we were a couple it was really all in one pot, his dosh and mine, only he didn't have any. That meant the hire car, insurance the lot, was in my name. (He had an issue with his licence too). It was great holiday, but sad for me. I was not comfortable with the assurances that he would get things sorted and that he had money coming in. I felt a bit used.
So it ended, not just because of this, but it was a factor. OK, enough for early on a Wed. Off to sell a BED.....

hollydays

Wish I had saved 10 to 15% of every wage packet,thats such good advice,and when you get a pay rise continue to take the same percentage,you wont even miss it.
When you have a car,you will never have much money,so dont get one unless you understand that.Understand that some people tie other people into relationships by getting them into joint debt.

jolester

When I was 18 I was already in a fairly well paid job, and so as I lived with my parents I decided to take out a £15k loan purely to blow on things that I would enjoy, ie car, nice holidays, designer clothes etc, and arranged to pay it back over 5 years so that at the age of 23 I'd be debt free, have lived a bit of life and be ready to buy a house and settle down.

I'm 30, I'm still paying off this original loan!

You get sucked into refinancing, or taking out an extra couple of grand at no extra cost, just taking a few extra months to pay it over and so the snowball grows.

I didn't even spend the money on what I intended to !