The Debt Free Roll Of Honour

MuffinTops

I have decided that I'm at a protentially great crossroads now regarding finances and to make sure I stay on the right course I need to declare my achievements. That way I can start updating this site and set up a new diary with a fresh sense of purpose rather than sit back and start the squandering cycle all over again.

So:
a. The date of your lightbulb moment:
That was 26 November 2011 which is when I started my diary.
b. Debts at their highest:
Oh I dread to think, but not as bad as some. I guess around £12,000 but I started a diary at £7,500
c. Debt-Free Date: 01 October 2012
d. Your one perl of wisdom.
Keep getting back on track no matter how tremendously you fall. We all fall at some point so we all understand the challenges.
e. Which MSE guides helped you:
I'm not big on reading the guides but the weekly email is great to keep the focus alive and show you things you may not already know about.
f. Which forum threads helped you: Mostly the DFW forum diaries and finding people in similar situations to me who I could relate to. Those reallye helped to boost me along during difficult times.
g. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it. I had a couple of diaries but none exciting enough to add here.

So, that's me. My next step was to be MFW.

jaydeeuk1

a. The date of your lightbulb moment

Can't remember exactly, August/September 2009 was when I realised how bad my debts were (approx £15k then). I had been in debt since the 3rd year of uni, it became the norm and a way of life for me. I was never really depressed, I haven't got that sort of personality but watching nearly 1/4 of my wages each month being swallowed up by payments and interest made me angry. I found this forum when trying to make some spare cash in 2006/7 (thank you matched betting!) but I soon read pretty much every guide and forum on here. Trouble is my thirst for making money and finding new loopholes is actually addicitve!


b. Debts at their highest

£20000 December 2011


c. Debt-Free Date

1/4/2014. Debts as far as banks etc were cleared on 5th March, however I borrowed a quid from a mate and paid back today so I could treat the 1st of the month as a new start :rotfl:


d. Your one pearl of wisdom.

Wife's granddad says "you haven't got a problem if it can be solved by money", and after my mum and wife having (had!) cancer, and my dads poor health its true. Banks can go ram themselves.

Although I absolutely love my job as a programmer, the wages were poor. I began this job straight after Uni and 8 years later I was still earning less than £20k, the supposed starting salary for a graduate! However I kept going (it was like working with a bunch of mates), even the 4 months or so without pay just to keep the company going and stop all the hard work we had done going to waste. This was repaid at the end of 2011 by me becoming a director too and a much better wage which allowed me to pay off the my £20k debt over the last 15 months.

e. Which MSE guides helped you

Credit card guides and bank charge reclaiming, although it did no good as Barclays rejected my claim despite my account not being in credit for 8 years and using up my £3000 overdraft. Now they're only too happy to lend me money or ask if I want investment advice . Sod off, Barclays, off to join First Direct.

Will need to start a pension now so that will be the next guide I read!

f. Which forum threads helped you


Matched betting - it kept me afloat during the years 2006-2011 and let me pay for holidays without feeling guilty

g. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it

No diary, just watching my bank account go from its overdraft to credit was enough to keep me going.

xJoJox_3

Well I've finally done it!!! :j It has taken so long I am onto my second user name as I got locked out of my first!

a. The date of your lightbulb moment
April 2007, I was refused a mortgage and realised that I had to get my debt under control.
b. Debts at their highest
£16000
c. Debt-Free Date
1st March 2014 :beer:
d. Your one perl of wisdom.
You have to totally change your attitude to money to be able to value it. I have now started to save and am loving it!
e. Which MSE guides helped you
All of them! The budget planner was the key to everything.
f. Which forum threads helped you
I loved the no spend day challenge but also the advice on boosting your income by doing surveys and competitions was great help
g. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it
I never got round to creating one.

Right, now to tackle the mortgage.....

Billy-no-Money

So it’s here at last – after being permanently in debt for thirty years I’m now debt free!

