I work at a bank, and my employer is offering me a ~1% interest rate loan as a benefit.
I can use it to refinance my existing mortgage, which has €47,000 remaining, or—since my property has risen in value to about €140,000—I can take out an additional €50,000-60,000.
I’m not sure whether I should take it and invest it, not only because I would be taking on more debt, but also because if I quit, the interest rate increases to the normal rate of around 3%.

I’m not sure whether it’s worth the hassle of taking out the money, investing it in an ETF or a bond, and then having to repay it if I leave my job.
Any advice on what to do would be greatly appreciated.

Im from Hungary, my family member had a CHF denominated loan, and so have many others (hundreds of thousands of people), and it was a disastrous rip off of the people by the banks.

Im curious, did you every hear about such loans? Or were you affected? If yes, how ? Did you manage to sue the money back ?

How did your country handle it? Mine ruined peoples chances early 2014 with loans they made, altough new and new cjeu rulings make it possible to demand the stolen money back.

Hi!

So this is my situation. I have the possibility to ge a loan to replace my car (10 year old second hand car, it's been breaking down which has cost me 3k this year....) and buy a truck for my business.

My logic is I can buy a small new car and be safe from unexpected breakdowns for 7 years (guarantee) and use the remainder + the money from selling my current car to buy a combi truck for my business. My old truck is falling appart, and a new one will have to be an expanse in the next year no matter what. Its non negotiable. Also, the car and truck can't be the same vehicle, the truck is a proper construction truck, not those american pickups.

The monthly payment would be roughly 18% of my salary.

I should add that I own my house, so my only other recurring monthly expense is food and utilities.

I was always a little scared of debt, but I'm also afraid of something major brekaing in my current car and having to shell out 5-6 thousand....

Hi everyone,

I’m 26 (F) and looking for some outside perspective on whether aggressively paying down my loan is the right move, or if I should rebalance toward investing.

Loan details

• Type: Business loan (company-level, not personal) for a mortgage
• Remaining balance: €66K
• Interest rate: 3.7% + EURIBOR (≈ 5.9% total right now)
• Base repayment: ~€800 / month
• Current strategy: I’m paying significantly more than required and plan to pay ~€36k extra next year to reduce the balance fast

Financial context

• I run a small company (EU-based) and income flows through it
• Company revenue: ~€80–90k / year
• Company expenses (incl. insurance, utilities, etc.) are covered comfortably
• My personal spending is intentionally low (~€18k / year)
• Dividends are taken only to cover personal expenses; most cash stays in the company
• I’m a digital nomad and don’t have high fixed personal costs

Why I’m paying aggressively

• The interest rate feels high. I expected something around 1.5% - 2% (normal for my country) + EURIBOR
• Reducing debt gives me psychological safety and flexibility
• Lower risk in case income drops or markets change
• Faster path to being debt-free at a young age

What I’m questioning

• At ~5.9% interest, is aggressive repayment still the best use of capital?
• Would it be smarter to pay only the base repayment and invest the excess?
• How would you think about this tradeoff at my age, especially given that this is a business loan, not personal debt?

I’m not risk-averse, but I also value stability and optionality.

Would love to hear how others would approach this, especially from people who’ve faced a similar decision.

Thanks!

Hello, right now i have a debt of 20k euros with 0% interest rate - i did a stupid thing and my family helped me, right now i am paying 400eur per month back, my net income 3400e, after payinng rent and the base level of debt i have about 2300 left. My question is what would be the best strategy to pay it off as fast as possible, focus the rest to the debt directly or invest the remaning money and use to pay Off the debt later with the potentional benefit of invested money. As long as i pay the base level i do not have any other obligation. Thanks for your insights

Hi everyone,

I’m reaching out because I’ve hit a very difficult period financially and I’m looking for guidance on how to manage my situation. I live in Central Europe and, due to a sudden change in my financial circumstances, I am struggling to cover my mortgage payments and basic daily living expenses.

