Terrified of the future

Blodyn82

Not sure what I'm really asking, but the state of things as they are at the moment are terrifying me and I'm not in a good head space. I guess I just want to see how everyone else is feeling and gain some perspective. I'm on my debt free journey and my debts have decreased from around £43,000 in July 2020 to £26,000, but still have a long way to go. I still feel that I'm hanging on by a thread, the prospect of the energy hikes and now mortgage increases (my current deal end in October 2023) is really affecting me. How's everyone else doing?

fatbelly

You've paid off 17k in a little over 2 years? That's really good.

My electricity d/d has actually fallen for October when you factor in the subsidy.

No point worrying about what will happen in a year's time as a lot will change between then and now.

foxgloves

@Blodyn82 - Agree we are in scary times. You've made an impressive inroad into paying down your debt. Well done on that.
Re the worry, given that most of the external factors are outside our control.... I think all you can do is concentrate on those elements which are within your control, over which you have some influence & agency. Things like auditing your energy use & eradicating any wastage, sticking to your budget like glue to maintain your finances in as good a shape as possible, I think that's all any of us can do atm really - shore ourselves up as best as possible. It's certainly not a time for expensive purchases over the security of money in the bank. As an over-thinker myself, I don't want to say "Try not to worry", but I do know that separating out those elements of a bad situation over which I actually do have some control, & making a plan within those specific parameters is invariably my way forward. 
F

EssexHebridean

Wow - that's a massive impact on your debts in that timescale - well done you! 

On everything else, try to plan ahead to make sure you have a "cushion" in place ahead of the risk of increases, but also remember that by clearing your debt you are futureproofing yourself anyway. In 6 months when you need to start looking at replacement mortgage deals, you are going to be in SUCH a better place in relation to the debts for a start, it will open more doors for you. On the energy front - double check what your own actual position is, if you haven't already done so. Hopefully you have already applied the £150 council tax rebate (assuming you got it) to your energy account, and the next 6 months the burden will be eased a little by the £67/£66 payments for the energy grant too. A lot of people are being frightened by the scary "£2500 for your energy bills" figures without checking what they will actually be spending in real life - very few people are that "typical household" that the headline refers to! (It's also of course the case that it could turn out you are above "typical" users, in which case obviously your spend will be higher, but that's just as vital to know, again so you can plan ahead, but also so that you can start to look at where use can be trimmed).

Do a little research to find out whether you might be better now to ease back on debt clearing and to build a small pot to pay off the mortgage when the fix ends - if it will take you to a better LTV position then it could unlock a far better rate for you. Once the mortgage is sorted you can return your focus fully to the debts. 

sourcrates

Got my new electricity prices from Eon-next yesterday, commencing October.

Standing charge has risen by 1p, to 49p a day.
Unit price has risen 9p to 36p per unit.

They don`t give a discount for DD payment either, all in all, it could have been worse.

Well done on the debt busting.

MEM62

Blodyn82 said:

 How's everyone else doing?

I'm going with the flow.  Despite all the doom and gloom in the press, things will sort themselves out and the world will settle down.  We have seen many such upheavals over the years.  The sun will still rise tomorrow and we will all adjust and cope.  

abaka

I'm feeling the same as you....I'm sitting with around £20k of debt and my mortgage deal is due to expire in Oct 23 so quite similar.

My plan over the next 12 months is to pay as much as possible of my debts so that come next October even if my mortgage increases by about 300-400 I should have the free income with reduced payments...Means I won't be Debt Free as soon as I'd like, but keeping the roof above my head is the main thing.....Things could be alot worse or better come next October so I'm trying not to let it get to me too much (even though I spent 2 days in bed from Monday with severe depression about the situaiotn)

Just keep doing what you're doing....Battle through these next 12 months and see what the situation is/your situation is come Oct 23.

Rob5342

You've done well paying that much off, that sounds like about £650 a month, so even with energy increases you should be able to pay off a significant amount before your mortgage deal ends. Have you looked at how much things might actually increase by?

Also, how old are the debts? Is it possible that any are unenforcable?

Blodyn82

Thank you so much for all your responses. I was in a panic the other night, but definitely feeling much calmer about the situation. @foxgloves great advice on concentrating on what's in my control. We're in a luck situation that we have a new-ish house with solar panel for heating the water so I'm sure that will help. I have noticed how drafty the doors are though, so I'm researching draft excluders. Thanks for the comments with regards to the mortgage @EssexHebridean. I know that I'm quite fixed with trying to get the debt down that I'm probably not looking at all possibilities. 

I'll have a look at my energy increases, I have a little buffer as I'm in credit at the moment. The electricity increase is quite stark @sourcrates but forewarned is forearmed as they say! You are so right @MEM62, I need to stop watching the news! Thanks @abaka it is good to know that I'm not alone, it did really hit me the other night but I think it's a culmination of everything that's going on in my life at the moment as well as the financial aspect. I think I'm so fixed on getting rid of the debt, that it's hard to think about slowing down on clearing the debt, but you are exactly right a roof over our heads is more important. 

I'm getting everything together @Rob5342 to see where I am, which feels like I'm more in control now. Debt are enforcable unfortunately, I just need to get more comfortable with them being around longer than I was planning I think. 

I'm so glad that there is somewhere where we can all support each other, thanks again everyone. 

Rob5342

Although you are slowing down now, in a few years you might find that you are able to speed up again. The important thing is that you ensure you have enough to live on and for any emergencies, then at some point the debts will be gone.

Are any with debt collectors? If they are then they might accept a reduced settlement offer at some point along the line.

DebtFreeWannabe88

You have done an incredible job to clear so much debt in such a short space of time - that is a massive win!!!

I think your fears are shared by many - myself included, my DMP progress feel slow, fixed mortgage ends in March, car lease ends in April and currently no prospects of getting another car finance or loan deal due to DMP. I’m not looking for empathy, but I want you too see you’re not alone, and I expect that a good proportion of the nation feel the same. 

However - we are here, seeking comfort and advice from others who share our worries and who are above all else kind and supportive!

If you ever feel like it’s too much in your head and this isn’t giving you enough comfort of head space to rationalise, please speak to your GP - life is precious, and bumps in the road no matter how hard to process and work through, are not worth you being unable to see the beauty in every day… 

Good luck on your journey x