Debt, but "want" a holiday.

LannieDuck

Just wondering, how much is your 10 plate car worth? You're planning to spend £4k to buy it out. Is it worth £6k, or £8k?

Once you buy it out, could you sell it to finance two cheaper cars?

Roland_Sausage

If you can afford to go on holiday without getting into further debt, then I say go for it.

Whilst I appreciate a lot of the advice on this board, I do find some of the people to be a bit extreme, such as those who feel you should have to plough every last spare penny into paying off your debt and go 20 days a month without spending money to do so. Or those that say if you have debt then you can't afford a holiday.

Don't get me wrong, I want to pay off my debt and am making good progress in doing so. But at the same time I am not going to make it my sole focus in life, and still want to have one or two luxuries. It is these small luxuries that get us through life.

I believe a balance can be struck which is why as well as paying off my debt, I save a little money each month too. This money I save is used for cheap holidays as well as other unexpected stuff like car repairs or whatever else takes my fancy.

Sure, if I didn't save this small amount then my debts would be paid off 6 months earlier, but does 6 months really matter, especially when all my debt is at 0% at the moment anyway?

I am happy with my timescale for being debt free. If I can achieve this AND have the odd holiday here and there, then what is the harm?

I would say to the OP if you can have the holiday and it is not going to add to your debt or extend the current timescale for being debt free, then do it.

Thrifty_Pixie

you ask for advice on your cars? ok.

with your level of debt you cannot afford '10 and '11 cars if you want to be debt free asap. you are trying to keep up with everyone else when cheaper cars will easily suffice.

get rid of both and buy two decent secondhand ones. it can be done. my husband and i have recently bought '06 and '07 cars with low mileage for a grand total of £10k. there were even some decent cheaper ones out there, but we were a bit fussy (but then we could afford to be as we SAVED for them and paid cash).

you're living outside your means, chicken, and unless you stick to your debt-busting those debts are going to be roosting with you for a loooong time.

it's your life *shrug*

Thrifty_Pixie

Roland_Sausage wrote: »

If you can afford to go on holiday without getting into further debt, then I say go for it.

Whilst I appreciate a lot of the advice on this board, I do find some of the people to be a bit extreme, such as those who feel you should have to plough every last spare penny into paying off your debt and go 20 days a month without spending money to do so. Or those that say if you have debt then you can't afford a holiday.

Don't get me wrong, I want to pay off my debt and am making good progress in doing so. But at the same time I am not going to make it my sole focus in life, and still want to have one or two luxuries. It is these small luxuries that get us through life.

I believe a balance can be struck which is why as well as paying off my debt, I save a little money each month too. This money I save is used for cheap holidays as well as other unexpected stuff like car repairs or whatever else takes my fancy.

Sure, if I didn't save this small amount then my debts would be paid off 6 months earlier, but does 6 months really matter, especially when all my debt is at 0% at the moment anyway?

I am happy with my timescale for being debt free. If I can achieve this AND have the odd holiday here and there, then what is the harm?

I would say to the OP if you can have the holiday and it is not going to add to your debt or extend the current timescale for being debt free, then do it.

with all due respect, most people here are wondering why the OP needs a SECOND holiday. we're not necessarily commenting on the first one. small treats are well needed, agreed, but don't you think that two holidays in one year is a little extravagant even to keep your pecker up?

FallenArcher

Hi OP, good to see that you're re-thinking your holiday ideas. For what it's worth I agree with the majority of posters here, it'll be so much more special to wait until you are debt free and then save up for the holiday, surely then it'll feel like much more of a "treat". You say you've got the money for it, so why not just put that towards your debt instead and reduce the amount you owe? You've got a holiday booked, so try and enjoy that - perhaps it's an opportunity to improve relations with your extended family?

You really do never know what's around the corner: my wife and I had been paying off our debts steadily (approx. £500 pcm) and shifting 0% deals for as long as we can remember. Then, bam, last September she was suddenly rushed to hospital and has been on SSP ever since, with a very gradual phased return to work starting in January (only now doing 2 days a week). This has reduced our salary income over that period by about £10,000, but yet with sheer grit and determination we have still managed to pay off a huge chunk of our debt over that time (approx. £6000) and are now down to £2500 (sig. will be updated at end of month). We should now be debt free at the start of June, and we can't wait to live a life where we save for everything before buying it - cars, holidays etc, as well as creating a large emergency pot to cover any future drop in income. My point is: don't commit to additional expenditure whilst still in debt because you never know what's going to happen, pay off the debt, and then you can really enjoy life knowing that all of your money is your own.

Also, your car situation - why on earth do you need such new cars? Especially the one "for the school run"???

Best of luck to you, whatever you decide to do.

angelpye

Hi, I definitely think its all about mindset. What I remember from childhood is not the big things but the baking, crafting, windy picnics we did on the British coast etc. my parents never had much with four of us but we had great times.
I too have a family holiday booked which doesn't feel the same as a holiday in the sun but for my kids it's important as when I am gone who will be there for them? Family. Growing up close to cousins and having great memories of grandparents is priceless. I now can't afford to abroad for sun but I have booked a Murdoch holiday which will mean that we get away together, there are indoor pools and where we have chosen means a ferry and staying in a caravan - little ones will find it very exciting even if its not my idea of ideal. Thing is I messed up the finances so I can't afford my ideal, as long as we get away and they have adventure is all that counts.

Next year I hope to be debt free then will book some sunshine and know I deserve it. In my honest opinion little ones don't enjoy the heat as much and living on the coast I know they love the beach whatever the weather.

Just my thoughts and hth!