where has the credit gone?

[winterblues25]

I’ve usually never had a problem being accepted for credit but just tried to increase my credit limit on my card recently and was refused, new balance transfer card and loan applications refused, credit score good, even the balance transfer offers on my credit card which I’ve had for years have been withdrawn??

Your using one example, it also came from setting up house, being on maternity leave, having periods of time when our childcare costs exceeded my salary

this should have been the reasons you used for the debt then. And your aim should be to not use it AT ALL going forward and paying it off seen as as none of those bigger reasons apply anymore. Buying clothes in the Asda sale is just such a false economy tbh. I could never buy in advance of a season.

I’m almost tempted to set up a thread saying I had a rough night and can anyone recommend a good brand of coffee. It would be quite amusing to see how many tangents the thread could spin off into and what judgy opinions and unsolicited advice not related to my original question people would give. Would make a great game of mumsnet bingo

Apologies OP my remark was addressed to the poster I was replying to, as I couldn’t believe anyone could be so unkind as to write that.

I haven’t found it to be a false economy, pulling out coats from the cupboard in September I bought for the children for £10 the previous January sale saves me not just money but time, hassle and stress. I remember last year us having a warm spell a bit earlier than I’d been expecting but was great being able to just pull out the summer clothes for the children I’d picked up in the autumn sales. I only came back from maternity leave a few months ago, we’re now again paying more toward debt repayments again than we add to the credit card. In the period before my last maternity leave after our middle child had become eligible for the funded hours we’d halved our balance of debt.

Don’t worry, I had thought so, I can never get my head around how some people treasure extra financial wealth over the beauty of a life, particularly one as lovely and treasured by so many as our little DD ( as every DC deserves to be treasured)

Look we are clearly never going to agree…but my dc still have shorts from the summer that I put at the back of the wardrobe. They will still fit them next June. Places like Asda, primark, etc don’t break the bank in the first place tbh. Coats maybe more so yeah…but most places these days have constant sales sections. But my point is, is it really necessary to put a £10 Asda coat on a cc??!! Can you really not afford to just buy it??

Looking at further posts of yours I believe your next step is to approach one of the many groups such as CAP Money, who can help you get back on track. They will give you a budget sheet in which you can enter your income, then your essential bills and other expenditure. The online budget sheet will calculate everything for you. From this you can see where your money is going. They will help you negotiate better deals on just about anything you may be paying out for and to cancel any that aren't necessary.
I went to CAP Money when I was virtually destitute, and have now built a much better life with their help.
It is nothing to be ashamed of, asking for help. You have already started the process by being so public about your situation, so get onto the money help groups in your area and get started on your journey.

I’m not complacent at all, it would be great to have more financial security but that would have also come at a cost, ironically even financially more than than the debt we’re in. It was expensive me maintaining my career but now it is paying dividends, same for my DH with his career decisions. The things we spend our money on are all carefully considered

This hasnt been my experience, credit limit increases without asking and daily emails offering 0% balance transfers. I pay mine off in full though regularly. I've just taken out a loan with a really low interest rate for some renovations and it was approved online and paid into my account the same day.

I don't use my credit card for everyday essentials though, just for bigger purchases I want the protection on then will pay it off.

Thank you for your advice which seems to be genuinely well meaning, I do have a very thorough budget and know exactly where our money is going and happy to justify every penny. If we feel we needed to seek help from an independent agency with regard to reducing our debt/interest level then we would, we are far from being destitute and ourselves and our children have everything we need, if we needed to get rid of the debt immediately tomorrow we could e.g just downgrade our family car. However this is not something we feel we need to do at the moment

I don't use my credit card for everyday essentials though, just for bigger purchases I want the protection on then will pay it off.

Same, maybe that’s the difference.

It’s funny because I continuously get letters
and online offers from my bank asking if I would
like to apply for credit cards and loans, as well as reminders that I have x amount available credit to spend

All I can say now, then is to get rid of the balance on your credit card as soon as you can do you can be debt free. Good luck.

Yes we could afford to just buy it and perhaps not put so much into our pensions but it’s not how we choose to manage our money, once DSC have finished uni we should be able to afford both. The 6 year old DC clothes still just about fitted from last year (but looked a bit small) but certainly not the 10 and 1 year old

I think what posters are picking up is what you are saying & the situation itself are somewhat at odds with each other. However we all have different mindsets and comfort levels & people do what works for them.

