Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Flexible and made to last.

Meet the Other Phone.
Flexible and made to last.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

To think apart from mortgage it is possible to live debt free!?

660 replies

Moneytalkone · 10/01/2020 09:52

Just that really, AIBU to think that it is possible to live debt free, that debt isn’t a necessity in life! Apart from a mortgage I suppose if you want to own a house. Had a chat with a friend who claimed that debt is given these days, it’s almost an accepted/expected part of life? What do you think?

OP posts:
OnlyFoolsnMothers · 10/01/2020 13:11

You/your family might have gone into debt for things but not everyone has done the same
Actually my family never got into debt, I own a home, and what small debt I have on a credit card I could pay off with my savings.
The difference between you and I is I appreciate how fortunate I am, I see my friends struggle to get onto the housing market- they are in their early 30s, earn well and pay minimal rent to live at home. They are far more fortunate than most and it's still a struggle.

adaline · 10/01/2020 13:12

This is not a case of scrimping and saving ....lord so many mn have no idea what it is like for the younger generation!

Some of us ARE the younger generation!

WireBrushAndDettolMaam · 10/01/2020 13:12

Savings, redundancy insurance for mortgage. That's not that hard to imagine, is it?

So what happens when you’ve been made redundant, you can’t find new work and the savings have run out. Redundancy insurance will pay your mortgage but it won’t buy you food or heat or electric. What do you do then? You’ve no income, no savings left. You have nothing in the bank. You’ve applied for universal credit but it doesn’t come through for 6 weeks. What do you do for 6 weeks?

HoneysuckIejasmine · 10/01/2020 13:13

I don't have any either, but I also have no savings because there's always something that needs paying. Luckily our income usually covers it but if not it would have to go on credit cards and loans.

Instagrrr · 10/01/2020 13:13

Of course it is, you just live to your means. We’ve been completely debt free (no overdrafts, phone contracts etc) for over 10 year’s. We don’t have a mortgage yet though so that will change Confused

adaline · 10/01/2020 13:14

The difference between you and I is I appreciate how fortunate I am, I see my friends struggle to get onto the housing market- they are in their early 30s, earn well and pay minimal rent to live at home. They are far more fortunate than most and it's still a struggle.

I am also in my early thirties and own my home. When we bought, we were only earning 30k between us, so pretty much minimum wage salaries.

WireBrushAndDettolMaam · 10/01/2020 13:15

Not my problem. I made sure I did.

Yes but this thread is about everyone- not just you and what you did. We’re discussing how did is a necessity for some people.

WireBrushAndDettolMaam · 10/01/2020 13:15

*debt

OnlyFoolsnMothers · 10/01/2020 13:17

adaline well the average cost of a home in the UK is over £200,000- on your salary you could borrow £150,000 - you still dont see an issue with the cost of living?

Drabarni · 10/01/2020 13:18

We’re discussing how did is a necessity for some people.

You may be, but the OP asks if it's possible, and people are answering that it is possible.

JacquesHammer · 10/01/2020 13:20

Not necessarily. Of course some people did but plenty of others didn't

Well yes, hence the use of the word “or” - it was another option.

So many people see checking their own privilege as a criticism. Just own it. If you own your own home, have enough to save, don’t have to consider money then you are immensely fortunate and lucky.

It isn’t shameful to acknowledge that.

adaline · 10/01/2020 13:22

well the average cost of a home in the UK is over £200,000- on your salary you could borrow £150,000 - you still dont see an issue with the cost of living?

My home cost less than 60k. Two bed terrace with a garden in a small northern town.

I appreciate I was lucky to be able to buy in a cheap area but I did move seven hours away from where I was brought up (SE) to be able to do that. Our deposit was 5k and our monthly repayments are £300. £300 a month where I was raised wouldn't have paid for a bedsit. So I moved to somewhere I could afford to buy.

Homes for 150k around here are big four-bed detached places with huge gardens. They also seem extraordinarily expensive to me and way out of my budget! I can't imagine ever owning a home that's so expensive. Even though we now earn closer to 40k per year between us, we have no plans to move anytime soon.

JosefKeller · 10/01/2020 13:23

So what happens when you’ve been made redundant, you can’t find new work and the savings have run out.

why can't you find new work? Temping agencies are forever recruiting, you can do a few days here and there, it's not ideal, it's not stable but it pays the rent.
How do you think some of us managed between job? Accepting any low pay job - we are lucky, there is a minimum wage in this country so a job is a job, whilst you are trying to find a proper one.

I hate this attitude about "luck".