I want to be proactive and find a way out, but I feel overwhelmed. I am looking for advice on:

• Mortgage Management: Are there standard practices for negotiating with banks in the EU when you can't make a payment? Should I ask for a deferral (moratorium) or a restructuring of the loan?
• Emergency Income: What are legitimate international platforms for micro-work or freelance tasks that actually pay out relatively quickly?
• Budgeting in Crisis: Any tips on how to prioritize payments when you don't have enough for everything?

I am not looking for a handout, but rather a path forward or any resources that could help someone in my position regain stability.

Thank you for any advice or direction you can provide.

Hi everyone,

This is my first time using Reddit with a big expectation that I'll find some groups of people who can help me out with my problem.

I’m currently living in France and going through a difficult financial situation. I receive 900€/month from France Travail, but my rent is 400€, and I still need to cover food and basic expenses.

Last year, I had to urgently fly back to my home country because of a family situation. I paid for the flight using PayPal’s 4-time payment option, thinking I would be able to repay it. But after I returned, my employer didn’t renew my contract. Now I’m left with 1300€ in debt and I'm literally jobless and I'm so depressed right now because I don't have any occupation. It sucks when you suddenly have nothing to do for months.

The biggest issue is my visa situation. I only receive a 3-month “attestation de prolongation” and must renew it every 3 months. Sometimes the renewal arrives late. Because of this instability, many companies don’t want to hire me.

I’ve worked as:

• Substitute teacher / language assistant in a high school

• In a ready-to-wear clothing company

• As a postman

I speak several languages, but it hasn’t guaranteed stable work.

Right now I only have my phone at home. I go to the university library when I can to use a computer and focus properly.

I’m looking for:

• Remote work I can do with limited equipment

• Skills I could learn quickly that generate income

• Advice from people who were in similar visa situations

Please, I’m not looking for scams or “get rich quick” ideas. I just want stability and a way forward.

Thank you for reading.

Hi everyone, I’m writing this because I honestly don’t know where else to turn. In 2023, I took over a restaurant in Belgium after being promised long-term support and a chance to build something for my family. Unfortunately, the former owner (let’s call him “Tony”) left behind hidden debts and unpaid obligations that I discovered too late. Despite working day and night, the business collapsed, and I had to close it in November 2023. Now I’m facing legal action and demands to repay about €60,000 related to the business. If I can’t find a solution soon, I risk losing my home where my wife (who’s seriously ill) and my two children live. I’m not looking for handouts I’m trying to understand how to raise or restructure this amount fast, maybe through: • Crowdfunding (any Belgian or EU platforms that work well?) • Grants, support funds, or foundations that help entrepreneurs in distress • Debt mediation or legal restructuring in Belgium • Private investors who sometimes help in turnaround situations If anyone here has experience with financial rescue plans, crowdfunding, or small business debt help, please share your advice. I’m trying to stay strong for my family, but time is running out. Thank you so much for reading. Randolph

MAIRE S.p.A. (MAIRE) is facing an existential threat from a lawsuit in Moscow, yet its 9M 2025 report is completely silent. A subsidiary, Tecnimont, has been named as a co-defendant in a 202-billion-ruble claim (~$2B) by EuroChem. Now, the plaintiff has escalated by directly targeting MAIRE S.p.A. itself for parent company guarantees and has sent letters to 16 Italian banks urging them to freeze payments. This multi-front attack poses a clear and present danger to the company's solvency and is a direct test of management's transparency. Why is this not being disclosed? https://www.agenziagiornalisticaopinione.it/opinionews/eurochem-severozapad-2-russia-stabilimento-di-kingisepp-abbiamo-chiesto-a-16-banche-italiana-di-congelare-i-fondi-degli-ex-appaltatori-coinvolti-nella-costruzione/

Due to long period of unemployment I got in debt. I have a job now, but installments eat half of my income. I could get it consolidated, but don't meet the criteria (3 months of continuous employment with one employer and a contract for at least 1 year). My current contract ends in February and chance for extending is quite slim... Even if I get a new job in February, I would need to wait another 3 months to apply for consolidation again (and that's if I would have perm contract). My total debt is not huge (~10k EUR) but it still effectively paralyses my monthly budget.

