First post, any advice?

BDi_Chopper

Afternoon all,

Looks like this is the place to come to get debt free so here goes!

I about 16K in debt plus my mortgage. I have about 9K's worth of shares and about 2K's worth of other savings.

At present, I have about half of my debt on 0% credit cards and half on bank loans and non 0% credit cards.

I've just received a new cc which has plenty of room for for me to transfer stuff across.

What should I do? Move everything to 0% and keep the savings or trade in the shares / bonds and pay of as much as possible? I have hadmy share portfolio for years and it moves between about 8K and 10K.

Many thanks for any advice...!
BDi

hypno06

Depends if you want to go the low risk route to being debt free or the high risk one.....

If you want to minimise risk, then cash in the shares. Pay off what you can, keeping the balance on 0% and then hammering that down by way of doing all the things on this site that can save you money and make you more!

If you want the high risk route, then keep the shares, and hope that the market recovers and in the mean time do all the things on this site to save you money that you can throw at the debt......

Like I say, all depends on your attitude to risk, and what the shares etc are.

Welcome to the site though - you will get loads of help here, whichever way you choose to do things!

BDi_Chopper

thanks for the quick response. I'll have a browse about to see how I can reduce debts in other ways too!

poppy10_2

Sell the shares and pay off the non-0% credit cards. It's a no-brainer.

BDi_Chopper

...except if the shares rise 3K next month!!

poppy10_2

That's a gamble. And one you will probably lose.

BDi_Chopper

Maybe, but shares generally rise over time. It's only relatively recently that it's been more of a roller coaster!

GeorgeUK

If you have a new CC that you can transfer your existing interest accruing cards to, then i may do that. Bear in mind that there will be a transfer fee.

Are you sure you can transfer all your cards to this new one and they do not share the same card provider?
This table may help
http://www.stoozing.com/cards.htm

Also that site (and there is a forum for stoozing too) may help answer whether it is worthwhile doing it this way. If you are sure that you can cover your debts with the savings and will be able to transfer when the 0% promotion runs out, then there should only be a limited risk.

I wouldn't close the existing cards that have offerred you 0% BT offers as you may need these in the future - just make sure not to spend any more on the cards.