Large credit card debts

[aibutohavethisusername]

I’m struggling with £10,000 of credit card debts over 3 cards. I’m well within the card limits but it is overwhelming me daily.
I suffer with my MH too.
just not sure even where to begin with getting them to a manageable level,

Have you gone through your finances and written what you have coming in and what you have going out? Do you know where you are over spending?

Yes I’ve been through my finances, Mainly overspending on takeaways and a holiday which I’ve not paid off as quickly as expected.

Are you paying interest on the cards? The first step could be you looking to see if you can transfer the debt to a card(s) with 0% interest so you can make a dent in the debt with your payments. You then need to look at how much you can afford to clear off the debt every month and try to clear it off asap (with no additional spending). How much do you think you could pay off a month?

Have you got them on 0% interest? There are lots of cards offering that at the month so get them transferred if you haven’t done it and at least you’re not paying so much interest then. Make a note of when the 0% runs out and move them again.

How do you sort out your money? I find it easier to keep on top of with two accounts, one all my bills come out of and my other one is general spends.

I racked up a similar amount on cc, I know how easy it is done and how overwhelmed I was but I’ve managed to get on top of it now, and you can too.

Assuming you have cut them up? Check out Money saving expert to see if you can transfer to reduce interest. Go through your bank statements and reduce subscriptions. Avoid all but essential spending and overpay as much as you can every month. Have you got anything that you can sell? Could you get a second job? You will feel better if you regain control over your spending. Can be done.

I’m paying interest one one of them. Even though I have have a great credit rating I can’t get another balance transfer card because I have 3 other cards I don’t use so I have a large credit facility, I am not sure if I should just cancel the other two cards which have a £0 balance.
I could probably pay about £400 a month at the moment if I really rein my spending in.

I haven’t cut them up but two are just in a drawer as the they are on 0% and I never use them. It is the third one that I will have to cut up.

I have nothing I can sell and I couldn’t do a second job as my MH would suffer too much.

You just need to get motivated and make a plan. If you can pay £400 a month off the cards then you can do it! 🌺 £400 a month for 12 months is £4800. Within 2-3 years you could be debt free. As you pay off the cards and see the balance going down you will feel even more motivated to pay the debt off. Make a plan and stick to it. Good luck!

I have the same but it's interest free and on one card.

Pay the interest one off first as fast as you can.

The interest free element is obviously cheaper than a loan so treat it as a loan, set up a direct debit (mine is £500 a month) and pay it off as if it was a loan.

Thank you everyone. Writing it down really helps.

Close all cards with a zero balance. Reduce balance on all remaining cards. Leave it a months/2 months and then apply for a balance transfer on the card that accrues interest.

Before you close the unused card accounts, check if any of them do any 0% deals for existing customers because they usually do.

Then you can get all the debt on 0% and if you keep up the regular payments the debt will really start to come down. Any you've not paid off when the deal ends can usually be transferred again.

To reduce money spent on takeaways, can you keep similar food in from supermarkets or get the Dine in style meal deals so it's still a treat and no effort but much cheaper.

Or make very quick and easy meals like cheese on toast?

Check emails as 0% deals usually get offererd by your current cards too. We did this when we lived abroad and couldn't open new credit cards our existing ones always offering deals and no checks.

Just seen above poster advised the same.

Exactly this, I’ve bounced my balances around on existing cards offering 0% deals to get on top of the balances, they do tend to offer those deals to existing customers so if you can keep the cards only for this purpose it’s useful.

I have less credit card debt than you (£5k) but it doesn't worry me as I've always played around with debt to an extent. You need to be organised with. Spreadsheet so you can track balances. See when the 0% offers expire and make sure you're paying them off first (or ones with interest). Hammer money into them and pay min balance on others. But meantime don't spend anymore.

1. Move money from the card with interest to one of your ‘empty’ cards if you can do this at 0% or if the rate on the ‘empty’ card is less.
2. If all amounts end up on 0% cards, pay as much as you can each month on the one where the 0% expires first and the minimum amount on the others. When the first card is paid off, repeat with card 2.
3. Continue moving the amounts from card to card to keep them all at 0%. Continue paying as much as you can while doing this - it’s not a ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ exercise.
4. If you can’t get all the amounts due onto a 0% card, prioritise paying off the interest bearing card. Pay as much as you can on that card and the minimum amount on the other two.
5. It goes without saying (and you’ve already recognised), do not put any new spending on any of the cards.
6. As each card is paid off, consider whether you should close it. Ask yourself if you need (not want) 5 credit cards.

OP.

Your being "within the card limits" is irrelevant - just because someone will lend you money, doesn't mean it's a good idea or manageable. They'll lend you every penny you are willing to take, because financial institutions make a lot of money from people like you. Stop giving them more of your money than you need to!

You know where to "begin to get them to a manageable level". You've said it yourself - you need to cut back, pay it all back, and you need to stop ordering take aways and going on holidays using money you don't have.

Get rid of the credit cards that have £0 on them. You don't want extra debt, you don't need debt. Pay off the one you are in debt on, and re-frame credit cards as for emergency or smart purchases only (i.e. those you spend on to get extra protection as the buyer, but which you pay off immediately once it's on there).

If you want to pay off your debt quicker, you may need to get a second job. If it's making you feel "overwhelmed" every day, you're already at crisis point, and your MH health issues might need to take a back burner while you do baby sitting, go for a promotion, take a zero hours contract around your main job etc. - it's a sad reality but that's what you do if you've got yourself into debt and are feeling so overwhelmed it's affecting your daily life. Get yourself out of the hole you've put yourself in and this time next year you won't have that daily debt cloud hovering above your head.

I’d love to be able to take a second job or work more hours but it just is not advisable for me.

I think you will feel better if you have a plan.

Look up snowball method and avalanche method.

Also the debt free wannabe forums on money saving expert are very non- judgemental and motivating

The good thing is your credit cards debts were due to unnecessary spending I.e takeaways and holidays. So not debts incurred on necessary day to day spending. I would cut the cards up and work hard to get the balances down as quickly as possible.

Get some help from Citizens Advice or a debt advice charity (do not use a service that charges an admin fee). This type of enquiry is their bread and butter.

Look at the entitledto website to check if you are eligible for any benefits.

I’ve made some progress. The credit card I was paying interest on, I’ve been able to move the majority to a 0% on my other card and the rest of the balance has moved to a much lower interest rate on another card. So that’s really pleased me this afternoon. Once the transfers go through I shall be cutting that one up.

That’s fab! Well done. It’s a horrible situation to be in and the feeling isn’t nice…. I currently have nearing £4k in debt due to dh not working atm. I hate it! But slowly chipping away.

Don’t just cut it up - that still leaves the account active. Instead close it with the provider so you can’t use it (unless you have good reason for needing it).