hate it when people are shocked

moohound

The people I know who have the biggest debts, and should have savings and be debt free, are those with the greatest incomes and hence the most access to credit.

I had debts on my own of nearly £39000 and I earned less than £30000 at the time, I think it was extreme to say the least.

Someone did a thread not long ago on how big is yours? DMP that is

I think the point is you have made a plan to sort it, and as you said it is do-able, if not exactly fun.

midlander81

El_Torro wrote: »

I think £40k worth of debt is very high. Even with an income of £70k that's 57% of your gross annual salary. How long will that take to pay off? More to the point, if you're getting into debt simply to fund your lifestyle what incentive or desire do you have to cut back and start paying the debt off? I'm not surprised that people have a shocked reaction.

Having said all that though, what does it matter how people react to your level of debt? What matters is whether you feel it is a comfortable and manageable amount.

It is a lot of money but we are working hard to bring it down. We are making payments of around £1300 per month and at our current rate we are hoping to be clear by December 2016 so just over 2 years. I know that we are fortunate that we can make large payments and I can guarantee that we will NEVER be in this position again!


I do appreciate the posts though folks, even the ones that tell me what I don't want to hear!

Muhren

moohound wrote: »

The people I know who have the biggest debts, and should have savings and be debt free, are those with the greatest incomes and hence the most access to credit.

I had debts on my own of nearly £39000 and I earned less than £30000 at the time, I think it was extreme to say the least.

Someone did a thread not long ago on how big is yours? DMP that is

I think the point is you have made a plan to sort it, and as you said it is do-able, if not exactly fun.

Sounds very similar to the situation I currently find myself in, and yes I would say it was extreme. I am however confident that I will clear it within the next 3 years.

Macblack

midlander81 wrote: »

It is a lot of money but we are working hard to bring it down. We are making payments of around £1300 per month and at our current rate we are hoping to be clear by December 2016 so just over 2 years. I know that we are fortunate that we can make large payments and I can guarantee that we will NEVER be in this position again!

I do appreciate the posts though folks, even the ones that tell me what I don't want to hear!

Well, I don't mind admitting that our household debt is also near £40,000 as well. Just a few years ago both my wife and I were working and we lived a life beyond what our combined salaries could sustain (obviously).

Now we have kids (and only one of us is working) priorities have changed and we are seriously working at reducing that debt.

But we are not ashamed or embarrassed by it, we enjoyed it and we can remember all the nice cars and clothes we had plus 2 holidays a year etc..

As long as you acknowledge the debt (instead of ignoring it) and you have a plan to reduce it (and 2 years is pretty ambitious), I say wear the debt like a proud reminder of a good time!!

CeeGee81181

To everyone who is passing judgement here, there's a little saying: 'There, but for the grace of god, go I' All the people who are judging you don't know you so whether they are saying it's bad or not, they don't matter. They are judging your debt badly perhaps because they haven't had to go through the hard times that got you into the debt in the first place. They don't really know your circumstances inside out like you do. Yes, it may have been 57 percent of what you earn over a year. But I have worked in a DMP company before. I have seen a few cases with huge debts of 70, 80 grand and they earn next to nothing because of a disability which lost them their job or a relative that got sick and needed care, or a million and one other things that life throws at us. In their plans the computer would show how many years it would take to pay off their DMPs.... some said hundreds of years! Unlike loads of peeps out there, you will pay off yours and what an achievement that will be. More than that you will appreciate your solvency so much more than your workmate ever could!
Remember, there is always, always someone worse off than you....

Torry_Quine

CeeGee81181 wrote: »

To everyone who is passing judgement here, there's a little saying: 'There, but for the grace of god, go I' All the people who are judging you don't know you so whether they are saying it's bad or not, they don't matter. They are judging your debt badly perhaps because they haven't had to go through the hard times that got you into the debt in the first place. They don't really know your circumstances inside out like you do. Yes, it may have been 57 percent of what you earn over a year. But I have worked in a DMP company before. I have seen a few cases with huge debts of 70, 80 grand and they earn next to nothing because of a disability which lost them their job or a relative that got sick and needed care, or a million and one other things that life throws at us. In their plans the computer would show how many years it would take to pay off their DMPs.... some said hundreds of years! Unlike loads of peeps out there, you will pay off yours and what an achievement that will be. More than that you will appreciate your solvency so much more than your workmate ever could!
Remember, there is always, always someone worse off than you....

I for one am not judging.

I am in that situation where I had to stop working and we have only one income which is just above minimum wage. We never used all our income though and put money aside for a rainy day which has been very useful. I couldn't sleep if I was in debt and have never even had an overdraft.

Debtfree2018_2

Torry_Quine wrote: »

I for one am not judging.

I am in that situation where I had to stop working and we have only one income which is just above minimum wage. We never used all our income though and put money aside for a rainy day which has been very useful. I couldn't sleep if I was in debt and have never even had an overdraft.

I think both your comments are judging, why post on debt free wannabe if you are mortified of having any debt Not very Christian at all

blisteringblue

This crops up all the time. 57% of household income while not ideal isn't that drastic. Owing 20K on a 25K salary would be much worse to me.

It's not really about the amount you owe, it is simply about your ability to pay it back.

We owe more than you on less household income and I'm not worried. Nobody is coming to batter my door down. Our creditors seem happy with what we are paying them and we've 48 more payments until we are straight.

Judge away, but life is good. Certainly not losing any sleep over it.

Torry_Quine

Debtfree2018 wrote: »

I think both your comments are judging, why post on debt free wannabe if you are mortified of having any debt Not very Christian at all

I didn't even notice which section it was in actually. I was commenting on the points made and wasn't the only one to make the same type of comment but the one you have singled out for some reason.

I made the point that I would be mortified at having debt, how is that not Christian?

midlander81

CeeGee81181 wrote: »

To everyone who is passing judgement here, there's a little saying: 'There, but for the grace of god, go I' All the people who are judging you don't know you so whether they are saying it's bad or not, they don't matter. They are judging your debt badly perhaps because they haven't had to go through the hard times that got you into the debt in the first place. They don't really know your circumstances inside out like you do. Yes, it may have been 57 percent of what you earn over a year. But I have worked in a DMP company before. I have seen a few cases with huge debts of 70, 80 grand and they earn next to nothing because of a disability which lost them their job or a relative that got sick and needed care, or a million and one other things that life throws at us. In their plans the computer would show how many years it would take to pay off their DMPs.... some said hundreds of years! Unlike loads of peeps out there, you will pay off yours and what an achievement that will be. More than that you will appreciate your solvency so much more than your workmate ever could!
Remember, there is always, always someone worse off than you....

Thanks for this Ceegee. Thanks for sticking up for me!! It is reassuring to know that I am not alone. I do accept all comments though, even the ones that I don't want to hear/accept!!