Advice re husband’s debt

ryanm8655

greensalad said:

I know the general consensus is to not consolidate. It worked out amazingly well for me though. I think it can be a good idea if you trust that you will not get into more debt. My consolidation brought my DFD forward about 2 years and I just finished paying off the consolidation loan. If you don't trust that you have broken the cycle that got you into debt in the first place, don't do it.

It can make sense but 99/100 times it doesn’t work. Hence it tends to get poo pooed on here, with good reason. I was in the “but it makes sense” camp, did it and was back last year with double the debt. I’m an economist by profession as well

Short term sacrifices help change the mindset but also often mean you can get yourself debt free sooner than a longterm consolidation loan anyway. Particularly when your balance goes down and you can access 0% offers.

The loan rate advertised is rarely the rate you get offered once you apply, is another issue.  0% balance transfers are better imo.

zippygeorgeandben

Can I just add that I was in the 'It makes sense' camp too but realised it was the wrong camp to be in after reading lots of advice on here.  I know 18% is a lot but please don't worry about it.  You've sorted out the main issue, the debt, you just need to tackle it now! Good luck!

enthusiasticsaver

Do not consolidate or take the debt on in your name.  It may cost you more to repay it but at least you are not jeopardising your own credit record or finances by taking on his mistakes. 

fatbelly

halfwitwithmoney said:

Hi, I think I probably know the answer to this but I’m asking people wiser than me. My husband has been seriously depressed and has run up around £8k worth of credit card debt. He has always kept up the minimum payments. He has done this primarily by telling me he had bought furniture, car services etc outright but actually putting them on finance. We both have a decent income. The card it is all on is 18% apr. He has handed all finances to me, and his salary is paid into the account I access now, and I take care of all the bills with both salaries. He gets an allowance each week and then I do the rest of the spending. Must emphasise he is fully on board with this and is actually finding life much easier this way. 

My question is - I can get a loan for 3.3% APR for the entire amount plus a tiny bit of car finance that’s left on my car (sub £2k). He has tried and can’t get one. It’ll take me a lot longer and cost a lot more to do it with leaving it on the card as it is, I can overpay the loan but obviously I’m then taking his debt in my name. 

What would you all do?

I'd try to help him get a 0% balance transfer on another card

halfwitwithmoney

fatbelly said:

halfwitwithmoney said:

Hi, I think I probably know the answer to this but I’m asking people wiser than me. My husband has been seriously depressed and has run up around £8k worth of credit card debt. He has always kept up the minimum payments. He has done this primarily by telling me he had bought furniture, car services etc outright but actually putting them on finance. We both have a decent income. The card it is all on is 18% apr. He has handed all finances to me, and his salary is paid into the account I access now, and I take care of all the bills with both salaries. He gets an allowance each week and then I do the rest of the spending. Must emphasise he is fully on board with this and is actually finding life much easier this way. 

My question is - I can get a loan for 3.3% APR for the entire amount plus a tiny bit of car finance that’s left on my car (sub £2k). He has tried and can’t get one. It’ll take me a lot longer and cost a lot more to do it with leaving it on the card as it is, I can overpay the loan but obviously I’m then taking his debt in my name. 

What would you all do?

I'd try to help him get a 0% balance transfer on another card

He’s tried this route and not eligible at the moment as all he’s done for ages is make minimum payments. I’ll probably try again once I’ve whacked a decent chunk of it off. 

Karonher

I know some disagree with consolidating but I did it in 1991 and have never been in debt since. If you are taking charge of the finances it would save you a fair bit of money and if you access his accounts you will know what is going out. You could also set up an account with one of the reporting agencies if you are worried he will look for other credit as they would show if there had been searches made.

fatbelly

halfwitwithmoney said:

fatbelly said:

I'd try to help him get a 0% balance transfer on another card

He’s tried this route and not eligible at the moment as all he’s done for ages is make minimum payments. I’ll probably try again once I’ve whacked a decent chunk of it off. 

I'm surprised that he can't even get one of these

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/best-0-credit-cards/#poorcredit

but how long has he just been making min payments for? Has he had any persistent debt letters?

Might be worth contacting the lenders and having a chat about whether they can freeze interest or if not what help they can give

https://www.moneysavingexpert.com/credit-cards/persistent-debt-help/