Hope for the future

I am about to cross a wonderful point in our family's fight against a mountain of debt.  Unsecured debt that is.  The type of mortgage I have means that some of it shows as unsecured, however I don't count that in my "true" unsecured, because ultimately it is part of the secured loan (in a round about way).

When I was young and silly, I took put a loan for £25000 to "consolidate" all of my outstanding loans, credit cards, car loans and overdrafts.  Stupidly, I didn't learn the lesson at that time and stop spending.  I continued to use my credit cards, because let's face it, they were empty and begging to be maxed!!

I have now crossed the threshold of £25000, meaning that the huge loan will now be slashed, and the additional purchases are gone.  This has been a long journey and a very tough lesson, the proverbial bitter pill to swallow, but it feels good.  So good.

If I can give any advice to rewards with money problems, it is this:  Don't give up hope, get a payment agreement and stick to it.  You will find it to be the bets thing you ever did, knowing that you are on the track to freedom from debt.

Bleeding Chancers

While I was at work today, my wife received a phone call from someone claiming to be "Freedom Finance", asking to speak to me about a bond we took out a few years ago.

Now, I have never used the services of any such company, and wouldn't pay any company to do something which can be achieved for free with more reputable organisations.

It is the barefaced cheek of it that really annoys me. How dare anybody make a phone all claiming to be from such a company to speak about an imaginary loan or bond?  

At the time of this post, they have yet to call back. If they do, I'll be ready - they will not be getting one over on me, or anyone else if I can help it. 

Whilst I have no sympathy for the financial sector, companies like this give it an even worse name. We must stand our ground against all forms of fraud and financial trickery, whether it is a call from a bunch of chancers or our friendly local bank manager. 

Hold steady

There will always be occasions when we want something, something nice, new or shiny. But there won't always be a need to do buy these things, and learning this can be the difference between less debt and no change. 

I saw a picture some time ago, it was an infographic type image. It said basically "do I need it, is it worth it" and so on. Long story short, if we are ever going to reduce debt or avoid it in the first place, we need to prioritise our purchases. 

We must purchase our needs first and our wants second. We have to eat, live comfortably and provide for our families. If the thing is purely desired, then forget it. Our society has created a situation where we are expected to buy. We so not have to and we do not need to. 

So leave your money where it is, save it for something necessary and do not let this corrupt society leave you forever indebted. 

One day at a time

I always find it hard to think of a day when all my debts will be gone. It will be a huge weight off my shoulders, almost as if I'm being released from the prison of owing money. 

I am pleased to say that the figures continue to go in the downward direction, there are no new debts being added. 

I never intended this blog to be a "how to", although I feel I should add some of the things that I have done. These are the bog standard tips that can be found on almost any blog or help page. 

I have destroyed my credit cards, removed all overdrafts and reduced my outgoings.  This sounds easy, but believe me that it's not. When we have a life where we're used to having nice things at our disposal, living without them can take some getting used to. 

I have cancelled tv subscriptions, stopped going to football games and stopped going out as often. I have changed my car to a diesel to save on commuting costs. It has taken time but I am beginning to see benefits. 

I have rediscovered the joy of doing things that are free, like long walks with my kids or borrowing a book from the library. No one has to pay over the odds for an enjoyable life. Our capitalist societies have fooled us into thinking that we do.  

So, if any one reading this can take one thing from it, I hope it is this - forget what others think and enjoy yourself. It's free!

The long haul

I accepted some time ago that I would be paying off my debts for a long time to come, and that continues to be the case. I believe that I should pay what I owe, so I can be confident that nothing will suddenly appear in the future and make things difficult again.

That said, it is really dificult to keep that resolve when others around me are having debts written off and the simply can't, or don't, pay.  And it is even worse when it is companies or governments who are getting the bailout.

I have no one but myself to blame for debt problems. I'm sure others are the same, yet some are getting off easier than others. 

I am in danger of this post turning into a directionless rant, but I feel I have to let it out. My car is in desperate need of repair, I have large fuel bills and I really need to sort some things around the house, but that is not going to happen.

Our lovely Tory government tells us we are all in this together. Not even close my friends. They keep things dificult for the masses while making sure they are looked after.

Some things never change.

A welcome boost

It is ten months since I last posted.  This is definitely not deliberate, more through a combination of being constantly busy and hopelessly forgetful.

I recently had a great development in my fight against our family's debts.  When we took out our mortgage in 2006, there was an unsecured element separate from the home loan.  It now seems that some of the communications that were sent to us were not to the correct standard, which led to the interest payments being affected.

This has led to almost £1300 being credited back to the account, over three months of payments in my current set up.  What a boost.

Aside from this, there have been no more purchases on credit for over the years now, and the debt continues to fall.  Thanks to the rate of inflation, we have less to spend on the payments, which has led to me reducing them and increasing he time taken to pay off.  It is galling to know that it will take longer than expected, although the fact it continues to go down is wonderful.

So, despite no updates for some time, things continue to go well.  Here's to the future.