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

SKIPPY

My Dad always said to me that if you can't afford two of whatever it is you want to buy, don't buy one! In the main I have stuck except for my house!!

Decluttering

Thanks for creating this thread, I'm 19 and consider myself a DFW in training! (Ultimately I'm going to end up owing someone something one day but hopefully if I start now it will be a much lower value than it could be if I did nothing!)

Doberwoman

I'm only 27 but I was sooooo vain and shallow when I was 20.... consequently bought reeeealllyy stoopid stuff constantly: new clothes, mobiles, laptops, sportscar, highlights, false nails. Ultimately all to prove myself, which just proved my insecurity. So, my message is don't give a flying monkeys about trying to impress anyone because it never matters.
You're already very conscious and aware by your first post- so WELL DONE!!!

Posts about dating peeps in debt/or big spenders- I agree, they are bad for you if you're in a good position because you'll either adopt their extravagence, or help them out, or both. Which is all very altruistic and all but not so attractive on the bank balance.

Is there a MSE dating spin off in the lineup?!!

Lottebear

1. Don't believe what marketing people tell you
2. Save and invest in yourself, through travel and education
3. Don't spend a lot of money on "classic" wardrobe items, they won't last
4. Avoid any type of credit card
5. learn the different between need and want
6. Save and learn to invest.

joehoover

As everyone says, be careful with credit cards, in a way though never having one can have an adverse efect as you ahve no credit history to be judegd on for a mortgage for example, not sure how true this is, it happened to a freind who never had a credit card but he got the mortgage eventually but he was in a couple and they had a massive deposit of £50k from an inheritance.

My debtt started from my store card form the company I worked for at the time, thinking I was getting a good deal with my staff discount, but is only a good deal when you pay it back in full, the interest on one month soon cancelled out the staff discount. and Interest on store cards are some of the worst.

Just read peoples money saving advise on the site and don;t get into debt to begin with, If I could go back I would not have taken that first card out when I was on such a low wage at the time, and on subsequent cards I would have asked for the high limits they gave me to be reduced to something sensible and I would only use the card in emergencies or where credit cards had to be used for payments (car hire) I spent thousands on new CD's but this was before you could download them or copy from friends, now I buy second hand on Amazon, copy them and sell them on Amazon again.

Ashamed_2

Two small rules from me.
1) Don't be affraid to say "sorry, I can't afford it. Maybe next time."
2) If you don't have the money, wait until you do.

Peer pressure and feeling left our or wanting to feel important are the main reasons we spend money. It's all about showing others what you have achieved through material goods. You don't need Jimmy Chan shoes or an Iphone to increase your popularity.


Just remember this... If you can resist keeping up with them now. You'll be flying past them in the next few years.

I'm talking from experience but the wrong sort. i.e. I did it all wrong and it started when I was about your age. Oh, if I could turn back the clock and heed to my own words now.

Good luck.

Nottoobadyet

I'd add that debt can be a good thing if it is a means to a very, very specific end and you have a reasonable plan for paying it off. My debt was the tuition for my MSc - yes, I could have waited 5 years to have the money up front, but for a million reasons Im glad I didn't. I kept it to a minimum by working to cover my living costs and then worked hard to pay it off, which was of course a pain. But if I hadnt taken on that debt I'd have been rat racing for much longer at a much lower wage doing something that I dont love as much as what my MSc has allowed me to do.

So yes, be strategic but never lose sight of the fact that things need to be paid for!

poppyscorner

By 20 I was already up to my neck in it !!

10yrs ago I turned 18 and I celebrated that by taking out every store card credit card and catalogue I could get my hands on ! Also took out mobile contract and used to run up high bills up to £300 some months ! worked a minimum wage job and couldn't afford to pay it all off

I got pregnant at 19 too and my little girl was stilborn when I was 8 months gone my answer = shopping would make me feel better ! Had my first son a year later and then the credit ran dry was depressed big style and it took me a long time to come to terms with my debt. DS2 came along four years later and I was still battling with it.

It was at a level of 7k ish and it may seem small but it crippled me for a long time it's all resolved now and I'm back to debt free but even if i wanted credit I can't get it the file is still obliterated.

I do want to have credit again not credit or store cards but I want a mortgage with my fiance we can't have one til its clear not with the current financial climate anyway and we are trying to save all the time i'm still not that great with budgeting really but I'm trying to get better and im not using credit so i think i'm doing ok so far

My advice - Never have the insane notion that credit is free money ! By my own admission that is exactly how I viewed it and your life can change so quickly you find that one month you can manage and the next you can't it all snowballs from there

saver_gem

Get rid of credit cards/loans, look for deals on everything (wish this website was about when i was 20!) SAVE SAVE SAVE

Also when i was 18 i could have got a mortgage for a 40k flat which is now 150k, of course now i cant get a mortgage for that even if my credit rating wasnt ****, but i could have, and i could have afforded it too. Bad advice from someone put me off! :mad:

tibbles209

Thanks so much everyone for all the helpful replies I'll take all your advice on board!