General Chat

I got the impression from Sylvia that debt she was referring to is people that live off credit or simply live to pay it, for instance I bet we know of someone in the neighbourhood especially when I was a child, that had the best money could buy new settees fitted kitchen etc all brought on credit or " up to their eyeballs in debt"
I always think we are debt free when actually we are not as Rose said we have a mortage however we are of a generation that bills paid first then play later ( if there is owt left) and the pay day loans scares me to dealth the amount of people I know getting sucked in to them is very frightening

well the people I know who are in dire straits Sylvia, don't match your description, and have never touched the "pay day loan lark" in their life...but there you are, we obviously move in different circles.

Yes Hayley you are correct ... after all this thread started about a £300 telly

Our daughter is in a similar position, although she has a bank debit card she has never had a credit card or a loan (she's probably got more money in the bank than us) so there would be no history for a rating agency or mortgage company to look at and she would stand a good chance of being refused.

Well done to your daughter Brian ., clever girl .

If I could go back and give advice, it would be that it is better to buy a house if you can than rent. Buying it with parents money is best - but, if not possible, never borrow more than 2.5 x income.

If you need a car and cannot pay for a decent one, you can buy one for £300 which can let you down and be very expensive - or best to get a bank loan on as cheap an APR as possible. If buses and trains are bad, you often need a decent car to ensure you get to work.

Anything else, "free" credit can sometimes be ok if you absolutely know you can make payments.

And credit cards are ok if you don't borow against them - as DET says, they protect your large purchases.

But Rose makes a very important point. You can think your finances are in brilliant order and within 3 months you can be in terrible straits. That is something happening to a lot of people in both Britain and USA at present time. It is not always reckless and irresponsible people that find themselves in very precarious circumstances. :-( :-(