Debt Free Day

mattwhite1

Today is my debt free day! :j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j:j

I didnt realise how bad it was a few years ago until I got my credit report, always too afraid to check. My wife suffers from Bipolar Disorder and was in and out of work, I had to pay the bills and used loans and credit cards to cover us. Then a credit card to cover a credit card, and the list goes on. Our total debt stood at 42k at its highest, as highlighted by my credit report.

2 years ago (today as it happens) I got made redundant, and I thought it was the worst day of my life, and the worst thing that could happen to me. No money, no job, redundancy payoff enough to cover 3 months paying ALL bills, or 6 months paying only essential.

I got a great opportunity, but it meant leaving London (where I had friends and family) and moving 'Oop North' (where I had none), taking a 25% pay cut (to be expected in a recession).

When I got here on 1st November, my Debt was £29,900. My pay started to come through, I was forced to sue my old employers and received an amount equivalent to an extra months pay (I didnt want to go to court either) so set about paying my debts off. I was smart (and lucky) enough to negotiate payment windows just prior to starting my new job, of a year payment free, so the £750 that would have been pouring out a month onto debt (minimum payment) could be saved. In Feb 2011, I cleared a £7800 Amex Debt, in May I cleared 2 Egg Cards, with a combined debt of £6200, and finished the year in December by clearing my Marbles card of £7200. Happy to say that my year finished off with clearing £21k of debt.

2012 started with a holiday, so I could probably have reached this day quicker, but all work and no play etc etc. My last remaining debt was transferred from Egg (loan) to Britannia - I never recieved any correspondence from them, so didnt chase. We finally spoke, we agreed on a £1 a month repayment window for 6 months, that ended next month. I cleared that debt today.

Dont get me wrong, I financially exploited the credit crunch, and short settled all my debts through hard negotiation, consequently my credit report is a mess. I was happy to continue because defaults had already been registered, and hey how much worse could it get? While I claim to be debt free, I do owe my parents £3k, but they are in no rush for that, they are not adding interest to it, and it can be dealt with in a few months without going through any financial hardship.

I came to realise that my worst day had become my best day. Prior to that day I had paid my bills as I should, wasnt late, but wasnt making a dent because I was only able to cover the minimum. By being forced to negotiate, to stop paying, to give myself some wiggle room I was able to put myself in a position to actually fight back a little. No I didnt pay the entire £29,900, I probably paid around half that, but the end result is the same and I arrived at the day that it would have taken me another 10 years to achieve going the way I was going.

The surge of relief now washes over me, and the cathartic experience of writing it down here give me that happy feeling. My wife cried at the thought of being debt free since she has felt responsible for this for years. I now have no loans, no credit cards and I couldnt be happier in all honesty.

sparklefrog

Congratulations. Its a wonderful feeling isn't it.

Hope you're enjoying life 'oop north' too. :beer:

Tigert

Congratulations - Got there myself last week and still can't quite beleive it.

HeadAboveWater

Aw congratulations for sure :T Very well done. Hope the 'happy' feeling lasts for a long, long time

eyeopener2

YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well done, enjoy your new freedom from debt slavery.

This is the 1st day of the rest of your life.

Lisa1978

Fantastic, well done December can't come quick enough for me for my Debt Free Day :)

mummy2threeboys

Thats wonderful news congratulations! xx

mattwhite1

Have been smiling all week since, still elated.

Aryndeneth

This is fantastic and so helpful for people who are feeling afraid or overwhelmed by their debt to see that it can be done. I'm three months from my own DFD and cannot wait!

katy_ann

Congratulatons! Fantastic news, I cant wait to say the same thing!

soappie

Thanks Matt, this is indeed encouraging - I have just started on the DMP route.