how much credit card debt do you have?

[The-Real-Deal82]

Why? I understand not paying it off all 8,000 at once but why not get it paid off sooner rather than later. The interest rate might be low but it does still exist and is costing you money the longer that loan sticks around.


Do you know why he says that?


Why not just double that payment and get it paid off sooner.


Maybe it is just my mind set but having any debt to me is just "wrong." I do have credit card debt but it gets paid off in full every month and the credit card companies have never gotten any interest out of my.

My mortgage is the only thing I carry right now and I intend to keep it that way as long as possible.

Because I have better things to do with my money like enjoying it with my young family. I'm not worried about the debt and can live with £15 a month going from my wages. I don't know a single person who has paid this loan off.

It doesn't affect my credit history and a bailiff will never come looking for it. I'm not going to do myself out of money each month that I need just pay off something that is un-enforceable.

 

[ProjectManager101]

As long your savings are at least 3 times your debt, is ok. I have $25K in debt but I am putting everything into savings first and I am paying about $1000 a month on that debt any way. Once I reach X amount of savings as a cushion, I would pay off the entire debt with the rest of the income. I will be debt free in may I believe next year.

 

[C DM]

As long your savings are at least 3 times your debt, is ok. I have $25K in debt but I am putting everything into savings first and I am paying about $1000 a month on that debt any way. Once I reach X amount of savings as a cushion, I would pay off the entire debt with the rest of the income. I will be debt free in may I believe next year.

Generally doesn't work out for something like mortgage and/or student loans, but as far as credit card debt or something like that, certainly more applicable (assuming unnecessarily crazy interest rates can be avoided).

 

[Apple fanboy]

As long your savings are at least 3 times your debt, is ok. I have $25K in debt but I am putting everything into savings first and I am paying about $1000 a month on that debt any way. Once I reach X amount of savings as a cushion, I would pay off the entire debt with the rest of the income. I will be debt free in may I believe next year.

Yes savings are good, but if you make 5% on a £1000 savings, but pay 10% interest on a £1000 loan, you'd be better off paying that loan off early.
We always made sure our mortgage allowed us to make over payments.
Part of the reason I finished off my mortgage in my early 30's.

 

[jca24]

Just a random comment on general consumer debt. I'm a loan underwriter and I see literally hundreds of credit reports each month, across all walks of life (800+ credit down to the bottom of the barrel). I would say that 7 out of every 10 reports I see carry $10k+ in credit card debt. It's fairly common to see $20k+ in CC debt. I've seen people carrying over $100k in CC debt.

What's more concerning than the CC debt is the student loan debt. That situation is truly insane. I don't think the general public or the "powers the be" really realize how out of hand it has gotten. I see people in their 40's - 50's - 60's with $50k - $100k in student loan debt. More often than not the loans are still (somehow deferred) or they're only making interest only payments. I've seen people (not in major professional careers) that are in their 60's carrying over $125k in student loan debt. A high % of borrowers I see are carrying at least $20k-$30k in student loan debt and they're working regular "labor" type jobs, making barely enough to cover the interest only payments. The % of these loans that are currently in default/collection/severely late is alarming. And these loans cannot be knocked out in bankruptcy...they will stay with you until you die.

Well said. It is amazing the debt load some people carry. Student loans are the worst, too many people being very foolish incurring this kind of debt.

 

[jca24]

It obviously depends where the student loan comes from too. Mine is with the 'Student Loans Company' which was the official government subsidised loans company when I went to uni. I owe £8,000 still, but have no intention of paying off a lump sum. Martin Lewis of money saving expert said its one of the biggest mistakes students make when they save up and pay it off. It's a non-enforceable debt with possibly the lowest interest rate going. I think £15 a month comes out of my wages towards it and that's as far as I will ever attempt in paying it. It doesn't affect further loans or getting a mortgage because it's not classed in the same category as a bank or car loan. When I went for my first mortgage I told my financial advisor about the loan and his words were 'that's not a real loan' lol.

These days tuition fees are through the roof and students really do end up in depressingly huge amounts of debt.

Not a real loan? You have no intentions of ever paying it off? Really, lots of people in this world that want someting for nothing.