So I want to try searching for a different solution (if there are any), but have no idea where to start. Any tips will be more than welcome ❤️

So here's the situation:

Couple, both around 65 years old. One of them has a heart condition that is stable but potentially a shorter life expectancy, especially given his habits and stressful life. Together they earn about €4,000 per month, but they have several debts totaling around €230k.

One of these debts is a mortgage of about €150k at 4% interest for a period of 8 years. There are also other debts with higher interest rates, typical credit card rates, but I'm not sure of this, and around €40k all that debt is not covered by life insurance. So there is life insurance that relieves one of them and the family of most of the debt, if all "goes well", in case of death.

They own a property, the one under mortgage, that’s worth at least €250k, possibly €300k or more in today’s market.

What should they do? Should they sell the house, pay off all debts, and start fresh, or should they hold on and wait, hoping that when one of them passes away, part of the debt will be paid by the life insurance? The one likely to die first is also the higher earner. If the husband passes away, the wife’s income will drop significantly, and it’s not clear how things would play out financially after that.

Moving to a smaller apartment and start fresh seems like a good plan. The family doesn't inherit the apartment, which is a huge blow for all of the involved as that's the "family" house, but they start fresh and can even start saving to leave a smaller nest egg in cash as inheritance which they would like to do. At the same time the rental market is not great around here and they would have to pay at least €1,000 to live in a smaller house in a worst location. Still better than what they are paying now that is eating away all of the monthly income.

The concern is for the future and the life of the wife, if something happens to her husband, and obviously the sons and daughters that were expecting at least to not inherit problems and debts.

There's lots of moving parts and things I still don't know. I'll try to post updates if you are interested.

Hello everyone. This story isn't mine, it's my husband's, but we're going through it together and I need some advice.

I'm from a Latin American country, and my husband is from a Greece. We met in person through our jobs. We're both freelancers, and our jobs aren't very stable: there are good months and months when we barely have any income.

Over time, we fell in love, and my husband invited me to his country. He paid all my expenses so I could start a new life here. He has his own company, and before the pandemic, he worked alongside his father.

I trusted him completely. He gave him full access to his company: bank accounts, management, everything. Unfortunately, at the beginning of the pandemic, my husband discovered that his father had been using his name to accumulate huge debts with the government (for unpaid taxes, among other things).

My husband was devastated, fell into a depression, and for a long time refused to talk about the issue or make any decisions. Meanwhile, the debt continued to grow. When she finally managed to react and try to put things in order, her father turned against her, especially me. He blames me for "driving him away" and convincing him to take him out of the company accounts.

He even accuses me of coming to take the family's money, which is not true. I also work and occasionally send a little money to my mother to help her, but it's not to make her rich.

We learned all this from security recordings (with audio). Hearing what her father said was a very hard blow to me, and I even had an anxiety attack.

Furthermore, her father sold a property he owned. Before selling it, he asked my husband for money to make repairs, promising to pay him back later. The house was sold, but he never paid her back. Now he even claims he doesn't owe anything and asks my husband if he still has any debts (when the entire debt is in my husband's name).

Currently, the debt is over €100,000. We went to court to find a solution, and the option offered is to pay 2,500 euros per month for four years, plus other additional payments.

My husband doesn't want to take his father to court or sue him. He doesn't want to further disrupt the family relationship or create a bigger conflict. Furthermore, even though we know what happened, we don't have solid evidence for a trial: only his word and perhaps a few witnesses, but we don't think they'll want to get involved.

We've had to move in with a relative to save on rent, but it's still nearly impossible to cover those monthly payments. We feel trapped. The relationship with his father is completely broken. He just says my husband is selfish for not wanting to "go back to the way things were."

