Angeline knew she was in trouble when she couldn’t afford groceries even though she earned a decent wage

This is my story

Angeline has a job and earned a good wage, however, she made a few financial mistakes that got her into a level of debt she was unable to pay off.   

“I just got too involved in credit cards. In the end, I had no money. It was the biggest mistake that I ever made. It’s so easy to get them.  

“I got into strife earning frequent flyer points. I had enough to go to LA, when I could have saved for a holiday.  

Realistically, I didn’t have money for it. Looking back, they also had the highest interest rates.”   

She then took out a personal loan to pay for my credit card debt.  

“At some point, I refinanced my home loan to keep my house and cover my debts. Because of that, I lost the home loan equity, which could have been used for better things – like renovations in my home.   

“The scariest thing – you can see your debt going up, but you just can’t stop spending, thinking one day you’ll pay it off. And before you know it, you owe a huge amount of money, and that’s when the real stress kicks in.”  

Angeline contacted Way Forward who were able to help her get on top of the situation. They came up with the repayment plan and negotiated with her creditors. Her regular payments make sure she stays on top.   

“Now I can see things a lot clearer. I’ve got a budget, and I have a little card that I write all of my expenses on. I absolutely have to follow it, because whatever’s left over is all I have. 

I also make sure I pay all my bills on time every single month. And I don’t get any calls from any of the banks anymore. It’s made a huge difference for my mental health”.   

 On the outside, Angeline says it appeared like she has it all – a well-paid job, a lovely house, a good lifestyle.  

But in reality, she says she is struggling to make ends meet.   

“Don’t feel embarrassed about it. It’s not just you. 

Although it’s a difficult situation, you can get out of it.  

Because I have a nice house and a decent job – people think I can afford it all but I really struggled and made some bad choices. This experience forced me to change and to really look at my financial habits.”   

 

Struggling to pay for the essentials such as food and rent and want to know more about your options? Our emergency funding page lists some of the available free emergency services and funding if you live in Australia and find yourself in financial difficulty.