I always had detailed financial records; I never missed a payment, never went over an overdraft. I just fooled myself that I could afford my outgoings and I didn’t have a life plan. Somehow it would all work out. I'd been brought up in a poor working-class home where there was no debt, but we lived from week to week.

I promised myself I would be out of debt by my 50th birthday, and I've done it with six months to spare!

a.The date of your light-bulb moment
October 2007 – Barclaycard reduced my credit limit leaving me with £100 headroom.
Along with the Northern Rock collapse I realised the game was over and recognised that this was just the beginning; it would only get worse. Which it did, when a few months later MBNA doubled my interest rate, almost doubling the minimum payment. Thankfully by then I’d stabilised things and was able to move the debt, but I was on a knife edge for at least another two years.

b. Debts at their highest
Around £55,000 – frightening, with very little to show for it.
(To put it into perspective, I'm on a £50k salary)

c. Debt-Free Date
April 2014

d. Your one pearl of wisdom.
Stop approximating and watch the pennies. If you already owe £1000, another £100 DOES matter!

e. Which MSE guides helped you
None specifically, just the general wealth of information, especially up to date news and advice.
I also used the calculators on whatsthecost.com – and still do.

f. Which forum threads helped you
Lots – a feeling of not being alone really helped. I was open about my situation with friends and colleagues, and I think I inspired others to do the same.

g. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it
I didn’t have one.


This has been a long journey - seven years from the LBM, and many years of sleepless nights before that. Life doesn't stay still for that long, so I've had to stop and re-plan several times.
Fortunately for the first two years things were stable, and I managed to start reducing my credit card balances. That was painfully slow in building momentum, but once the ball was rolling I could see progress. I did snowball for a bit, but then successfully applied for a Zopa marketplace loan - that meant going through an intensely personal scrutiny, but the end result was a loan at a lower interest rate than I could ever hope to get from a bank at the time. I also felt a personal obligation to those who loaned to me, which helped incentivise me to pay it back.

After about three years I was living reasonably comfortably and allowed myself a bit more spending; didn't go back to my old ways, just started to live life a bit. No holidays though. I could probably have paid all this off two years earlier if I'd kept up the original pace, but I knew I was in control at last.

We did all the standard things; saved on utilities etc, shopped in Aldi / Lidl when it was still seen as what 'poor' people did (the car parks were only ever half full, now people are queuing to get in). One of the biggest savings came from going down to one car; I live ten miles from work and took up cycle commuting, so not only have I saved money, I'm much healthier. I also put aside my 'petrol money' each day and that's where my treats come from.
I’ve repaired things I never thought could be repaired – the internet has saved me thousands in advice and getting the best price.

We still have about £50k of mortgage left but there's a real chance we'll have that paid off in five years' time as long as I still have a job; my wife gets her pension including a lump sum in 2018 so that will make a big difference.

I would have been through this before now but last year I was able to give my son £1000 towards his wedding; it might not seem much to many people, but he didn't expect it (he knew my situation) and it gave me great pleasure to be able to surprise him.
This is one of the most bittersweet days of my life; overjoyed, but sad at so much wasted money and time. But I'm only 50, in good health, and appreciate what I've got.

Maybe next year we’ll get round to having a holiday!

Upsidedown_Bear

Congratulations Billy-no-Money :T:T
Maybe your user name should be Billy-now-has-money

GunWharf

Wow Billy-no-Money, fantastic. :j

Your Journey will continue for us and certainly for me as I will be reverting back to your post when times get difficult for me. Great motivator.

All the best from the South Coast.

Hopelessly_Hopeful

Billy-no-Money wrote: »

So it’s here at last – after being permanently in debt for thirty years I’m now debt free!

I always had detailed financial records; I never missed a payment, never went over an overdraft. I just fooled myself that I could afford my outgoings and I didn’t have a life plan. Somehow it would all work out. I'd been brought up in a poor working-class home where there was no debt, but we lived from week to week.