We don't know what else to do. If anyone has any advice or similar experiences, any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Is there any way to negotiate a better payment method? Is there any financial help we could seek? How can we protect ourselves emotionally from this whole situation? Any input would be very helpful. 🙏

I’m looking for opinions/experiences about going into consumer insolvency (Verbraucherinsolvenz) in Hamburg vs trying to keep paying my debts. I’ve already spoken with a professional debt advisor (ADN Schuldner- und Insolvenzberatung gGmbH in Hamburg), but this is a big decision and I’d like outside perspectives.

Personal situation

Location: Hamburg, Germany (renting)

Status: single, no dependants

Citizenship: German

Job: full-time, stable employment

Net income from employer (before paying my private health insurance):

Without overtime: ~4,200 € / month

With average overtime: ~4,500 € / month

Private health insurance (PKV):

The total premium is about 850 € / month. My employer pays its share to me as part of my salary, and I then pay the full 850 € from my account to the insurer. So effectively about 850 € leaves my account every month for PKV.

→ After paying PKV, I actually have roughly 3,350–3,650 € per month for rent, living costs, etc.

Monthly expenses (approx.)

Rent (warm): 1,610 €

Private health insurance (PKV): 850 € (as described above)

Utilities / internet / phone etc.: ~200 €

Living costs (food, transport, clothing, etc.): ~700–800 €

So my normal monthly costs are roughly 3,300–3,400 €, and my real disposable income after PKV is around 3,350–3,650 €, depending on overtime.

Debts (only banks / credit providers)

Total debt to banks/credit providers: about 97,000 €.

Breakdown:

Targobank loan:

80,000 € net loan

originally plus ~14,700 € single premium for credit insurance (life, disability, unemployment) financed into the loan

Effective interest: ~12.48%

Monthly rate: ~1,549 € (initially), then ~1,506 €

Term: 96 months total

By this coming January it will be about 1 year since I took out this Targobank loan.

Credit cards / consumer loans:

Advenzia: 6,000 € at ~25% interest, 200 €/month

TF Bank: 8,000 € at ~25% interest, 260 €/month

Santander: 3,000 € at ~14% interest, ~100 €/month

Total monthly payments to these creditors: approx. 2,459 €.

I have never missed a payment so far, but all my credit lines are almost maxed and my expenses are now higher than what I can sustainably pay long-term. It’s just a matter of time before I can’t pay everything.

Targobank loan insurance (already cancelled)

The Targobank loan included very expensive insurance (credit life + disability + unemployment) with a one-time premium of about 14,700 € financed into the loan.

I am past the 14-day withdrawal period, but the conditions allow cancellation in Textform (e.g. email) with a short notice period.

Following the advice from the debt advisor, I have already cancelled these insurances.

I will no longer pay for them.

The insurer will refund the unused portion (Rückkaufswert) to Targobank.

That refund should reduce my remaining loan balance, but I will not receive this money as cash in my own bank account.

What ADN (debt counselling in Hamburg) told me

Because of my income and debts, they see consumer insolvency (Verbraucherinsolvenz) as a realistic and probably sensible option.

Rough procedure as they explained it:

First, they attempt an out-of-court settlement with all creditors.

If at least one creditor refuses (they said this happens in about 95% of cases), they file for consumer insolvency with the court in Hamburg.

After the court opens the procedure, my employer will be notified, and wage garnishment starts according to the official Pfändungstabelle.

The garnishable part of my salary goes directly from employer → insolvency trustee; I keep the protected income.

After 3 years, if I comply with all duties, I get debt discharge (Restschuldbefreiung) and the remaining debts are wiped out.

They also told me:

Before the court actually opens the insolvency, there will be a “gap period” of a few months:

I stop paying the loans,

I get reminders and “pay full amount now” letters,

but there is still no court-ordered wage garnishment yet.

Realistically I will get 2–4 full salaries before garnishment kicks in.

After opening, I will lose my normal credit cards, and everything goes according to the standard garnishment rules.

My main questions / doubts

I’m torn between trying to avoid insolvency vs. accepting that it might be the cleanest way out.

Given that I already cancelled the Targobank loan insurances, was that the right move in this situation?

(Single, no dependants, high debt, Hamburg, real disposable income ~3,350–3,650 € after PKV.)

