Consumer debt hit an all-time high last year

[nikaiyo2]

Granfondo said:

So in all cases it's not free?

Err the last MBNA offer was 0% and 0% fee. Even if not free £150 to borrow £10000 for 3 years is not really a significant cost.

Even at 1.5% fee you would make a return on a TSB account etc if you could be bothered. It made more sense when they were 5% paying.

[Granfondo]

nikaiyo2 said:

Granfondo said:

So in all cases it's not free?

Err the last MBNA offer was 0% and 0% fee. Even if not free £150 to borrow £10000 for 3 years is not really a significant cost.

Even at 1.5% fee you would make a return on a TSB account etc if you could be bothered. It made more sense when they were 5% paying.

So was the MBNA offer "free" or £150?

[nikaiyo2]

Granfondo said:

So was the MBNA offer "free" or £150?

The MBNA is 0% for 38 months with no fee, just looked online.

The £150 fee was a fairly average 1.5% transfer fee.

[Granfondo]

nikaiyo2 said:

The MBNA is 0% for 38 months with no fee, just looked online.

The £150 fee was a fairly average 1.5% transfer fee.

I am not disagreeing with you,just wanted to know!
Thanks for clearing that up.

[Ari]

youngsyr said:

So your argument is that it's irrelevant because I googled the answer? Well that's a new one on me, especially seeing as I didn't use Google.

And when asked to provide an example of a 2% interest rate bank account and I gave you one offering 3%, that doesn't count because it's capped at £3k?

You do realise you can open more than one savings account, don't you? You can open two of those accounts per person, plus a joint one if you're married at Tesco alone, so for a couple that's £30k right there. Not to mention the other accounts which offer similar rates, but perhaps they don't count either?

Really, this place is like an infant's school today.

Well, you carry on borrowing up to the hilt to 'make money' and I'll carry on only buying things I can afford.

If that makes me a 'dinosaur', at least I'll be a dinosaur that sleeps well at night.

[madbadger]

Interesting advert for this thread. Slightly worrying that Haymarket thinks it is acceptable.

[youngsyr]

Ari said:

youngsyr said:

So your argument is that it's irrelevant because I googled the answer? Well that's a new one on me, especially seeing as I didn't use Google.

And when asked to provide an example of a 2% interest rate bank account and I gave you one offering 3%, that doesn't count because it's capped at £3k?

You do realise you can open more than one savings account, don't you? You can open two of those accounts per person, plus a joint one if you're married at Tesco alone, so for a couple that's £30k right there. Not to mention the other accounts which offer similar rates, but perhaps they don't count either?

Really, this place is like an infant's school today.

Well, you carry on borrowing up to the hilt to 'make money' and I'll carry on only buying things I can afford.

If that makes me a 'dinosaur', at least I'll be a dinosaur that sleeps well at night.

This thread's discussion isn't about what you or I actually do or don't do personally, it's about discussing the implications of the current consumer debt situation in the nation at large.

How can you legitimately comment on a thread about consumer debt if you don't understand how it has changed over the past 30 years?

It's the lack of knowledge on the current situation and the constant references back to the 80s and 90s that makes many posters on this thread financial dinosaurs. Like it or not, the situation has changed drastically since 2008.

[nikaiyo2]

Granfondo said:

I am not disagreeing with you,just wanted to know!
Thanks for clearing that up.

You can ignore it, you are correct I glanced at it when I was on the phone there is a 0.5% fee.

Its just not worth the grief IMHO, I do have the 2 TSB 3% current accounts and a Santander one and cycle DD's etc through them.

Balance transfers on the other hand I use all the time, I bought my 2nd Abarth 500 on a credit card and balance transferred it for 0% fixed for 3 years, i think it cost a little under £300 for that. To my way of thinking I would NEVER spend £12k of my money to save the £300 cost to spend someone else's money.

[Granfondo]

nikaiyo2 said:

Granfondo said:

I am not disagreeing with you,just wanted to know!
Thanks for clearing that up.

You can ignore it, you are correct I glanced at it when I was on the phone there is a 0.5% fee.

Its just not worth the grief IMHO, I do have the 2 TSB 3% current accounts and a Santander one and cycle DD's etc through them.

Balance transfers on the other hand I use all the time, I bought my 2nd Abarth 500 on a credit card and balance transferred it for 0% fixed for 3 years, i think it cost a little under £300 for that. To my way of thinking I would NEVER spend £12k of my money to save the £300 cost to spend someone else's money.

[crankedup]

youngsyr said:

Ari said:

youngsyr said:

So your argument is that it's irrelevant because I googled the answer? Well that's a new one on me, especially seeing as I didn't use Google.

And when asked to provide an example of a 2% interest rate bank account and I gave you one offering 3%, that doesn't count because it's capped at £3k?

You do realise you can open more than one savings account, don't you? You can open two of those accounts per person, plus a joint one if you're married at Tesco alone, so for a couple that's £30k right there. Not to mention the other accounts which offer similar rates, but perhaps they don't count either?

Really, this place is like an infant's school today.

Well, you carry on borrowing up to the hilt to 'make money' and I'll carry on only buying things I can afford.

If that makes me a 'dinosaur', at least I'll be a dinosaur that sleeps well at night.

This thread's discussion isn't about what you or I actually do or don't do personally, it's about discussing the implications of the current consumer debt situation in the nation at large.

