Would you move abroad with a debt?

[aroomofherown]

I have a dilemma which I hope you can help me with. I'm Australian. I live in the UK, and I have a great job as a secondary teacher. However, ALL of my UK friends have now moved abroad and I'm dead lonely. I'm single. My job really is the only thing I am staying here for. I have spent the last year trying to build a future here, because I felt like this a year ago - but I've lost interest now because it hasn't really worked out.

I'd like to move back to Australia (or maybe via another country in an interntional school for a few years first) - my family and childhood friends are there and I miss them. Things like birthdays, Christmas, and weekend dinners are such great times and I'm missing out. I have periods of depression and I'm convinced it's just the circumstances. Plus my parents aren't getting any younger.

I owe about £5000 on my credit card (please don't judge me) but part of me just wants to quit my job and go at Christmas and hope to get a job for the start of the school year. Obviously I can't pay off my whole credit card by then. And I won't have a guaranteed job when I quit, although I'm a reasonably strong candidate and I'm happy to work in the outback for a year or so (can't be more lonely than here!) and that will sort me out financially.

Would you go, or would you wait till July?

Or would you do something different?

[diamondsagirlsbestfriend]

Aroomofherown I know that their are quite a few governess jobs going for the beginning of Term One, plus meals and accomidation are taken care of and some give you a fuel allowence. You can get between $500-900 a week governessing, some of them you have to be self employed but not all of them.

[Want2bSupermum]

It wouldn't stop me but I would call up the bank and see if they can work with you to reduce the balance. This will help you pay it off faster. If they know you are moving to a country outside of the EU I would thnk they would be more open to writing off some of the interest or offering you a lower interest rate to help you repay the balance faster.

[mortimersraven]

OP, definitely do what will make you happy!

I moved to China with a variety of debts (card, overdraft, mortgage) in the UK, that I'm currently paying off at a cracking rate, and way faster than I could be if I'd stayed in the UK. Money goes a lot further here, so I have more left over to throw at my debt.

I agree with the sensible poster (sorry I forgot the name) who pointed out that before you quit your UK job you should apply for another card with a 0% balance transfer offer and take advantage of that. I have 2 UK cards and I swap my remaining debt back and forth according to their deals.

[aroomofherown]

Oooh sorry everyone I had assumed there were no more posts on this thread!

I've decided to quit work in April and go back to Australia then, and in the meantime start an Australian-based business. The setup costs, although small, won't help me get rid of the CC debt but in the long run it may not be such a problem.

There are some brilliant ideas here.

1. A governess job would be PERFECT (from term 2 now obviously). Accommodation and a space to work on developing my business until it pays itself
   

1. I didn't know you could ring a bank and ask them to work with you to reduce the debt!
   

1. The 0% balance CC worries me - I've applied for one before and was told I didn't have enough credit history to get one?! So am a little nervous about leaving a footprint although there's probably nothing to worry about if I'm leaving anyway.
   

It's so heartening to read that this does not have to control my life as lots of you have done this!