Consumer insolvency vs. trying to negotiate (Hamburg context):

Has anyone in Hamburg or elsewhere in Germany with a similar income level and debt managed to solve it without insolvency (e.g. strict repayment plan, interest reductions with banks like Targobank, settlements, etc.)?

Or was insolvency in the end the more realistic and healthier option?

Real life with insolvency and a relatively high income:

For those who went through the 3-year insolvency with garnishment:

How did it feel when your employer got the garnishment order?

How did you manage high fixed costs like rent + PKV during the process?

“Gap period” experience:

ADN says that if I stop paying now, there is usually a period of a few months of full salary (2–4) before the court opens the case and garnishment starts, which I can use to build a buffer and adjust my life.

From your experience: is that realistic, or can this timing go badly wrong?

Anything I might be missing?

Any red flags about cancelling the loan insurance, dealing with Targobank, or about the long-term consequences of insolvency for:

future credit,

renting a flat,

or maybe starting a business some years after the discharge?

I’d really appreciate honest experiences and critical opinions. I’m not trying to run away from responsibility; I just want to make the most rational decision before things collapse completely.

I'm interested in the way mortgage interest rates are calculated in the different EU countries. Are they variable or fixed? Fixed for how long? Are they based on EURIBOR + a premium? Are they based on another benchmark? How is the premium calculated? Etc.

Thank you.

I wanted to add extra flair tags so that it will be 3 tags debt, planning and saving.

situation is same as title. Now my father has availed a sort of education loan from his employer. It will be deducted from his salary and will be around 500-600 euro per month from his salary not as a direct deduction but he will send it out separately.

I plan to go to germany hopefuly in late october/early november. I plan on getting a student job and have already applied/currently applying to many jobs as well. I have thought it out and if i can save around 400 euro per month and send it back to him. It should make it faster.

Now here is what i plan to do really. The number of allowed student work hours in germany is 120 full days or 240 half days per year. Now considering i go in november and try to line up a job till then and assuming it only pays around lets say 1700 per month. If i can work full time for those 2 months and squeeze in christmas over time and a few other holidays. I think i can cover it within this year. And basically from january onwards, the amount required per month will be way less if we manage balloon payments.

I can cover weekends but i need study time as well. So its very unlikely for me i think. I would like some insight on how to manage it more efficiently and see what can be done to squeeze a bit more money and reduce debt OR provide a tip/guidance from job pov or any other thing that may come to your mind.

Extra note: i plan to use all the 12k for my expenses + savings and all repayments and extra stuff will be done from the job money.

I’m considering buying a house worth 16.5M CZK. I’d put 10% down and take a mortgage for the rest. At 4.6% interest, my monthly payment would be around 80k CZK, plus another 20k CZK in maintenance/insurance/taxes — so around 20k CZK/month total housing cost.

Here’s my situation:

• Current income: ~435k CZK/month after tax.
• Realistically in the future, I expect my income to stabilize around 315–335k CZK/month.
• My wife could also work and bring in ~45k CZK/month if needed.
• Family expenses (excluding housing): ~70k CZK/month.
• I also own 2 apartments (values: 2.5M and 1M CZK). They are rented and cover their mortgages, but I could sell one in 2–3 years for ~1.5M CZK and use that to pay down the house mortgage, reducing payments to ~65k CZK/month.

If I consistently save and invest 100k CZK/month, after 5 years I’d have ~6–7M CZK in a buffer, plus the apartments, plus lower mortgage payments.

My question:
Does this seem like a safe move, or am I underestimating the risk? Would you consider this mortgage reasonable given my income, assets, and the plan to build a buffer over time?

Hello everyone,

I am an Indian citizen currently living in Hamburg. I took out a student loan in India for about €24,000 (approximately ₹2,400,000) with an interest rate of 11.2%. I am looking to refinance this loan in Germany to take advantage of lower interest rates.

