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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Curious how much debt is normal?

226 replies

Mummabear04 · 15/12/2024 13:02

Just being nosey really to see what's the average for other people but how much debt are you in excluding your mortgage? I have just under 4k of debt between DH and I due to student loans but don't have anything else other than the mortgage (we have put paying back our loans first and only saving a little each month instead). How about you?

OP posts:
itzthTtimeGib · 15/12/2024 13:45

Mortgage, student loan and car. I’m 33

BeTwinklyKhakiPanda · 15/12/2024 13:46

Mortgage, nothing else. Pay cards off every month. Because I'm 58

Twoshoesnewshoes · 15/12/2024 13:46

£165k on mortgage, about £500 on my next account, and about £5k on student loans. Late 40’s.
i like having a mortgage whilst we’re both working as property feels like a sound investment. I should pay off the Next debt though, the interest is probably really high.

Idontjetwashthefucker · 15/12/2024 13:46

For the first time in a long time I have zero debt, and it's a great feeling

SabreIsMyFave · 15/12/2024 13:48

DH has £333 owing on a credit card.

No more debt between us. (Mid 50s/no mortgage./no children at home-left some years ago.)

Had quite a lot in our 30s and 40s though. At one point we had about £25,000 worth of debt. Sold our house and made a lot of money, and downsized. Paid off our debts, and have a decent sum in savings to fall back on if we suddenly need it. (Or if either of our DC need help.)

DepartingRadish · 15/12/2024 13:50

None apart from the mortgage. We got clear of credit cards and car loans at the start of last year, after a concerted plan to try and become debt free. First time in my life not owing apart from the mortgage. Huge relief. But I realised that I'd rather buy and have less, than incur the debt for doing so.

ETA - I'm 45.

Hollyhollyberry · 15/12/2024 13:50

18k in student loans which are going up due to the interest rate, I pay off £120 but they add £220 in interest 😭

EBearhug · 15/12/2024 13:52

About £1500 on a credit card currently, which I could clear tomorrow. Changing jobs just before Christmas has been an interesting time financially- but there are some larger things I'd always buy on credit card because of the protection it gives.

Anotherparkingthread · 15/12/2024 13:53

None. Mortgage free I bought cash. No credit cards. Good savings. No student debt, I didn't go to university. 36 years old.

I am not some nepo baby and I haven't had any hand outs from parents or relatives, bar 5k from my grandmother when she sold up but this was my inheritance early.

I am very debt averse as I'm quite a long term thinker and I hate the idea of paying interest etc. It feels like a scam lol, especially over large purchases. I also don't think university is a particularly good investment unless you have a specific qualification that is worthwhile. I know a lot of people my age who studied art, film, history etc and then failed to find a job in that industry. They have ended up effectively being in a different tax bracket because they will be paying it off for the rest of their lives and it hasn't provided any additional employment opportunities.

harvestdesigns · 15/12/2024 13:54

Hollyhollyberry · 15/12/2024 13:50

18k in student loans which are going up due to the interest rate, I pay off £120 but they add £220 in interest 😭

If It makes you feel better, I have 103k in student debt, the interest alone is £800 month. Despite having two degrees and a masters I don't earn enough to pay it back!

CheeseandWine91 · 15/12/2024 13:56

I have about 10k left on student loan and 11k on car repayments

DH and me have about 1600 on 0% credit cards from holidays plus mortgage

Both early 30s

Jewell25 · 15/12/2024 13:56

Zero. Just a very small mortgage

TeamMandrake · 15/12/2024 13:56

I do all spending on a credit card, and pay off in full every month. I have a government 0% loan for solar panels, at £4k left to repay, but this is cost neutral with the savings my solar panels provide. I also have a loan I took out for laser eye surgery, also about £4k. I could have paid it upfront, but got a 3% loan, and have a better saving rate than that, so made sense not to.