I think you’re already moving in the right direction, having cleared half of your CC debt. Because you’ve been rejected from a CC application and a loan in quick succession, it’s not likely that you’ll be approved for any further debt to transfer your balance. At least not until these rejections roll off of your credit report. Here’s what I would recommend:

• If you haven’t already, join the Martin Lewis Credit Club. You’ll be able to see when those rejections drop off, and which cards you have a guaranteed chance of getting
• Get DH to apply for the 0% transfer CC in the meantime. Only apply for cards that he is guaranteed to get, otherwise he will get a rejection black mark on his credit report too.
• Track your daily spending. This will enable you to see where there are possibilities to tighten your belts (there always are). The YNAB app is really good, as is The Budget Mom (and her YouTube videos). Tracking and budgeting isn’t just for people struggling to get by—everyone should do it. Amazon and Apple run an annual budget and track their spending too!

Yes we absolutely will when it makes financial sense but at 5% APR and workplace pensions that more than match what we put into them plus the additional tax incentive then for the moment it makes more sense for us to continue optimising our pension contributions. Obviously if they are choking decent rate credit then we’ll just redirect our income and assets to get it cleared

No, it’s not my experience.

Companies are throwing credit at me.

I have one credit card with a limit of about £5k, on which I currently owe £250.

Last time I checked my credit rating it was very good, but could be improved by taking on more credit which I don’t need to do so probably won’t.

I think your reluctance to say the amount you owe speaks volumes.

You also don’t seem to have that good an understanding of credit cards. Paying back the minimum payments is a very expensive strategy.

I agree you would maybe be better with a loan, but it has to go along with a big re budget, otherwise you will just be kept in this cycle.

👌 absolutely, mention debt and people like to make assumptions. Although there are a lot of people clearly just like to have the opportunity to bleat on about their ideology or how well they feel they are doing for themselves, same with any topic on MNs, plus the trollers.. However there is thankfully usually the odd insightful post that makes posting worthwhile

I think you’ve just missed the posts where I have said, it’s 8k and we do make more than the minimum repayments

You have posted about your financial situation quite a few times in the past @winterblues25 ? One about maintenance to ex?

Obviously if they are choking decent rate credit then we’ll just redirect our income and assets to get it cleared

The thing is they are not "choking" decent rates. If you mean it in general. They did for you hence why people are suggesting there is a problem with your finances and affordability. I've just sorted out new large credit 0% card last month and swapping my day to day cc for another because I moved where I do weekly shops. I also just had to block automatic credit upping.
It's not an overal situation of providers choking credit.

Do you make to spend anything on… “fun stuff”? Holidays for example? Meals out?

The same has happened to me, I'm in a good job, as stable as anything can be in the current climate, but due to waiting on decisions about various financial awards relating to multiple health conditions, a pay rise, and a vampire flat that will be sold later this year, my credit rating is now wrecked.

They'll be bringing back the en masse 1930s soup kitchens my dad told me about at this rate.

@winterblues25
I can see what you are saying but you seem to have missed several steps in your financial planning to put money in your pensions.
The strategy of using CC and paying more into your pension only works if the 0-5% rates carry on but its not really a great idea if it leaves you short on essentials which then need to go on a CC.

Here's how I do it.

1. Budget -daily, monthly, yearly

Add all the costs and budget accordingly I use Monzo pots , so helpful and you can call it what you.like eg school uniform, Christmas, car maintenance. Interest is added monthly it all builds up

2.Separate budget for groceries and petrol, there are some useful apps like Jam Doughnut where you can quickly buy a voucher for groceries and save a %
Cant remember the name, but there is another where the money saved goes straight off your mortgage

By putting the money aside for clothing, you have it available ready for sales, you make a bit of interest and crucially you wont be adding to your debt.

1. Start an emergency fund for those awful surprises, things that break like cars, fridges, boilers, minimum 1K

This means you wont need to use a CC if things go wrong

Focus on not using your CC now
24.9% is hideous, there's no real saving on kids stuff if it adds to your debt and I think things will tighten up further due to the irresponsible lending claims.

Set out a plan to pay this off ASAP but maintain a sensible budget for daily expenditure that doesnt rely on CC.

Carry on with current mortgage and pension contributions until the CC is paid off and relook once DSC are through Uni

I do think CC can be useful in budgeting Im not a " never had a CC"person, but like hell will they ever get a penny of interest out of me !