how did anyone give my wife £20k worth of credit on a card when she was unemployed

Quirkylass

KimYeovil wrote: »

house-holds with children have very large incomes. £20K of debt is perfectly affordable and available to any family with children.

What planet are you on?

Very large incomes? £20k debt is perfectly affordable?

I'm speechless and :mad:

ILW

noh wrote: »

Here is another generalisation.

Women are incapable of recognising irony.

They are good at ironing though.

mrsmag

KimYeovil wrote: »

What is all this 'chip' rubbish? I have used benefits figures to estimate numbers that a house-hold with children has access to. Regardless of source (whether solely wages or complemented with benefits) house-holds with children have very large incomes. £20K of debt is perfectly affordable and available to any family with children.

Quirkylass wrote: »

What planet are you on?

Very large incomes? £20k debt is perfectly affordable?

I'm speechless and :mad:

Quirkylass - This was my reaction to this comment too, and I would genuinely like to know if I am missing out on something here.

KimYeovil - As you can see I'm new here and I am not trying to get into some debate on whether parents should get these benefits or not, but I get no benefit (other than child benefit) and since you seem to have researched this, I wonder why you think my household has a large income - purely based on the fact that I have a child?! Child benefit gives me £80 per month - this doesn't even cover the interest on ONE of my credit cards.

If £20k is 'perfectly manageable' for us to pay back, I am thrilled to hear it - we currently owe about £10k and I assume that will be even easier? If I can stop worrying myself sick because I'm missing something, please let me know what it is!

gordikin

mrsmag wrote: »

Quirkylass - This was my reaction to this comment too, and I would genuinely like to know if I am missing out on something here.

KimYeovil - As you can see I'm new here and I am not trying to get into some debate on whether parents should get these benefits or not, but I get no benefit (other than child benefit) and since you seem to have researched this, I wonder why you think my household has a large income - purely based on the fact that I have a child?! Child benefit gives me £80 per month - this doesn't even cover the interest on ONE of my credit cards.

If £20k is 'perfectly manageable' for us to pay back, I am thrilled to hear it - we currently owe about £10k and I assume that will be even easier? If I can stop worrying myself sick because I'm missing something, please let me know what it is!

...most people have a mortgage debt way in excess of 50k and manage..so 20k is manageable I think.

OneHubbyOneSon4Debts

gordikin wrote: »

...most people have a mortgage debt way in excess of 50k and manage..so 20k is manageable I think.

What about the people who don't have mortages? Who live in rented property and struggle to even pay rent.

Would a 20k debt seem 'manageable' if you were the only breadwinner in the family on a low wage with a wife/hubby 3/4 children etc.

At the end of the day whether its a £500, 5k debt or 50k debt its all about your income and outgoings and if you can or cannot afford to pay your debts.

Everyones circumstances or different.

LovelyLeeds

boris_blackcat wrote: »

Whilst my wife was unemployed bringing up our children ...

I overlooked the real irony of this thread (soz was busy ironing at the time...)
:rotfl::T:rotfl:

birkee

Is that part of the problem? The way some people view debt?
Someone has say, a mortgages £100k, so people say debts of £100k are acceptable?
A mortgage to be paid over 25 years, and is buying the roof over your head, is REALLY not the same as a mortgage of £50k, and debts of £50k in other areas that need to be paid off within a couple of years.

Someone paying off a mortgage of £100k, presumably has the income to support that debt. Someone else with a debt of £1k, and is living hand to mouth, is in financial trouble.
For KimYeovil (presumably female?)to say debts of £20k are perfectly manageble, is telling me they have NO idea about financial management at all.
The ONLY debt that is manageble, is the one you are in a position to pay off within a sensible time, without sacrificing something else that is essential, to do so.

pvt

I think people are missing Gordikin's and other's points. I think the point is they DO have an idea about financial management.

Gordekin is absolutely right when he says many people have mortgage debts way in excess of these sums and are able to manage. The issue is about the debts being managable and appropriate.

Borrowing for a mortgage to buy a house to live in when you would otherwise have to pay rent, is a rational thing to do as you will end up with an asset of value when you finish paying for it.

And even borrowing £10k to pay for a car when you know you can afford the repayments seems justifiable. Though I wouldn't do it myself because I hate the idea of paying all that interest.

But borrowing £200 a month, month after month, to top up the shortfall between your income and outgoings on the other hand, is unsustainable and sheer madness.

I'm simply making the distinction here - I don't want to sound pious, but borrowing until you hit your credit limit to make ends meet and then going our looking for another credit card to make things worse is no way to address a fundamental problem.

The ultimate insult to the intelligence is vilifying credit card companies who's money has been borrowed and spent to fuel this lunacy.

pvt

birkee

Spelled out MUCH better than my attempt!

opinions4u

But borrowing £200 a month, month after month, to top up the shortfall between your income and outgoings on the other hand, is unsustainable and sheer madness.

Sums it up quite beautifully.

The amount involved doesn't even need to be £200. If it's £20 the problem is much the same. Spending more than you earn is a bad idea.

Gordon Brown promised to balance the nation's books over the economic cycle. At first it was seven years. Then he changed the rules and redefined economic cycle as nine years. Then eleven. Then it all blew up in his face because for some reason he assumed he'd built a recession proof economy. In reality all he'd done was spend our pensions before we get the chance and forgotten to set aside a contingency fund.