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 15/12/2024 13:57

Apart from the mortgage, we have €1000 to pay for kids braces still but 0% interest and we can pay what we can when we can.
A bit under €6000 in loans but hoping to pay quite a bit of that off in the new year as we are due some compensation from an accident.
Oh, and another €6000 for solar panels over 5 years but should get around a €1200 subsidy for that in the next year. Also, we took that out as part of fixing our mortgage forever at 2% and the loan was only 3% interest. It's still cheaper than what we were paying for electricity before the panels.
We are not in the UK, by the way.

MiddleAgedDread · 15/12/2024 13:59

0 and less than £50k left on the mortgage
only other debt I’ve ever had is a couple of cars bought on 0% finance deals

Spidey66 · 15/12/2024 14:00

About £350 on my credit card.

cariadlet · 15/12/2024 14:00

I've never been in debt apart from the mortgage but I went to uni in the 80s so no student loans.

I have credit cards but always pay them off in full. I suppose, technically, I'm in debt for a couple of weeks each month until they're paid off.

Overthebow · 15/12/2024 14:00

Mid thirties. We have £10k student loan left between us and then the mortgage. No other debt.

OrangeBlossomsinthesun · 15/12/2024 14:02

I am 49. Always been in low paid jobs. Just managed to get a more stable, slightly better paid job so hoping to get into a better position from now on.

itzthTtimeGib · 15/12/2024 14:04

TeamMandrake · 15/12/2024 13:56

I do all spending on a credit card, and pay off in full every month. I have a government 0% loan for solar panels, at £4k left to repay, but this is cost neutral with the savings my solar panels provide. I also have a loan I took out for laser eye surgery, also about £4k. I could have paid it upfront, but got a 3% loan, and have a better saving rate than that, so made sense not to.

Can I ask why? If you pay it off each month with nothing outstanding, why use credit cards at all? Genuinely ignorant about this stuff and curious.

Overthebow · 15/12/2024 14:05

Anotherparkingthread · 15/12/2024 13:53

None. Mortgage free I bought cash. No credit cards. Good savings. No student debt, I didn't go to university. 36 years old.

I am not some nepo baby and I haven't had any hand outs from parents or relatives, bar 5k from my grandmother when she sold up but this was my inheritance early.

I am very debt averse as I'm quite a long term thinker and I hate the idea of paying interest etc. It feels like a scam lol, especially over large purchases. I also don't think university is a particularly good investment unless you have a specific qualification that is worthwhile. I know a lot of people my age who studied art, film, history etc and then failed to find a job in that industry. They have ended up effectively being in a different tax bracket because they will be paying it off for the rest of their lives and it hasn't provided any additional employment opportunities.

If they’re a similar age to you they won’t be paying it back for the rest of their lives, it gets wiped after 25 years. I’m a similar age and have 11 years until it’s wiped, although I’ll have paid mine back before then.

SabreIsMyFave · 15/12/2024 14:06

itzthTtimeGib · 15/12/2024 14:04

Can I ask why? If you pay it off each month with nothing outstanding, why use credit cards at all? Genuinely ignorant about this stuff and curious.

I think you get protection on anything you buy if you use credit cards.

Some credit card companies don't like people doing that. I know a few people who have had their card cancelled for always paying it all off before any interest accrues.

Pretty nasty to do that I think, but a few people I know have had this happen.

MsXmasGGMasterTwat · 15/12/2024 14:07

itzthTtimeGib · 15/12/2024 14:04

Can I ask why? If you pay it off each month with nothing outstanding, why use credit cards at all? Genuinely ignorant about this stuff and curious.

I do this, better consumer protection. Puts anothsr layer between purchases and your bank account.

Wendysfriend · 15/12/2024 14:07

About 2k in a loan. I'm not sure why some are including a mortgage, I see that as an investment not a debt. Did have years where I literally thought I would kill myself due to the amount of money we owed. Credit cards were the devil ! Thankfully we managed to clear them and I cancelled them all, cut them up and swore never again.

TeamMandrake · 15/12/2024 14:08

itzthTtimeGib · 15/12/2024 14:04

Can I ask why? If you pay it off each month with nothing outstanding, why use credit cards at all? Genuinely ignorant about this stuff and curious.

Payment protection, mainly. Also, I get some points. And means I never need to worry about checking what is in each account, etc.