Yes, obviously, once you have moved in your 3 bed house, bought all new furniture, have your kids, it's a bit late to cut down!- but it was a choice to start with.

JacquesHammer · 10/01/2020 13:24

I hate this attitude about "luck"

Why?

adaline · 10/01/2020 13:24

So many people see checking their own privilege as a criticism. Just own it. If you own your own home, have enough to save, don’t have to consider money then you are immensely fortunate and lucky.

I do appreciate I'm lucky but it's not just luck that enables people to do those things. People make decisions in life and need to own those decisions. Having children young while you don't earn much and live in expensive rented accommodation is going to affect your financial stability going forward, for example.

You're not allowed to say things like that on here, though, and I'm sure I'll be flamed for suggesting that people should probably wait to have children until they're financially stable.

JosefKeller · 10/01/2020 13:25

If you own your own home, have enough to save, don’t have to consider money then you are immensely fortunate and lucky.

but where did it start? Maybe there was a point where you lived with next to nothing, saved when you couldn't afford saving and went from there. Maybe you had a few very tight years to be able to breath later. It's not luck.

JacquesHammer · 10/01/2020 13:26

but where did it start

When I was born

Maybe there was a point where you lived with next to nothing, saved when you couldn't afford saving and went from there. Maybe you had a few very tight years to be able to breath later. It's not luck

No. I’ve never had to worry about/consider money.

Ergo I’m lucky.

Mominatrix · 10/01/2020 13:27

Of course people can, but debt is not necessarily a bad thing.

My father took on debt to purchase a portfolio of commercial and residential properties 10 years prior to retiring from his principal job. As a result of taking on that debt, his retirement income is the same as when he was working so has a very healthy recurring cashflow and built up assets so he does not have to worry about any expenses due to old age, ensured that all of his grandchildren have their (US) university fees taken care of.

It is the nature of the debt and the ability to handle it which determine if it is dangerous or not.

CaptainMyCaptain · 10/01/2020 13:28

I'm 65 and have never even had an overdraft. I had a mortgage on enormously high interest rates in the late 80s but I lived extremely frugally. I still hesitate before buying 'stuff', make my own clothes from remnants and decide whether I really need it and put on a jumper before turning the heating on even though I am financially comfortable now..

JosefKeller · 10/01/2020 13:28

No. I’ve never had to worry about/consider money.

good for you, some of us have. Still managed to live without any debt but mortgage though. It's not that hard.

MadHouseUpNorth · 10/01/2020 13:29

It’s not about luck, it’s about people who never learnt to live of however little they might have. It’s the culture of wanting things. Before the credit cards became popular most people would save up for things they needed or wanted. Nowadays most people have credit cards and it’s easy enough to fall into the credit trap. Attitude has changed.

JacquesHammer · 10/01/2020 13:30

good for you, some of us have. Still managed to live without any debt but mortgage though. It's not that hard

I’m not making the point it’s “good for me”. But then I’m not daft enough to try and apply my situation to everybody.

It doesn’t make you a better person (unless you’re insecure enough to need to be told you are...) to be debt free. It means you’ve had the ability to remain so.

FranticToddlerMum · 10/01/2020 13:30

So many stupid responses, if you live in a expensive part of the country on low wage jobs, especially if certain factors make life more difficult (family responsibilities. Elderly parents, disability, mh issues) then your salary may only just cover necessities, and a run of bad luck (car accident, redundancy, health crises) will mean you can't get by and get into debt. If this hasn't happened to you great. If you think it hasn't happened to anyone you're a moron.

CherryPavlova · 10/01/2020 13:31

We don’t do debt in any form apart from the (now paid off) mortgage. We are quite privileged now but haven’t always been so. If we couldn’t afford it, we didn’t have it.
My husband has a credit card for emergency use abroad or to protect large items/flight costs etc but never used without the money going in immediately.
If we couldn’t afford holidays upfront we didn’t have them. If we needed to borrow for a car we didn’t buy it. If we couldn’t afford lots for Christmas, we had less. It meant we could save and accumulate so we entered middle age very comfortably.
It is hard sometimes and worsened by a hedonistic, must have instant gratification culture. It’s not impossible though. The trouble with debt is that you pay more than you borrowed. It is more expensive to live in debt. It becomes cyclical and traps people.

Instagrrr · 10/01/2020 13:32

In our case it hasn’t been anything about luck, it’s been about making tough decisions, working hard and getting ourselves out of the debt mindset.

We weren’t born privileged nor have had people to pay it off for us...