 

[macquariumguy]

Sometimes debt is cheaper than paying cash. We bought a used car recently and got a .9% loan. There are plenty of ways to beat that in investments so paying cash didn't make sense. I like being debt-free as much as anyone, but there's nothing inherently wrong with it.

 

[Eileen89]

My husband and I pay off our CC every month so no balance carries forward. Therefore zero debt.

 

[sdilley14]

Well said. It is amazing the debt load some people carry. Student loans are the worst, too many people being very foolish incurring this kind of debt.

Agreed. I know a number of people that went to school, took on a ton of student loan debt, switched majors multiple times (aka spent thousands of dollars trying to figure out "what they wanted to be" when they graduated), and either dropped out or got a job in a field completely unrelated to their degree. And these are just people I personally know. I know there is a large segment of a college attending population that has gone this route.

 

[sdilley14]

Sometimes debt is cheaper than paying cash. We bought a used car recently and got a .9% loan. There are plenty of ways to beat that in investments so paying cash didn't make sense. I like being debt-free as much as anyone, but there's nothing inherently wrong with it.

Agreed. I have a car loan right now at 2%. I feel like cash in hand + interest earning potential is worth more than paying off a 2% loan, so I've been content just making minimum payments on that loan.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

Not a real loan? You have no intentions of ever paying it off? Really, lots of people in this world that want someting for nothing.

You have no right to judge me like that.

I pay £600 each month in income tax so I think I make a worthy contribution. It's a student loan and millions of people like me are paying the minimum. If I was only 2 years older I would have gone to uni at the time of student grants which were not expected to be paid back. So please don't judge me in such s condescending way.

 

[ProjectManager101]

Yes savings are good, but if you make 5% on a £1000 savings, but pay 10% interest on a £1000 loan, you'd be better off paying that loan off early.
We always made sure our mortgage allowed us to make over payments.
Part of the reason I finished off my mortgage in my early 30's.

My intention is to have savings in cash first. I rather have $30K in cash and $15K in debt than have $5K in cash and no debt. I do not consider interest earned in savings, that just does not work. I consider money coming in for real.

 

[jca24]

You have no right to judge me like that.

I pay £600 each month in income tax so I think I make a worthy contribution. It's a student loan and millions of people like me are paying the minimum. If I was only 2 years older I would have gone to uni at the time of student grants which were not expected to be paid back. So please don't judge me in such s condescending way.

I'm not judging you, I just think all loans should be paid back, that's why they are called loans.

 

[maxsix]

Zero

It's well worth the effort.

 

[SkyBell]

I owed something like $5000 to various credit agencies for a couple years - now I'm down to $800, and that should be gone by the end of the year!

 

[NewdestinyX]

You have no right to judge me like that.

I pay £600 each month in income tax so I think I make a worthy contribution. It's a student loan and millions of people like me are paying the minimum. If I was only 2 years older I would have gone to uni at the time of student grants which were not expected to be paid back. So please don't judge me in such s condescending way.

That's a very typical viewpoint amongst millions of people in socialistic countries like UK. They expect the state to take care of them cradle to grave and their 'taxes' are enough. It's an improper perspective. But I'm sure I won't be able to get through to you. Be a man(woman) and pay your bills! Otherwise the money you took, without intention to payback, is stealing. That's not a judgement - it's the truth. Can you handle the truth?

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

I'm not judging you, I just think all loans should be paid back, that's why they are called loans.

Well I am making repayments aren't I?

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

That's a very typical viewpoint amongst millions of people in socialistic countries like UK. They expect the state to take care of them cradle to grave and their 'taxes' are enough. It's an improper perspective. But I'm sure I won't be able to get through to you. Be a man(woman) and pay your bills! Otherwise the money you took, without intention to payback, is stealing. That's not a judgement - it's the truth. Can you handle the truth?

Oh shut up.
How bloody ridiculous. I do pay my bills, mortgage, own 2 cars and myself and my wife have very good jobs. The loan is from the student loans company and I took it out in 2000. It's non-enforceable and doesn't show up on any credit check. My credit history is exemplary and I am contributing the minimum each month towards my student loan debt.

Get off your high horse and judge somebody else who deserves it!

 

[jca24]

Oh shut up.
How bloody ridiculous. I do pay my bills, mortgage, own 2 cars and myself and my wife have very good jobs. The loan is from the student loans company and I took it out in 2000. It's non-enforceable and doesn't show up on any credit check. My credit history is exemplary and I am contributing the minimum each month towards my student loan debt.