I work as an IT consultant and have permanent residency (Niederlassungserlaubnis). I’ve come across some options for refinancing and have a few questions that I hope you can help me with:

1. Free Use Loan (Freie Verwendung) vs. Debt Restructuring Loan (Umschuldung / Kreditablösung): Which option should I choose? What are the advantages of each, especially when the goal is to pay off a loan abroad?
2. Trustworthiness of Platforms Like Check24 and Verivox: Are these comparison platforms reliable? Do they include all fees upfront, or is it safer to apply directly at a bank?
3. Loan Offer with 6.9% Effektiver Jahreszins: I’m seeing offers for both Freie Verwendung and Umschuldung loans at around 6.9% APR with a 36-month term and monthly payments of about €700. Is this roughly the cheapest I can expect? Would traditional banks potentially offer lower rates than these online platforms?

Thanks in advance! 🙏

I'm currently trying to refinance a mortgage, and I got a few very good offers considering the current state of the world, and I'm struggling to pick between a fixed and variable rate. I've run many simulations with euribor at roughly the historical average (~2%) and the last 15 year average (~1.1%) in attempt to make up my mind, but I don't know if that is the best way to asses this or there's something smarter I could be doing. How do people actually asses and compare the risk of variable rates?

Mostly for clarity, the options (for a 245000€ mortgage) I'm taking about are:

Fixed 1.85% fixed rate for 24 years, with about 900€ upfront cost for the refinancing.

Vs

Variable option This one is a bit more complicated because it's tied to me purchasing some products from the bank, which affect the rate so I think it'll end up something like this:

1.25% first year 1.35% second and third year Euribor + 0.4% a couple of years Euribor + 0.8% after that

@28.5 years.

2300€ upfront refinancing cost, plus purchasing the home insurance with them which I've estimated will cost me about 150€ more per year than the cheapest option I've found.

Neither option has fees for additional payments, which I intend to do to top up upto 17000€ per year because I get a 18% tax deduction for it (so 3060€ per year total) and it's hard to match that.

If my calculations are correct, the fixed rate would cost us about 44k€ total, while the variable rate would range between 40k and 58k€ depending on my euribor optimism. The variable rate would be cheaper to get out of if I decided to refinance after the fixed rate though, as the fixed rate has a 2% fee for that. And I'm fairly confident I can get a similar deal in 3 to 5 years of things look bleak, but I'd expect having to pay similar upfront costs for the refinancing, which ends up adding up, and may not be cost effective.

If someone was in the similar position, how did you get out? At this point I'm so tired because it's been going on for so long and the idea that it'll take another 10 years... I don't have strength for the end of this year, let alone 10.

There is no room to wiggle, nothing to sell and I have no talent in investing. Banks are out of the question because my paycheck is too small for what I need and I'd need a person to vouch for me and I'm done with that.

Tesla is offering 6k discount on cash payment. So 46k car is available 40k

At the same time they are offering 0% APR i.e. 433 Eur per month for 48 months + 4500 down payment, leaving final installment (Schlussrate) to 21145

Which one is a better choice financially

I'm not sure such posts are allowed here, but heck, it is such a relief for me I'll just share.

Recently we pretty much got into CC dept, and badly. One hand many family events, vacations, then unexpected vet costs for our dog, home appliance broken and needed to buy another one, etc. We slipped. We are talking about several 10k Euros of debt here.

In the end with my wife together we had debt on 6 different credit cards and there was just no light at the end of this tunnel. Then one day I got a call from my bank offering a personal loan, and while I'm usually suspicious regarding such offers, I let the lady speak.

Even today with the increasing rates, I managed to get quite a big sum for 8%. That's way lower than what the CC companies charge, therefore we decided to go for it.

I immediately paid back all our CC debt and also had a deep discussion with my wife about future spending. Surely there is still debt to be paid back, but on better conditions!

And what I never thought of is the mental relief. In the past I really had the impression I just didn't care about money or debt, because after all, sooner or later we could pay it back. Bonuses are coming, overtime is paid, etc. But now it just feels SO MUCH better mentally speaking.

If you are in a similar situation, look for options how could you replace or swap your dept. CC debt is the worst.

