The Debt Free Roll Of Honour

mazxx1

LIGHTBULB MOMENT: February 2006 - when i finally registered with this site...

DEBT AT HIGHEST: Just over 30k from 1 loan & five CC's

DEBT FREE DATE: TODAY!!! 23rd March 2010

PEARL OF WISDOM: Budget, budget, budget & stick to it. Its the only way to have some sort of life & still know you are clearing the debt

Thanks MSEr's - Today would never have come if it were not for the advcie within these boards...im off to celebrate!!!

immoral_angeluk

LIGHTBULB MOMENT: The light's been on since 2006 and I was debt free, but sadly due to a divorce and trying to survive a year on income support I ran up approx £1500-£1600 worth of debt since September 2009.

DEBT AT HIGHEST: £1500-£1600ish

DEBT FREE DATE: 24th March 2010

PEARL OF WISDOM: This is my second time around, so I suppose the only thing I can say is to bear in mind that life isn't straight forward and things crop up. So long as you're in control of it and willing to sort it out once you are physically able to then that's all that matters

elsie52

Well done to you all..:T:T:T:T:T:T:T......I can't wait until my name is on this board..

mummum2

elsie52 wrote: »

Well done to you all..:T:T:T:T:T:T:T......I can't wait until my name is on this board..

Ditto!!!:beer::beer::j:j:j:j:T:T:T:T:beer::beer::beer::T:T

keza

a. The date of your lightbulb moment: may 2008
b. Debts at their highest: £15,000
c. Debt-Free Date: TODAY! 24/03/2010
d. Your one perl of wisdom.: dont keep money in ur purse, u wont spend it! Payment a day! a little payment chips away at a debt without u even noticing! Set yourself a budget each week and stick to it! You can and will do it!
e. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=2147695&highlight=

xxx:)

mummum2

Wow! well done you, totally an inspiration £15K in under 2 years, well done! :beer::j:T:T:T:T:T:j:j

MM2

Effy

Lightbulb Moment: about 2 and a half years ago

Debt at highest: £5,600

Debt Free Date: July 2009

Pearls of Wisdom: The same as others really, budget (I do every month before I get paid), come on here often, it spurs you on, and be proud of yourself for being a grown up and sorting your debt out

Silverbird

I cannot believe I am finally posting here. It seems so surreal, yet so amazing! :j

I had my light-bulb moment back in June 2007. My debts had accumulated due to supporting my now-husband and I when we moved around 150 miles or so away from all friends and family to start our life together. Unfortunately it took a few months for my OH to get a job and he had a large amount of debt at the time. I therefore ended up paying all the bills as well as paying his creditors. It was a very difficult and anxious time. I also got a loan to help us pay for our wedding that year, as it was obvious that my OH wasn't going to be able to help any more. I don't regret doing this, as we were ready to get married and it meant a lot to us and it was a really fantastic day and very memorable.

My debts at their highest were at my LBM in June 2007 and totalled £8,189.19.

I became debt-free yesterday - 26.03.10.

It seems like a long time to reduce what may seem to some as a fairly small amount of debt, but since my LBM I have been paying 90% of the bills, leaving me with very little disposable income each month (OH has far worse debts and I felt he should continue throwing almost every bit of his wages at them in order for them to drastically decrease, which indeed they have).

I spent yesterday celebrating being debt-free when I made my call to pay off my loan off almost 2 years early. We had a lovely lunch, went shopping (only spent £11 on 2 tops in the sale - my MSE ways will never leave me), went and played unlimited bowling and then had a lovely meal at a posh restaurant. I ended the night drinking the Moet and Chandon champagne my parents bought me for my 21st birthday (8 years ago!) and which I'd saved and saved until there was a day I felt was cause enough to drink it. Yesterday was that day.

I have a few pearls of wisdom to those still on their debt-free journey:

1. Use this site as much as you possibly can and thoroughly read through all of the items on the weekly newsletter.

2. Create a log of your debts with the Snowball Calculator and keep it updated every month. It gives you such a buzz when you see the predicted debt-free date get nearer and nearer.

3. Don't add to your debt. Your goal is pay off your debt - adding to it will just be taking a step back and ruining your hard work. It may mean sacrificing some things and scrimping on others, but it's worth it in the end. This site has some fantastic ideas on how to make your money go further.

4. Save all of your 'unexpected money' and use it to pay off a debt. This includes money found on the floor (it soon adds up), money won from competitions, money from extra jobs, money from surveys, money from selling unwanted items on eBay and Amazon (I got a lot of money doing this) etc. It was 'unexpected' so paying it off a debt will make no difference to your normal wages, but it'll make a huge difference to the total of your debt.

5. Get subscribed to this fantastic Debt Free Roll of Honour thread (if you're not already) and select to receive an email every time somebody posts and then go and read it. I found this so inspiring and would always tell my OH when somebody had posted and how much they'd paid off and how long it had took them. It made me feel so happy and I would often read an entry and stare wistfully out of the window, dreaming of how it would feel to finally be able to post here myself. And here I am.

Here is a link to my debt-free wannabe diary for those who are interested:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=489512

Keep up the good work everybody and remember - you'll be posting here one day and it feels fantastic!


A huge thank you to Martin for the creation of this life-changing website and all that comes with it. I would never have become debt-free as soon as I have without the help from this website and that's a fact. My thanks also to everybody on the forums - you've made the journey so much easier and although you wouldn't want anybody to go through being in debt like you are, it's still a great feeling to know that so many people on here are feeling the same as you and that you're not alone.

I am now going to go and donate some of my money to the MSE Charity Fund http://www.msecharity.com/index.html?pid=19 because I really feel I owe so much to this site and want to give something back. I hope it makes a difference to those in financial difficulties.

saorsie

Congratulations Silverbird on your debt-free status and thank you for writing such a lovely and inspiring post

-s-

mummum2

Yeah Silverbird, well done and congrats to a happy DF lifestyle. Thanks for your inspirational post. :j:beer::beer::T:T:T:j.

MM2