Get off your high horse and judge somebody else who deserves it!

If you have very good jobs you should be able to repay your loans, not just the loans you "choose" to pay off. You choose to buy several Apple toys, you should choose to repay your loan in full. Do you pay your mortgage?, do you pay off car payments? do you pay off your other bills? It's no different.

 

[ron7624]

I have 2 credit cards. No debt. I use one card for every purchase. It's a cash back card and I earn from 1 to 3% cash back on every purchase. I make a payment on it every week, the max they allow. I've never paid any interest on that card, it is always paid up.
The second card is an Apple rewards card, and I use it to buy my kit. I get 3% back in Apple gift cards, which I apply to my next Apple purchase and for my iTunes Acc. It gets paid in full as soon as I use it.
Many years ago, in my 20's I let myself get clobbered by credit cards, but dug my way out and have been cc card debt free since. Of course I have a mortgage and a car payment, but I even pay more than bal due every month.
Steer clear, but it's a trap that most of us have to find out about on our own.

 

[C DM]

I have 2 credit cards. No debt. I use one card for every purchase. It's a cash back card and I earn from 1 to 3% cash back on every purchase. I make a payment on it every week, the max they allow. I've never paid any interest on that card, it is always paid up.
The second card is an Apple rewards card, and I use it to buy my kit. I get 3% back in Apple gift cards, which I apply to my next Apple purchase and for my iTunes Acc. It gets paid in full as soon as I use it.
Many years ago, in my 20's I let myself get clobbered by credit cards, but dug my way out and have been cc card debt free since. Of course I have a mortgage and a car payment, but I even pay more than bal due every month.
Steer clear, but it's a trap that most of us have to find out about on our own.

Why pay every week, out of curiosity?

 

[ron7624]

Why pay every week, out of curiosity?

Once a week I open up my computer to by bill paying folder. Habit I guess and I'd rather send a 500 dollar payment than a 2000 dollar one because I have alerts set for larger withdrawals for personal security.... But no real reason, it just helps me keep a good handle on everything.
My identity has been stolen and recovered without loss 3 times in the past 5 years. My bank caught 2 and I caught one.

 

[The-Real-Deal82]

If you have very good jobs you should be able to repay your loans, not just the loans you "choose" to pay off. You choose to buy several Apple toys, you should choose to repay your loan in full. Do you pay your mortgage?, do you pay off car payments? do you pay off your other bills? It's no different.

I think you need to understand a British student loan. They are not the same as other forms of commercial borrowing.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/students/student-loans-repay

I pay off what is deducted from my wages each month and it would be stupid of me to save up and end up paying more than I am entitled to pay back. My Expedia credit rating is brilliant, I have had no problems getting car loans and mortgages. In fact I have bought three houses since I left uni.

I repeat for the fourth time, I am repaying my student loan, just not breaking my back and getting into further debt just to clear a loan that has an interest rate of 0.9%. My priorities are considered and my bills, taxes, and mortgage are all factored in higher. I am paying my student loan off, it'll just take longer than any other loan and that is fully expected as 90% of ex students do exactly the same thing. It may expire before I reach the final sum too as it is wiped at 65.

 

[macquariumguy]

I hate deadbeats.

 

[Apple fanboy]

I think you need to understand a British student loan. They are not the same as other forms of commercial borrowing.

http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/students/student-loans-repay

I pay off what is deducted from my wages each month and it would be stupid of me to save up and end up paying more than I am entitled to pay back. My Expedia credit rating is brilliant, I have had no problems getting car loans and mortgages. In fact I have bought three houses since I left uni.

I repeat for the fourth time, I am repaying my student loan, just not breaking my back and getting into further debt just to clear a loan that has an interest rate of 0.9%. My priorities are considered and my bills, taxes, and mortgage are all factored in higher. I am paying my student loan off, it'll just take longer than any other loan and that is fully expected as 90% of ex students do exactly the same thing. It may expire before I reach the final sum too as it is wiped at 65.

If you borrowed the money you need to pay it back. You say you earn good money, so why can't you afford to pay it back?
Meanwhile someone else can't afford to go to uni because you didn't pay back your loan.
How do you sleep at night?
#I'm alright Jack!