Debt

[Thisonewillhavetodo]

New to posting, been reading mumsnet for a long time. Wanted some opinions really.

I have a credit card and overdraft, a small income and never seem to get on top of either bill.

Talking to a friend I mentioned this, she asked the amount and then laughed saying it was a really small debt compared to hers (she didn’t tell me what her debt was)

Excluding mortgage, do lots of people have huge debts? I felt bad for mentioning it as she seemed put out. What is considered a big debt? I know it’s subjective if you have no income £10 is a lot to owe.

A big debt is one that you are struggling to keep on top of, so there's not much point in comparing with other people really.

It's also about what interest rates you have. If you have a monthly disposable income after food and utilities and rent of say £250 then a £50 per month interest payment isn't too bad but a £200 interest payment could be crippling.

£50 per month interest would be what is due on a loan of around £30,000 at a nice manageable 2% interest rate but could be the same repayment on a loan of just £3,000 if the interest rate is in excess of 20% which is typical for store cards.

I also consider a “big debt” to be one you cannot afford to repay.

For some that might be £10, for others £10,000.

My biggest debt is my car finance - I still owe roughly £4500.

No non-mortgage debt here.

I have a $1000 credit card limit, which I never hit, and which I always pay off before interest gets tacked on.

We save for everything else, and then buy with cash. That includes cars. We trade them in when warranty is up, and pay the difference between old and new in cash.

I know I'd feel anxiety-ridden if I had debts I couldn't get on top of.

As others have said, it depends on interest rates, amount, income, whether you can manage them, and I'd also say partially on the type of collections personnel you deal with.

I know I felt like I was drowning when I had racked up several payday loans - probably totalling around £1,000 - £1,500. I felt sick with stress most days, and they kept snowballing.
In comparison, I also had at one point around £7,000 in credit cards, and no loans - this didn't feel anywhere near as "bad" as the other scenario, despite the amounts being much higher.

And as a means of comparison, my current debt level is around £25,000, plus a car on finance. (Can't afford to buy one outright, and live out in the sticks).

I've owned between £200 and £45,000 (the latter when I earned less than 20k, I was drowning in it).
£10,000 in debt might not be too bad if you earn 80k pa, and £1,000 might be disastrous if you earn 15k pa. it really is subjective and if you can't keep on top of it the debt is a problem/too big.