Is having to much "stuff" the problem ?

Bestthingsinlifearefree

jak wrote:

i WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT TO IMPLY THAT EVERYONE HAS WASTED MONEY AND IS NOW IN DEBT IS A SHORTSIGHTED VIEW. pEOPLE HAVE LOTS OF DIFERENT REASONS. My resons are as follows: Joint finances with very bad ex. I gave him money to pay bills, he spent money and hid final notices etc. and ran up massive phone bill while I was in hospital extremely ill.
When I got out, had no idea. When we split up, debtors found me after I moved, some only recently, (3 years later) and I had to use credit card to pay off bills. This accounts for about 70% of my debt.
The other 30% is my BAD totally.

Hi Jak,

I am not implying that EVERYONE in debt has wasted money.

People get in debt for many "valid" reasons e.g they get sick, they lose their job, a big repair bill comes in or they go to university etc etc.

What is interesting is to see how many people who are in debt also have all that stuff (which costs a lot of money to buy).

Also one of the lessons to be learnt is that while the times are good save some money and don't just spend it on stuff. As you need to save money in case you lose your job, have a baby, get sick etc to give you a financial cushion.

Build your safety net when you are working then buy stuff.

I think the link between stuff and debt is a strong one.

Best.

yung

Having all those things above does not necessarily get you into debt, it is the available of credit and the naivety of individual thinking they can live beyond their mean that is the problem.

pudding06

1

) A computer at home (both use internet access at work
2)Have just one car (I cycle to work).
3)No camcorder
4)No ipod
5)no sat nav
6)until recently one pay as you go mobile between 2 of us.(mobiles are not camera mobiles) only when she became pregant did we buy a mobile for me.
7)one tv in the house (non plasma)
8)no lap top.
9) no play station
10) we don't have many dvd's or CD's.
11) we don't have the full sky package.
12)no digital camera.

!) computer yes and wouldnt be without it
2) yes 2 cars both needed for work though only use one when possible
3) no camcorder
4) no ipod
5) no sat nav - i'm the best navigator there is - drive to spain every year!!
6) 2 payg mobiles at £5 or less pmth sometimes about £2 per month each!!
7) one cheapo widescreen tv ( asda£199 when tv went off) one old one for playong games on, adultkids all have thier own though which impacts on lec bills
8) no lap top
9) playstation yes
10) yes - but only those bought as pressies, and DS's buy them and we watch wm for free!
11) our NTL is not optional but only pay £4 pmth. no reception without it
12) digital cameral yes - but was a combined xmas and birthaday pressie for us both form MIL last year



but we do have a dvd and a dvd recorder ( dont use both at once though)


hope there no burglars on here - we'd be sitting ducks !!!!!

pudds

Anastacia

In your position I would buy a camcorder (look for a deal obviously - no need to pay too much). Looking back at film of your new baby learning to crawl etc is infintely more enjoyable than counting your money. Although obviously if its not then i wouldn't invest in the baby.

JohnInDebt

jak wrote:

i WOULD LIKE TO SAY THAT TO IMPLY THAT EVERYONE HAS WASTED MONEY AND IS NOW IN DEBT IS A SHORTSIGHTED VIEW. pEOPLE HAVE LOTS OF DIFERENT REASONS.

The OP wasn't suggesting that hence the question mark and not a statement.

Is having to much "stuff" the problem ?

For me it was the problem in the early stages, then the consolidation bug got hold of me and it spiralled from there.

The debt that I have left now is probably just interest that has accumulated through the years making bad financial decisions.

Bestthingsinlifearefree

Anastacia wrote:

In your position I would buy a camcorder (look for a deal obviously - no need to pay too much). Looking back at film of your new baby learning to crawl etc is infintely more enjoyable than counting your money. Although obviously if its not then i wouldn't invest in the baby.

my dad has a camcorder, so I will borrow that to film baby (though he is only 10 days old at the moment so not to dynamic :rotfl: )

It is interesting how people justify their stuff as essential.

The difference between what you NEED (food, shelter etc) and what you WANT (dvd's, computer, mobile, play station) is an important lesson to learn.

Best.

livinginhope

We have a lap top,this is the Only access we have to the internet,DH cannot use a PC at work.
We have a sat nav,cheap one,essential for DH's job :rolleyes:
1 car,1 motorbike,both 9 years old
PAYG mobile each,nothing fancy
no i pod,no camcorder,no digital camera
2 TVs,1 upstairs,1 downstairs,no sky just freeview
no playstation or x box etc.