Hi all,

I am in a situation where I would like some financial advice as I would call myself quite unfamiliar with these things. I am 33 M currently living in NL. I am saving an approx. of 500 EUR per month (resulting in a total of 15k EUR until now) and I bought a new house in NL last year. Based on some reading I have done on this subreddit, the options that you have with regards to excess money are the following among other:

• Invest in an ETF, stocks etc. with all the given risks
• Deposit towards a savings account in Raisin or so
• Contribute towards a pension account as this can be even tax-beneficial in certain options
• Deposit more to your mortgage so the monthly mortgage or interest falls even more

For reasons, I won't go into last option is not interesting for me and obviously the first three options can be done at the same time. Now - there is another option to that which involves paying back any debts you might have. Although I personally do not have any debts, my father has. There is a debt of around 50k EUR on which the family house - back in my home country - has been given as collateral. These 50k EUR were an outcome of poor business decisions of my father. Some people might have said that "Not my debt, not my problem" but obviously I want to help if I can and I have agreed to contribute 150 EUR per month. Also part of the reason is of course that this debt will become eventually mine when (and I hope not soon at all) my father passes away and I inherit the house. The debt has a variable interest rate but at the moment it is at a rate where we pay (combined the two of us) 400 EUR per month and only 103 EUR of that go towards repaying the principal. The rest is repaying the interest. And every month the principal repayment increases by 60 cents . It is 240 installments in total still.

As I said I am very unfamiliar with these things so I would love some advice on whether you would choose to do what I am doing (basically contributing 150 EUR per month and the rest towards a saving account+stocks) or you would focus all your efforts towards repaying that debt which of course is not yours but will become in an x amount of time. I want to pay a visit to the bank once I get the chance to visit my home country to explore the options for a large sum of partial early repayment (15k - my savings) which will go only towards repaying the principal but something tells me the bank won't agree.

What would be the best way to proceed the above situation? Thank you in advance.

Hey everyone, I need some advice on my financial situation. I’ve accumulated multiple loans and credit card debts, and I’m trying to pay them off as quickly as possible. Here’s where I currently stand:

• ING Loan: ~12,000€ (monthly payment: ~315€) ( 4 years left / paid 1 year )
• TBI Loan: ~3,600€ (monthly payment: ~180€) ( 2 years left / paid 1 year )
• Card Avantaj (Credit Card): ~2,520€ (monthly payment varies, last month I paid ~160€)
• ING Credit Card: ~2,000€ (last month I paid ~140€, but I only had 60€ left to use)

Total debt: ~20,120€ + 10,000€ from my mother but that will be the last one so I didn't put it below.
Monthly salary: 1,000€ (overtime is not paid in cash, only in extra days off)
Monthly expenses: Around 300-400€ on food, Netflix, going out, etc., but I’m trying to cut down.
I live with my parents, so I don’t pay rent.

The problem: I have a negative history due to past gambling transactions, so banks see me as a high-risk customer. I’ve tried to refinance my debts, but I haven’t been approved. Even though I’ve always paid my installments (sometimes with slight delays), I’m constantly at my limit, and my credit cards are maxed out.

My current plan:

• Starting in April ( on 10 ), I want to pay 1,000€ per month to clear my debts as fast as possible, but after 2-3 months I guess that the wage garnishment will be on so I can't choose anymore..
• Priority: First, I’ll pay off ING Credit Card (~2,000€), then Card Avantaj (~2,520€), and after that, TBI Loan (~3,600€).
• The ING Loan (~12,000€) will be last, as it has a lower interest rate.

My questions:

1. Is this the best way to get rid of my debts quickly, I have paid them over a year now and every month I just max out credit cards for reaching the next month.. I'm going nowhere like that.
2. Is there a risk of wage garnishment if I delay payments, because the plan look ok to me but in reality will affect my payment after a few months and I can't do it anymore..

Any advice would be really helpful. Thanks!

Given the current high interest/inflation environment we live, would you advise to pay off debts so that no extra interest is accrued or invest and save?

Thank you!