I promised myself I would be out of debt by my 50th birthday, and I've done it with six months to spare!

a.The date of your light-bulb moment
October 2007 – Barclaycard reduced my credit limit leaving me with £100 headroom.
Along with the Northern Rock collapse I realised the game was over and recognised that this was just the beginning; it would only get worse. Which it did, when a few months later MBNA doubled my interest rate, almost doubling the minimum payment. Thankfully by then I’d stabilised things and was able to move the debt, but I was on a knife edge for at least another two years.

b. Debts at their highest
Around £55,000 – frightening, with very little to show for it.
(To put it into perspective, I'm on a £50k salary)

c. Debt-Free Date
April 2014

d. Your one pearl of wisdom.
Stop approximating and watch the pennies. If you already owe £1000, another £100 DOES matter!

e. Which MSE guides helped you
None specifically, just the general wealth of information, especially up to date news and advice.
I also used the calculators on whatsthecost.com – and still do.

f. Which forum threads helped you
Lots – a feeling of not being alone really helped. I was open about my situation with friends and colleagues, and I think I inspired others to do the same.

g. And if you had a debt diary on DFW, a link to it
I didn’t have one.


This has been a long journey - seven years from the LBM, and many years of sleepless nights before that. Life doesn't stay still for that long, so I've had to stop and re-plan several times.
Fortunately for the first two years things were stable, and I managed to start reducing my credit card balances. That was painfully slow in building momentum, but once the ball was rolling I could see progress. I did snowball for a bit, but then successfully applied for a Zopa marketplace loan - that meant going through an intensely personal scrutiny, but the end result was a loan at a lower interest rate than I could ever hope to get from a bank at the time. I also felt a personal obligation to those who loaned to me, which helped incentivise me to pay it back.

After about three years I was living reasonably comfortably and allowed myself a bit more spending; didn't go back to my old ways, just started to live life a bit. No holidays though. I could probably have paid all this off two years earlier if I'd kept up the original pace, but I knew I was in control at last.

We did all the standard things; saved on utilities etc, shopped in Aldi / Lidl when it was still seen as what 'poor' people did (the car parks were only ever half full, now people are queuing to get in). One of the biggest savings came from going down to one car; I live ten miles from work and took up cycle commuting, so not only have I saved money, I'm much healthier. I also put aside my 'petrol money' each day and that's where my treats come from.
I’ve repaired things I never thought could be repaired – the internet has saved me thousands in advice and getting the best price.

We still have about £50k of mortgage left but there's a real chance we'll have that paid off in five years' time as long as I still have a job; my wife gets her pension including a lump sum in 2018 so that will make a big difference.

I would have been through this before now but last year I was able to give my son £1000 towards his wedding; it might not seem much to many people, but he didn't expect it (he knew my situation) and it gave me great pleasure to be able to surprise him.
This is one of the most bittersweet days of my life; overjoyed, but sad at so much wasted money and time. But I'm only 50, in good health, and appreciate what I've got.

Maybe next year we’ll get round to having a holiday!

Many congratulations


Sounds like you did your son proud in many ways.


Get planning that holiday it will keep our savings focussed


HHx

wiggels

Congratulations xx

looking_forward_not_back

WOW
What an inspiration. I have just started out on my DF journey and am positive that with little changes and a lot of determination I too will be in the same boat as you.

You should be very proud of your achievement and deserve a huge pat on the back.

Maybe you could squirrel away a little here and there and have a well deserved holiday. Something nice to look forward to.

Reading your story has made me even more determined to stick with my DF plan

Thankyou for sharing your journey and congratulations to you. :T

TOOMUCHWORRY

I (we) became debt free this week :j

LBM : July 2011

Debt at highest : £25,000

Debt free date :14th April 2014

Pearl of wisdom : Money/credit can't buy peace of mind.

MSE Guides: Everything was helpful

Forum : Debt free wannabees : for inspiration

Thank you to everyone who posts on this forum. Every contribution helps someone on their journey xx