Are we headed for a sub-prime crash?

The banks are starting to look a bit edgy…

This isn’t good news to any of us struggling with credit card or unsecured loan debt.  I certainly experienced this last week when I contacted my (previously very helpful) bank to explain why we were going to have a rough week.  They were completely unable or unwilling to give me any leeway on my current account, despite our history of going into overdraft and then paying it off in full.  The situation I described to them was typical for a self-employed customer, and one that they have certainly seen from us on multiple occasions before – we have a LOT of money in unpaid invoices which should be landing in our bank account Real Soon Now.  But they were still unwilling to work with us.

Worrying.

Not so worrying for me, because thankfully I have arrangements in place which will make things a lot easier, but worrying for people who have not consolidated yet, and might be thinking of it.

If you are thinking about consolidating your debt through a *reputable* agent, I urge you to do it sooner rather than later, and purchase a capped rate product if at all possible.  I’m in my late 30’s, which means that I’ve seen this before – the late 80’s/early 90’s boom and bust affected us greatly, and I’m not in a hurry to see it again.  Of course, the situation is slightly different, but the fact that banks are starting to advertise in the job papers for “Repossession Counsellors” sounds pretty familiar and VERY unwelcome.

Living frugally has never been quite so important, I expect, and it will continue to be so.  Those of us who know how to make a meal for four for 75p will do considerably better than anyone used to living on Marks & Spencer ready meals, I expect.

And for those interested?  Here’s my el-cheapo meal :

Leek & Potato Soup (or “Gloopy Soup” as my kids call it)

2lbs potatoes
2 large leeks
handful of frozen peas
Knob of butter
Chicken stock to cover
Stale bread
Deep fat fryer!

Peel and cube the potatoes.  Melt the butter in a large saucepan, add the potatoes and fry for 5-10 minutes until soft and starting to brown on edges.  Slice leeks and add to saucepan.  Fry for another 5 minutes.  Add chicken stock to cover ingredients.  Bring to boil, leave to simmer for 30 minutes.

Cut stale bread into small cubes .  Plunge into deep fat fryer for 1 minute until golden and crunchy.  Set aside.

Put frozen peas into soup.  Bring back to boil and simmer for 6 minutes.

Liquidise soup with stick blender, liquidiser, smoothie maker or squish it through a sieve.   I advise the stick blender, it’s more fun.

Serve in bowls with previously prepared croutons on top.  If you’re feeling decadent, melt good cheese over the top.

Take money you would have spent on takeaway and pay into highest interest debt account.

Feel virtuous as you’ve saved money, not eaten meat (unless you count the chicken stock, I guess, you could do it with veggie stock) and consumed a good portion of your 5 a day fruit/veg!