Reducing Debt.

Author
Discussion

Welshbeef

49,633 posts

197 months

Sunday 7th October 2012
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VTECMatt said:
OMG I read track car which is a huge luxury give it up job done. Track days for you might be free although i doubt it, but Petrol, tyres, pads etc aren't. Come on get a grip you don't need stuff like this if you worry about about 2K of debt.
Hopefully the Chap has taken some of the advice early given

Wacky Racer

38,099 posts

246 months

Sunday 7th October 2012
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hornet said:
walm said:
Obviously you don't need the iPhone5 - that is £500 no matter what contract you go on.
Keep the 4.
Or sell both and just buy a regular PAYG phone...
My PAYG mobile phone cost £20 brand new and I put about £10 credit on it every three months.

I only use it if really necessary,.. not because I'm tight but I'm not married to it like most people seem to be these days.

cuprabob

14,416 posts

213 months

Sunday 7th October 2012
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Wacky Racer said:
My PAYG mobile phone cost £20 brand new and I put about £10 credit on it every three months.

I only use it if really necessary,.. not because I'm tight but I'm not married to it like most people seem to be these days.
It's because you have a cheap phone you have no mates. If you had an iPhone 5, you would have mates and thus use it more :-)

I must admit I really don't understand the obsession with having to have the latest iPhone. I find it even stranger that people queue to be one of the first to have one that will be full of bugs. Wait a few weeks and it settles down.

As they say "nowt as queer as folk"

Welshbeef

49,633 posts

197 months

Sunday 7th October 2012
quotequote all
cuprabob said:
It's because you have a cheap phone you have no mates. If you had an iPhone 5, you would have mates and thus use it more :-)

I must admit I really don't understand the obsession with having to have the latest iPhone. I find it even stranger that people queue to be one of the first to have one that will be full of bugs. Wait a few weeks and it settles down.

As they say "nowt as queer as folk"
Only thing is it links with iTunes, I'd say after 3 years battery life degrades ie they are an item which has a physical limited working life (we have two one is now 5 years old wife has its it's my old one and mine is 18 months old by next may my next upgrade time ill have to get a replacement and my wife can have my current phone her one will be then left on a music hub and still used but as battery life is useless by then then that's a fine job for it to do)

I will certainly want 4G coverage and frankly were very happy with Apple in the products we have so will stick to it. We can afford it though so I choose what I spend my earned money on whereas if I was in struggling debt I'd get rid not question

BoRED S2upid

19,641 posts

239 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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hornet said:
Let A equal secondhand value of 118d
Trade down the car, pay off the debt and maybe use any surplus to build some reserves.
You presume he owns the 1 series.

He may well have it on finance and the second hand value may be less than he owes on finance!

zcacogp

11,239 posts

243 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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I fear we won't see Mr Bulldog on this thread again, although the conversation is sensible and people would be advised to think along these lines before entering into ANY sort of credit agreement for the first time.

I think that a LOT of debt arises from people having an over-inflated sense of self-worth. Many things are to blame for this (advertising industry/materialistic world etc) but I wonder why people with very little income think that they deserve the trappings of people who work hard and earn well. Simply put, if your job involves stacking the shelves at Sainsburys or sweeping up at the local hairdressers (or - worse - you have no job at all) then why do you think you deserve a new BMW/top-of-the-range iPhone/Track Car/Foreign Holiday/Nights in the local pub? Because you're worth it? Really? No, simply put you are poor, and while calling someone 'poor' is not a politically correct statement it is a fact of life.

I'm not going to disclose my income on here, but I'm perfectly happy with a 22-year-old car and a 'phone that costs me £13 a month. That way I can spend as much money as I like on things that are truly worthwhile, and I'm not foolish enough to measure my personal worth by the value of my possessions - that's a mug's game.

(To avoid doubt, this is a general observation and not a personal dig at Bulldog.)


Oli.

walm

10,609 posts

201 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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anonymous said:
[redacted]

> grooming forum.

hornet

6,333 posts

249 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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BoRED S2upid said:
You presume he owns the 1 series.

He may well have it on finance and the second hand value may be less than he owes on finance!
Comes back to previous comments about basic budgeting skills then. Granted, if it is on finance, the payments may have been perfectly reasonable whilst employed, but that's still highlights skewed priorities, as he clearly hadn't thought about an emergency fund in the event of unemployment. Does seem to want to have his cake and eat it.

dirty boy

14,688 posts

208 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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Small changes make a big difference.

My wife and I decided to put our minds towards saving for a fancy holiday to Lapland with the kids

I used to buy sarnies every day, that'd be £12.5 a week minimum.

How much is a loaf of bread and some ham for a week? £5 tops.

Saving estimate £345 (based on working days).

I cycle to work - okay I appreciate you can't, but assume my car does 30mpg. It's a 9.2m round trip in the car. Assume 230 trips at £6 per gallon.

Saving £423.

Cancel Sky sports £252.

Quit the gym £408.00 (I cycle to keep fit)

Saved £1,428.00

Little changes make a massive difference. We also plan our meals and shop online, means we have no waste food.

Means we have nothing to snack on either though!


Good luck though, only you can make the changes.

jdw1234

6,021 posts

214 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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A good tip is to put credit card in a pint glass and freeze it.

You then have to defrost it to use it.

Hopefully, by the time it has defrosted, you have had time to think if the purchase is worth it!!


r1ch

2,867 posts

195 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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The only way to clear debt is making sacrifices.

I owed a fair chunk of debt. To get rid of it I drove a £300 shed for a year, used an old mobile phone on PAYG, sold loads of things on ebay, didn't have a holiday.

It depends how badly you want to be out of debt vs how badly you value life's luxuries. Now i'm free of debt I treat myself and live within my means. It's a miserable thing paying off debt i do sympathize, sometimes you can rack it up out of nowhere.

Welshbeef

49,633 posts

197 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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r1ch said:
The only way to clear debt is making sacrifices.

I owed a fair chunk of debt. To get rid of it I drove a £300 shed for a year, used an old mobile phone on PAYG, sold loads of things on ebay, didn't have a holiday.

It depends how badly you want to be out of debt vs how badly you value life's luxuries. Now i'm free of debt I treat myself and live within my means. It's a miserable thing paying off debt i do sympathize, sometimes you can rack it up out of nowhere.
Reviewing your spending even if your debt free incl mortgage can result in savings and effectively give yourself a net payrise easily a few times inflation which isn't to be ignored.

The other thing is saving up to buy something is also a great habit - it makes you really value whatever it is and also makes you shop around for the best deal vs generally just picking it up but on debt. You could of course still put it o a credit card but have the cash in te bank.

jaedba2604

1,846 posts

146 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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I always think money management and weight management are the same mindset. It comes down to self restraint, sense of entitlement and how short termist your outlook.

Take responsibility and make a few sacrifices and life's easier in the long run.

zcacogp

11,239 posts

243 months

Monday 8th October 2012
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jaedba2604 said:
I always think money management and weight management are the same mindset. It comes down to self restraint, sense of entitlement and how short termist your outlook.
Very interesting observation!

I wonder whether it's relevant that the UK is getting fatter and fatter at the same rate as it is getting more and more indebted ...


Oli.