How can you legitimately comment on a thread about consumer debt if you don't understand how it has changed over the past 30 years?

It's the lack of knowledge on the current situation and the constant references back to the 80s and 90s that makes many posters on this thread financial dinosaurs. Like it or not, the situation has changed drastically since 2008.

Is it now easier to fall into a black hole debt post 2008?
Would you agree that consumer debt is good for the economy?
Would you agree that consumer debt should be controlled?

Edited by crankedup on Friday 30th June 13:06

[youngsyr]

crankedup said:

Is it now easier to fall into a black hole debt post 2008?

What does that even mean?

crankedup said:

Would you agree that consumer debt is good for the economy?
Would you agree that consumer debt should be controlled?

Yes and yes.

[Granfondo]

There is a personal insolvency in the UK every 6 minutes 13 seconds and going by youngsyr interest rates going up from a historic low for the last 7 years WONT be a problem!

What do people think would happen if BoE BR went to 5% where IMO it should be?

[Ari]

youngsyr said:

How can you legitimately comment on a thread about consumer debt if you don't understand how it has changed over the past 30 years?

It's the lack of knowledge on the current situation and the constant references back to the 80s and 90s that makes many posters on this thread financial dinosaurs. Like it or not, the situation has changed drastically since 2008.

Because fundamentally, nothing has changed! You borrow £x, you pay back £x+y with y being the interest. The y figure is less than it used to be.

What has changed is people's attitudes to borrowing, and the sheer amount that is being borrowed, often by people who convince themselves that they're being evaso clever for doing it.

Your new car example further up the thread is a perfect example of that.

[crankedup]

youngsyr said:

crankedup said:

Is it now easier to fall into a black hole debt post 2008?

What does that even mean?

crankedup said:

Would you agree that consumer debt is good for the economy?
Would you agree that consumer debt should be controlled?

Yes and yes.

You are not familiar with the term black hole debt, it is a level of personal debt which is more than can be comfortably paid off without inducing more debt. To use a well know saying robbing peter to pay paul.
At what level of consumer debt would you consider to be reckless, that is proportion of salary from monthly take home pay based upon the average UK salary?

[Jockman]

crankedup said:

You are not familiar with the term black hole debt, it is a level of personal debt which is more than can be comfortably paid off without inducing more debt. To use a well know saying robbing peter to pay paul.
At what level of consumer debt would you consider to be reckless, that is proportion of salary from monthly take home pay based upon the average UK salary?

Would it make a difference as to what type of debt it was ie mortgage / credit card etc?

[crankedup]

Ari said:

youngsyr said:

How can you legitimately comment on a thread about consumer debt if you don't understand how it has changed over the past 30 years?

It's the lack of knowledge on the current situation and the constant references back to the 80s and 90s that makes many posters on this thread financial dinosaurs. Like it or not, the situation has changed drastically since 2008.

Because fundamentally, nothing has changed! You borrow £x, you pay back £x+y with y being the interest. The y figure is less than it used to be.

What has changed is people's attitudes to borrowing, and the sheer amount that is being borrowed, often by people who convince themselves that they're being evaso clever for doing it.

Your new car example further up the thread is a perfect example of that.

Yes this new car business is almost out of control so far as personal financing is concerned. Talk of the finance Companies possibility of taking a hit?
I had wondered how on earth young people could afford smart houses and new cars when our UK average salary is relatively modest. Given the cost of living in the UK it's surprising to see so many new cars on driveways. The truth is the cars are not owned but are just another debt around people's necks.

[crankedup]

youngsyr said:

crankedup said:

Is it now easier to fall into a black hole debt post 2008?

What does that even mean?

crankedup said:

Would you agree that consumer debt is good for the economy?
Would you agree that consumer debt should be controlled?

Yes and yes.

For somebody who wants to discuss the issues you have a strange way of responding. Still I did ask the questions which offered you the easy answers.

[superkartracer]

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-40454385

Savings ratio at record low as disposable income drops

[youngsyr]

Ari said:

youngsyr said:

How can you legitimately comment on a thread about consumer debt if you don't understand how it has changed over the past 30 years?

It's the lack of knowledge on the current situation and the constant references back to the 80s and 90s that makes many posters on this thread financial dinosaurs. Like it or not, the situation has changed drastically since 2008.

Because fundamentally, nothing has changed! You borrow £x, you pay back £x+y with y being the interest. The y figure is less than it used to be.

What has changed is people's attitudes to borrowing, and the sheer amount that is being borrowed, often by people who convince themselves that they're being evaso clever for doing it.

Your new car example further up the thread is a perfect example of that.

And you've hit the nail on the head - you used to have to pay back £x+y, now you just pay back £x.

That is a fundamental change.

[youngsyr]

crankedup said:

youngsyr said:

crankedup said:

Is it now easier to fall into a black hole debt post 2008?

What does that even mean?

crankedup said:

Would you agree that consumer debt is good for the economy?
Would you agree that consumer debt should be controlled?

Yes and yes.

For somebody who wants to discuss the issues you have a strange way of responding. Still I did ask the questions which offered you the easy answers.

Oh, I'm sorry. You asked direct questions and I gave you direct answers. If they're not in the form that you require, perhaps you'd like to ask the questions and answer them for me as well?!