I don't think anyone is unusual for not having this stuff,it's certainly not the cause of our debt.
Everything in my house is brand new,but that's only because we lost EVERYTHING in the fire last year,people coming in say ooh isn't your house lovely,but on closer inspection they realise there is nothing of any value here,just all matches because it was all picked at the same time,unlike our old furniture which was 'collected' over the years :rolleyes:

lady_fuschia

1) Yes, but it was a gift.
2)No car at all, never have had one.
3)No
4)No
5)Obviously no!
6)Yes PAYG phone each, but rarely used and mine was free as it was my Mum's old one.
7)one tv in the house (15 years old! Before I moved in with OH I'd never owned one)
8)no
9) no
10) OK a fair few CDs, but mostly Woolies £5.99 deals. These days I go even further and borrow them from the library and don't buy any anymore
11) Don't even have digital.
12)Yes, but was a freebie.
13) No

I have to say in the past on various forums (not this one I'm pleased to say) I've been quite annoyed when asking for advice with my debts and getting the response "You don't need to go on holiday three times a year" (scuse me? One would be nice!) "Stop buying designer clothes!" (They must mean the ones I got from charity shops) and "Cut yourself down to one night out a week." (Cut myself DOWN??). I'm sure there are some people out there who spend extravagantly beyond their means, and I admit t least some of my debt is down to buying things I shouldn't have done now and then, but I'm talking a couple of CDs or one tpp many t-shirts from Oxfam.

A lot of older people I think assume that younger people are all determined to live some kind of celebrity lifestyle and keep repeating how in their day they lived without furniture and walked 7 miles to work every day, and I do find it a bit annoying- I don't know ANYONE who buys designer clothes or goes out every night. We all buy things we shouldn't now and then, and irresponsible lending hasn't helped us to stop that- but I think the number of true shopaholics is much lower than most people think.

I do know people who get quite smug about their "never been in debt" status and tell me how they only have one car and no computer as if that's the magic formula for debt avoidance- carefully skimming over their £30k a year salaries! When you're on minimum wage trying to make the decision between travelling to a relatives funeral and feeding yourself and the kids, debt isn't a matter of "stuff". I think relatively few people live a truly extravagant lifestyle. But when you earn very little even going to the cinema a few times a year can seem extravagant and trigger guilt, whereas most people on £20k + probably wouldn't see that as particularly over the top.

Its very easy to dismiss the debt problem as a need for "stuff", and for some people maybe its true, but I don't think I know anyone who has all, or even most of the things on the list given by the OP.

livinginhope

[QUOTE=Bestthingsinlifearefree

I think the link between stuff and debt is a strong one.

[/QUOTE]
Couldn't be further from the truth in my case
LIH

bobble_hat

Bestthingsinlifearefree wrote:

1) A computer at home (both use internet access at work;) No sold against debt
2)Have just one car (I cycle to work). Our car is 6 years old ie. year 2000 reg. yes, is ancient but gave me the freedom to leave a bad relationship. Used only once a week. And a long journey once a month.
3)No camcorder no
4)No ipod yes, not bought at full price
5)no sat nav no
6)until recently one pay as you go mobile between 2 of us.(mobiles are not camera mobiles) only when she became pregnant did we buy a mobile for me. yes, but ancient and PAYG
7)one tv in the house (non plasma) yes, supplied with rented room
8)no lap top. no
9) no play station no
10) we don't have many dvd's or CD's. very few
11) we don't have the full sky package. supplied with room
12)no digital camera. yes, not bought at full price
13) No dishwasher. supplied in rented house

I have nice things, but am in debt because I mismanaged my money, ate out when I could have eaten in, taken a taxi instead of the bus, bought overly generous rounds in the pub and overly generous presents for friends. Plus had a nasty car accident and resulting expensive dental treatments. Came out of an unhealthy relationship with not a great deal to call my own, because I chose not to take my tainted belongings with me. And another where I'm still owed money.

Life sometimes deals us nasty blows and we haven't all got the resources to deal with those blows. One person's journey of how they got into debt will be radically different from the next person's, but I think I can safely say that for all of us it creeps up on you because you can't or don't want to acknowledge it, just like putting on weight. For myself the two have gone hand in hand and are dissapearing hand-in-hand too. Nowadays I don't have what I can't afford.