Would you Sell house to pay off debts?

[Jackjack]

Feeling as though this could be a way out of the mess we're in, could rent a nice house and start again debt free but considerably more careful. I do love our house but I hate the constant money worries, H is terrible at facing up to it and the kids are a blackhole of need!

Would need to know more before making an informed decision. How much debt, how much equity in house, have you done everything possible to reduce outgoings?

If the equity was enough to pay off a substantial proportion, if not all of the debt, and your monthly incomings were enough (post debt repayments) to get somewhere as nice as where you live, then yes, I'd sell like a shot. Once you're in that debt mire it's bloody hard to claw your way out of it. Remember in most of the rest of Europe there is none of this pressure/assumption that you buy - the majority rent all their lives quite happily.

We have about 23,000 of debt credit/overdraft. We have cut back, the only thing I haven't done is get into selling on eBay . Having said that H isn't good at keeping his wallet in his pocket and I struggle to get him to be as frugal as he should be. We have no savings.

We have about 120,000 equity

Id have a word with mortgage provider in first instance to see if you can get at some if the equity to pay off you debt? And then put all your DH cards in a safe place that only you know about! Ive had to do this with my DP, he's terrible with money!

Do you have a joint account? we only use ours for bills. All other money is kept seperate.

One of my collegues had a cc with an interest rate of 35% on it, when she realised she missed a payment and then rang them asking to reduce her % rate, which they did as she was in hardship. She worked full time in the NHS and had a low mortgage but she had a child and reckoned thats why they did it.

You could enquire about an iva too. Especially if you dont intend to move again.

Looking back, is the debt something that you could reasonably avoid if you had your chance again?

If you can't service the debt then you may be made bankrupt anyway & risk losing your home. That's a lot of equity though, have you talked to your mortgage company about adding it to your morgage?

What form is the debt in? Is it all CCs, £15,000 loan on a car, is there something major, like a car, that you could get rid of? Other than that if the debt leel is threatening your ability to pay the mortgage then yes, I would sell.

Take another look at income and outgoing money, and lock up Dh's cards. Give him pocket money until you get straight. And you decide how much pocket money he needs, not him

Can you not talk to your mortgage provider to put the debt on your mortgage? You'd still have the house, just less equity...

Could you downsize or move to a cheaper area?c

Bad time to try and sell a house but if you did, and released the equity, what is that chance that H would try and blow it all?

23,000 sounds like an amount you could manage to clear if you work on it. I really wouldn't sell my house. Do you have secure jobs? Like other people have said, I would talk to your mortgage provider (and tell your H that you are in charge of the finances from now on!)

If you're married to a spendthrift, don't extend your mortgage to pay off his debts. You can't afford your mortgage payments the size they are at the moment & you certainly won't be able to afford bigger mortgage payments. You'll end up having to find more every month and he will run up more debts on top.

I would suggest that you book an appointment with CCCS, National Debtline or CAB before you do anything drastic. They offer free debt advice and will have some ideas for you. But your husband has to grow up.

What you need to be wary of is selling your house to pay off the debts, starting over and then finding yourself accruing new debts but without the assets to cover them. Unless you get to the bottom of why you accrued debts in the first place, the pattern will simply repeat itself. It sounds like you're going to have to do quite a lot of work to find a realistic budget and get your DH to stick to it. In your shoes I would want to do that for a while first before taking the risk.

I would get an equity release to clear the debt. Miles easier and cheaper than selling

NO. I would never, ever enter the private rental market if I had that much equity for the purpose of clearing debt. Private renting is very insecure and often ends up costing you a fortune in deposits, moving costs, fees when landlord decides to sell up.

I wouldn't sell the house. I would instead make sure DH is tighter with his money. Set him a reasonable budget. Remove his card and give cash.

God, no

Rein your H in before you do anything

I'd add 23k on to the house and then start a fresh but be very ridged. You have to take charge of the finances and DH has to be tighter. Break the spending pattern.

I would look at releasing some equity. better to chip at a mortgage than dead money.

Your husband needs an allocation of spends each month if it is his doing. Make him face up to his debts!